SAINT Genevieve’s High School in Andersonstown is celebrating 20 years at Trench House.
The school, which was originally opened by the St Louis nuns with 490 pupils on a shared campus with De La Salle on Edenmore Drive in 1966, moved to the site of the former St Joseph’s Teacher Training College in 2002.
In 1972, the school was forced to close when it was taken over by the British Army. As the school outgrew the Edenmore site, mobile classrooms were added to accommodate the increasing number of pupils. Since then, the school has grown to over 1,000 pupils.
In the 1990s, there was a proposal from the governors of La Salle and St Genevieve’s to form a new Co-Ed school on the Trench House site, a proposal which was rejected by the Department of Education.
In 1994, it was confirmed that St Genevieve’s would move to the site although it would be September 2000 before the first sod was cut by the late Education Minister, Martin McGuinness.
Congratulating the staff and students past and present, Principal Jackie Bartley said: “Congratulations to the staff, pupils, past staff, past pupils, and the whole St Genevieve’s community on the celebration of 20 Years in the Trench House site.
“As a school, we remember today, the wonderful Louis nuns who were pivotal in ensuring the young women of West Belfast got the best educational experience.
“The traditions and ethos of the Louis order continue to this day as we educate, nurture, and inspire the young women in our care.”
