Laura McConkey

Cathedral Nursery School

Cathedral Nursery School is located in the Lower Falls Road area of West Belfast. They have a long history of participating in Shared Education and Cross Community initiatives with their partner Hope Nursery School which is located at the bottom of the Shankill Road.

This partnership has demonstrated the ability to break down barriers between communities and provide a wide range of new learning experiences for the pupils that attend their schools. A strong aspect of the partnership is the engagement with parents and how the have embedded Shared Education as part of the school life experience for all pupils.

The teachers within the partnership have developed professional and personal relationships which has enabled them to share expertise, experience and resources. Teachers regularly observe practice in one another’s schools and seek to learn from one another in order to improve the outcomes for their pupils.

Laura is an experienced Nursery Teacher who helps coordinate Shared Education. She is responsible for planning, implementing, monitoring and evaluating shared activity across the partnership. Laura is also the Cluster leader within her partnership and also Holy Cross NS & Edenderry NS. She has worked with all four schools to create Joint Practice Development (JPD) Programmes which have addressed areas of need with the schools.