Powerstown National School is situated about two miles east of Clonmel, beside Powerstown Church. There is a long tradition of education in the area, dating back to records of a hedge school in the mid 19th Century. The school has expanded over the years to its current size, with 377 pupils and 18 permanent teachers. There are also a number of part-time teachers who visit to provide learning support to children with special educational needs.

The original school at Powerstown was a two-roomed building, which can still be seen today opposite the church. It is now a family home. It was built in 1853 under the Famine Relief Scheme. The school transferred to its current site in 1951. The two rooms were warmed by an open fire, replaced later by a pot bellied stove. As late as the mid 1980’s, children who attended the school collected coal from the shed to light the stoves in the mornings.

In 1986, the school was extended and the older part became the school hall. There were then five new purpose-built classrooms on site plus a general area for P.E. and assemblies. However, the school population quickly increased again and the hall had to become a classroom once more.

In 2001, the Department of Education provided funding for a temporary building to serve as a classroom as the number of students increased. Another pre-fabricated building was required in 2003 and another in 2005, 2006 and 2008. In 2010, using a once-off grant, a new classroom extension and special education room were added to the school. The final pre-fabricated building arrived in 2013 to serve as a classroom, leaving a total of six pre-fabs on site, serving as classrooms and special education facilities.

Funding for the replacement of pre-fabs was secured from the Department in 2013 and linked to a large scale project to convert the heating system from oil to gas and completely upgrade the heating within the school. The combined project was completed in August 2016 and six new classrooms were brought into use. However, there remains a deficit in accommodation for special education and two pre-fabs serve this purpose. The school also gained a teacher as a developing school and this class is housed in another pre-fab. So despite the building work to eliminate temporary accommodation from the site, three of the pre-fabs have had to be retained to provide for the school’s needs. It is hoped that these will no longer be needed when 2020 construction is complete.

The Board of Management had built up a sizeable “war chest” over years, some of which was the remnant of parish-based fund-raising in the past. With an additional loan of €100,000, it was decided to push ahead with the construction of a School Hall, without Department funding. The Parents’ Council undertook to service the loan. With parental contributions and community and business support, the loan is almost completely paid off and while some improvements remain to be carried out, the new school hall is a testament to community support.

In 2004, Oliver and Andrew McGrath, past pupils of the school, donated approximately an acre of their land to serve as a school field on a long term lease. Bulmers Ltd. squared off this piece with a donation of land from their orchard. Bulmers provided more land in 2008 and gave a further 0.5 acres to the school in 2014 to replace the land that would be put under building. The generosity of these neighbours has allowed the school to preserve its vision of providing adequate play space for the children.

No history of Powerstown School would be complete without mentioning two families. From 1929 to 1933, Ned O’ Connor was principal. His wife, Kathleen succeeded him until 1964. Michael Horan was then appointed principal for the next 29 years until he retired in 1993. His wife, Mary, took over the role of principal until she retired in 2004. This link is continued today as our school secretary, Fionnuala Roche, is a daughter of Michael and Mary Horan.

Staffing

The records for the school are not complete as a number of important registers were destroyed in a fire and others have disappeared. The following records are the best we can provide, based on the sources available. Other reliable information would be gratefully accepted.

Principal Teachers

Assistant Teachers

Special Needs Assistants

Secretary

Cleaners / Caretakers