St John the Baptist's College has proudly emerged as the standout winner at this year’s highly anticipated Local Women Magazine's Education Awards, securing an impressive four accolades.
These awards are a celebration of the school’s holistic and nurturing approach to education, where academic and vocational achievements are balanced with a focus on the personal growth and confidence-building of every student.
The college was honoured with the following awards:
1. 🏆 Best Post Primary School in NI – Celebrating the holistic commitment to academic and vocational excellence, student engagement, and school leadership which exists within SJBC. The judging panel commended the school for its strong leadership and visionary direction, high standards in teaching and learning across all subjects, excellence in pastoral care and student wellbeing initiatives, engagement with parents and the wider community and consistent academic results and student progression.
2. 🏆 Best Post Primary School, Co Armagh - This award reflects the school’s continued commitment to academic and vocational excellence, personal development, and strong community engagement.
3. 🏆 Excellence in Pastoral Care and Wellbeing – Awarded in recognition of the college’s strong nurturing ethos and pastoral care provision. Through this award, SJBC has been commended for creating and implementing programs that proactively support wellbeing and create a highly inclusive and safe environment where pupils can thrive.
4. 🏆 Excellence in Vocational Learning – This award recognises the college’s portfolio of vocational qualifications aimed at preparing students for real-world careers through hands-on, skills-based learning pathways. The judging panel commented on the well-established vocational curriculum offer within SJBC that includes areas such as engineering, health & social care, digital media, and construction. They highlighted how the school has successfully bridged the gap between education and employment.
Mrs Murray, Principal of St John the Baptist’s College expressed immense pride in receiving these awards. She stated, “We are truly humbled by this recognition. My dedicated team of staff ‘go above and beyond’ every day to ensure that every child feels valued and nurtured and are able to achieve their full potential”. She also attributed the growth and success of the college to the invaluable support received from parents, governors, and the wider school community. These awards reinforce our position as a leading and innovative school in delivering transformative educational experiences for pupils of all abilities and backgrounds.
A Chairde,
It gives me immense pleasure to introduce myself as the Principal of St John the Baptist’s College (SJBC). We are now entering our eight year having officially launched as a new co-educational all-ability school on 1st September 2017. I feel incredibly proud and privileged to be leading such a highly talented and dedicated team of staff who are fully committed to ensuring that “every child is valued, nurtured and empowered to excel”.
St John the Baptist’s College was launched initially as a Key Stage 3 model but as a rapidly growing and very successful school, SJBC was re-designated as an 11-16 school in April 2021. This changed status enables our pupils to remain with us through to the end of their GCSE journey and as the school continues to thrive it is our intention to achieve 11-18 status which would see our pupils studying A Levels within the college also.
Our school is located in the heart of the Portadown community but welcomes students from an array of neighbouring towns and villages. We strongly value our close links with a growing partnership of feeder primary schools with whom we liaise very closely to plan for a seamless transition from primary to post-primary as well as sharing expertise, resources between our local schools for the benefit of all.
We also work in close collaboration with our parents, key external agencies, the parish, schools within CALC (including our Shared Education partner schools) as well as with local businesses, ensuring that together we can build a bright future for the young people of this area.
In SJBC, we are committed to ensuring that each child receives a high-quality education and that they are given every opportunity to achieve their full academic potential. Our first set of GCSE results exceeded all expectations and our pupils scored well above national averages across all areas. Moreover, we value each child as an individual with diverse talents and interests, and our unique nurturing and inclusive ethos ensures that all students have the opportunity to develop at their own pace and follow tailor-made pathways.
Our smaller class sizes enable us to offer more individualised support including a focus on stretch and challenge in all subject areas. We promote a growth mind-set and central to our ethos is a sense of “no labels and no limitations”. We pride ourselves on the delivery of quality care and welfare and this is rooted in the close and trusting relationships which we have with our students and their families. We offer our students a rich and varied range of extra-curricular experiences and opportunities which support their physical, emotional, social, and spiritual development.
Over our first five years we have received a raft of prestigious curricular and pastoral awards/accolades which recognise the high-quality teaching and the caring, inclusive ethos which pervades all aspects of life in the college. In addition, we have won 2 ICT Excellence Awards, and we are one of only four schools in the North of Ireland who have been awarded Digital Schoolhouse Status. SJBC was recently appointed as the first Google Reference school in Ireland. As a very environmentally conscious or eco-active school and we have now achieved five green flags and we have won a host of competitions in this area.
We believe that all young people should develop not just within the confines of the classroom but that they should be afforded as many opportunities as possible to develop strong Christian values, resilience, leadership potential and self-belief. Many of these attributes and qualities are nurtured through our extensive enriched provision.
I hope that you enjoy browsing our website which will only provide you with a snapshot of life in SJBC!
Beirigí bua
Mrs N Murray (BA Hons, PGCE, PQH NI, MSC)
Principal
On Thursday, 1st May, St. John the Baptist’s College was transformed into a vibrant celebration of culture, community, and connection as we hosted our much anticipated Multicultural Celebration Day. The school came alive with colour, music, movement, and flavour, as students explored and embraced traditions from around the globe. Our Year 8 students were joined by enthusiastic pupils from Presentation Primary School, Ballyoran Primary School, St. John the Baptist’s Primary School, and Millington Primary School for a day packed with enriching workshops and cultural experiences. From Bollywood Dance and African Drumming to Mexican and Chinese Fan Dancing, Henna Art, Irish Dancing, World Faiths Exhibitions, Traditional Crafts, and Global Food Tasting — every corner of the school reflected the diversity and unity of our wider community. This event wasn’t just about fun — it was a meaningful step in our school’s journey toward becoming a School of Sanctuary, where everyone feels safe, welcomed, and valued. Through this day of shared learning and celebration, we reaffirmed our commitment to inclusion, empathy, and the power of culture to connect us all. A heartfelt thank you goes out to the parents, families, community members, and staff who made the day such a success — your support brought this vision to life. St. John the Baptist’s College – Proud to celebrate, educate, and welcome all. 
💛Please check out SJBC Instagram and Facebook accounts that showcases our fabulous morning here at SJBC celebrating Multicultural Day💙
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On Saturday morning we welcomed prospective pupils and their families to our annual Open Day. Pupils and parents visited various subject departments and enjoyed the fun, interactive activities in each. Today we received lovely feedback from families including: “Excellent informative morning, students and staff were extremely helpful and welcoming", “The school is warm and welcoming. You can tell how the school community is seen as a family where everyone is valued.” and “my child was welcomed into each room we visited, all staff very engaging and kids very happy” We were delighted to be joined by both Lord Mayor Councillor Sarah Duffy and Deputy Lord Mayor Councillor Kyle Savage in the college. We look forward to seeing pupils and families again soon. Parents and pupils who weren't able to attend this morning, can arrange a tour with our Primary School Liaison Officer Miss Seeley, by contacting us on 028 38 334725. Please check out all the latest photos from our successful day on our social media platforms Facebook and Instagram !!
