Royal & Prior Comprehensive School

Royal School House:

The Royal School House, Raphoe, (formerly the Royal School) provides weekly boarding accommodation from Monday morning to Friday evening (after classes end at 3.30p.m.), for pupils attending the Royal and Prior Comprehensive School. It is the only secondary school with boarding facilities in Donegal and is located within five minutes walk from the Royal and Prior School. Boarders at present come from all over Donegal and even beyond the county boundaries, presently from Monaghan and in the past from as far away as Belfast.

Headmaster’s Comments:

Headmaster, Mr. D.G.West emphasizes some of those advantages and dispels some of the myths associated with boarding. “There is a misconception about boarding that it would be difficult to keep in touch with one’s family. Weekly boarding is a very different experience from fulltime boarding. Weekly boarding allows students maintain close family contact.  Mobile phones and the Internet ensure daily contact with family members has never been easier”. He believes that boarding is also beneficial in helping students learn to get along with others. “When you are living in a community you have to learn to get along with others. Students learn this in the classroom and in school, but the boarding experience takes this a stage further. Taking a lot of little steps towards maturity and independence is one of the tangible benefits of boarding school. It is never easy to leave the family nest, but the experience of weekly boarding is a great preparation for the later move to University/College.”
 

Parents’ Comments:

Mrs. Judith McKinley, (nee Lyttle) is a past pupil of the school and her husband was a boarder in the Royal School House. Their two children board at the Royal and Prior and they are both very happy with the experience their children have had as boarders. Mrs. McKinley believes that there is a lot to be gained from boarding. The “cozy, homely environment”, allows a student to settle in easily. She sees the benefit for students of routine and a structured day, as well as the provision of Prep time for homework and study in the evening. She believes too that the boarding experience has allowed her children to develop self-confidence and independence and prepares them well for leaving home in later life.

Courses on offer:

The Royal and Prior Comprehensive offer Transition Year, JCSP, and LCVP as well as the traditional Junior Certificate, and Leaving Certificate courses. Prefects and Mentors ensure a friendly atmosphere both in the Boarding House and in the school, allowing new students to settle in easily and make new friends.

Applications are now being taken for September 2010 and there are a limited number of vacancies for September 2009.