Welcome to our journey of becoming a School of Sanctuary. St Mary’s NS will be joining a family of hundreds of schools in Ireland and UK, all committed to a promoting a culture of welcome and inclusion for people seeking International Protection. We have decided in 2022 to make a commitment towards becoming a School of Sanctuary.
A School of Sanctuary is a school that works on providing a sense of safety for those whose lives may be in danger in their own country, who have troubles at home or are just looking for a space where they can feel safe. The whole school is committed to making it a safe and welcoming place for anyone seeking sanctuary. The school consciously helps students, staff and the wider community to understand what it means to be seeking sanctuary. Schools of Sanctuary welcome everyone as equal, valued members of the school and the community. It is a school that is proud to be a place of safety and inclusion for all. A School of Sanctuary develops intercultural awareness through the gradual acquisition of intercultural skills and celebrate all cultures within its community.
We are currently applying to become a recognised School of sanctuary and will keep you updated about our journey. to become a recognised School of Sanctuary, we will need to adopt the three principles – Learn, Action and Share.
Learn: What it means to be seeking sanctuary; this may include hearing refugees describe their experiences first hand.
Action: Decide on actions that are needed in the school to help develop a culture of welcome and inclusion.
Share: Share your findings with the wider community and other schools.
Keep an eye out on all our social media channels of our journey to becoming a recognised “School of Sanctuary”.
