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Empowering Potential
We pride ourselves on academic excellence and a holistic educational experience in Rathdown; our teachers are inspiring and dedicated and our students are committed and enthusiastic.
However, campus development is now necessary to ensure that we continue to provide an exceptional educational experience where our students are exposed to a wide variety of academic subjects and a diverse range of sporting and extracurricular activities so that they can discover and develop their own unique interests and talents. Our ambition is to improve our campus in the most practical, cost-effective manner, in a staged timescale, and with the least disruption possible to daily school life.
This plan reflects more than bricks and mortar—it is a commitment to our students’ futures, ensuring that our campus continues to evolve in line with the high-quality education and care we provide
Read on to find out more about our campus development plans as we continue to cultivate excellence and elevate the educational experience in Rathdown.
Thanks to a very generous donation from one of our families and prudent financial planning, we have a new all-weather multi-sports pitch. This welcome addition to our sporting facilities enables us to offer an extended sporting experience in both the Senior and Junior schools, with all the associated health and wellbeing benefits for our students. The Minister for Health, Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill officially opened our new pitch in May 2025.
Further planned sporting developments include the resurfacing of our sand-based hockey pitch with new LED lighting, and the building of a multi-purpose hall with strength, conditioning and modern changing facilities.
These improvements will benefit every single student in our school and are part of a wide-ranging campus upgrade to meet the needs of a holistic education.
Our science facilities have inspired generations of students but now require complete renovation to meet the demands of a 21st century scientific education. A renovated STEM corridor, with state-of-the-art science laboratories, will support Rathdown's traditional excellence in teaching, engage and excite our students, and provide them with an interactive learning environment.
New updated science laboratories, with modern innovative equipment, will support practical hands-on learning opportunities to inspire scientific endeavour, discovery, and creativity and provide our students with a stimulating and inspirational environment in which to learn and excel.
New laboratories will also allow us to introduce a laboratory environment to Junior School P5 & P6 classes, igniting their interest and curiosity in science, and increasing their understanding of our world.
Our new science laboratories are set to open at the start of the next academic school year in September 2026.
SENIOR SCHOOL: PHASE 1A - REPURPOSING OF HILLCOURT HOUSE
Support for Learning Department; English as a Second Language Department; Pastoral Care Department including a Careers Office, Careers Library, Chaplaincy and Counselling Rooms; Sixth Year Centre featuring a Social Area, Study Centre and Quiet Room
SENIOR SCHOOL: PHASE 1B - PHASE 1E
We will update and enhance Senior School facilities with the creation of four new classrooms (History, Geography, Business and Art); the provision of additional bathrooms, offices and meeting rooms; general renovation and new flooring; and the development of a new school theatre with tiered seating for 140 - 160 people, new sound and lighting equipment, acoustic ceiling, curtains and drapes.
We bade farewell to the end of an era with the closure of Senior Boarding in June 2025. However, we can also look to the future with positivity and enthusiasm as we redevelop our campus for the benefit of our current and future students.
With this in mind, Innismore Boarding House will be converted into a modern Junior School building, employing the very best in educational building design, to ensure that we provide an excellent learning experience in a sustainable environment. Our Junior School students will enjoy a collaborative and interactive education in bright, spacious, flexible and responsive surroundings to enable them to grow and thrive.
