Belgooly students are honoured for raising disability awareness

A BELGOOLY national school has won a top award in an art competition designed to raise disability awareness among pupils.

Scoil Mhuire na nGrast in Belgooly has been announced county winner in the prestigious national art competition, Someone Like Me.

The competition, which is supported by the National Disability Authority, attracted more than 2,600 entries from national schools across the length and breadth of the country.

Now in its fourth year, Someone Like Me aims to raise disability awareness among primary school children and give them a greater understanding of what unites children of differing abilities.

In order to enter the competition, teachers and their pupils worked through a special lesson plan which challenged them to respond artistically and creatively to the theme of Someone Like Me, while, at the same time, appreciating and respecting similarities and differences in people, developing a shared understanding of how we should treat others in a caring, sensitive and inclusive way, and promoting a sense of belonging and connectedness.

The judges were particularly impressed with the submissions from pupils and teachers at  Scoil Mhuire na nGrast, selecting them as county winners based on their insightful and inspirational responses to the theme.

The competition, which offers a range of prizes up to the value of €750 was open to all primary school pupils from junior infants to sixth class and more than 2,600 entries were received from individual pupils, class groups and whole schools right across Ireland.

Subscribe to the Southern Star's YouTube channel, like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram for all the latest news and sport from West Cork.