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 ninth 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.
Beir bua
N. Murray
Principal
St John the Baptist’s College Open Day – A Celebration of Community and Opportunity 
St John the Baptist’s College was delighted to welcome an impressive turnout of parents and prospective pupils to its recent Open Day on Saturday 17th January, which was marked by an atmosphere of energy, enthusiasm, and engagement. The event provided an exceptional opportunity to experience the dynamic learning environment and broad educational offering that define the College. Throughout the morning, visiting P7 pupils demonstrated remarkable curiosity and enthusiasm as they participated in a diverse range of interactive activities, experiments, and competitions. Principal Mrs Noella Murray delivered a compelling address, underscoring the inclusive and nurturing ethos at the heart of St John the Baptist’s College. This year’s Open Day has been another huge success and the staff of SJBC look forward to working with parents and our myriad of feeder primary schools to ensure a smooth and positive transition experience for all new pupils starting the college in September 2026.
EXCITING NEWS FOR OUR SCHOOL COMMUNITY
We are thrilled to announce that our school has been successful in securing grant funding through the Curriculum Capital Programme for the development of a new synthetic pitch! 
This fantastic investment marks another major step forward in our ever-growing sports facilities, further enhancing opportunities for participation, performance and enjoyment for all our pupils. The new pitch will complement our existing facilities, including our Weights Room, and will support curriculum PE, extracurricular sport and athlete development across all levels.
We are incredibly proud to offer such high-quality facilities, backed by an outstanding team of staff with elite sporting experience. Our pupils benefit daily from the knowledge, standards and inspiration of teachers who have competed at the highest level, including: Mr McGourty – Antrim Senior Footballers & Antrim Senior Hurlers Miss Gervin – Tyrone Senior Ladies Miss Lavery – Armagh Senior Ladies Mr McCambridge – Armagh Senior Footballers Mr McAleenan – Down Senior Footballers Mrs McKeever – Mayo and Armagh Senior Ladies, Tyrone Tower Basketballers Mrs McCabe Northern Ireland Senior FootballersMrs Towe - Northern Ireland Netball Coach
This funding will have a lasting impact on our school and wider community, helping us continue to develop sport, teamwork, leadership and excellence both on and off the field.
More updates to follow — exciting times ahead!
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