Elaine Loughran

Mercy Primary School
  
School Website www.mercyprimary.org.uk
Subject: Primary Education
Your place of birth: Belfast
Studied at: St Marys University QUB
First Job: Summer Office Job
What it taught me: The great skill of making 20 cups of tea and coffee at once! Telephone etiquette and touch typing!
Family/status: Married to Michael with four fantastic children
Best advice anyone ever gave you: I love the Maya Angelou quote " I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." I think it is the best advice for every relationship, meeting or indeed school life. I hope that in school each child will feel seen, loved and valued. They will take away memories perhaps not what they have learned in the future but that they were special to us and that we believe in them.
Best advice you could give someone thinking of a teaching career: Go for it! Teaching is one of the hardest but most rewarding of jobs. As a teacher you get to know that you have made a positive outcome on so many young lives. Teaching has been described as "Magic Dream Weaving". Teaching is Magic! It is a joy to be in a classroom working with children. Seeing the magic moments, as children gain new knowledge and unlock a new skill. You take so many of your children with you as your journey through life and always feel a connection to them. Teaching is a challenging role. Education is such a wide field and their is so much to learn and discover through action research and study.

Elaine Loughran knows that nurturing relationships are key to creating connections and making a tangible difference for families and children. Having worked in education for 25 years, she has been Principal since 2014 at Mercy Primary School Belfast, as a past pupil it’s a school close to her heart! Previous to this Elaine was Vice Principal, SENco and nurture teacher at St. Joseph’s Primary School in Antrim. Elaine holds a National Pearson Teaching Award 2009 as Special Needs Teacher of the Year. She is a Roots of Empathy Instructor and is trained instructor in Mindfulness in Schools Programme. Elaine is a member of the North Belfast Primary Principals Group, a group representing 21 Primary School across North Belfast who are passionate about supporting achievement and nurturing families.