{"id":368008,"date":"2026-03-27T12:30:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-27T12:30:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/368008\/"},"modified":"2026-03-27T12:30:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-27T12:30:11","slug":"wexford-students-advocate-for-a-more-accessible-gorey-at-annual-school-conference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/368008\/","title":{"rendered":"Wexford students advocate for a more accessible Gorey at annual school conference"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Students from Bunscoil Loreto, St Joseph\u2019s Primary School, Gorey Educate Together, Ballycanew National School, St Kevins NS Tara Hill and Riverchapel National School were invited to Gorey Community School to discuss a range of topics including littering and the need for more facilities for younger people to name a few.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">What once began as a small meeting between the school and Bunscoil Loreto, moving into its fifth year taking place, the event continues to celebrate and promote the role of student voice in school communities.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Each primary school presented the work of their own student councils as part of the competition and created discussion on issues affecting young people and to gain and understanding of student representation at post-primary level.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">A representative of the Gorey Community School student council said the event was a fantastic opportunity for students to use their voice and gain insight into life after primary school.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">\u201cWe hope this year\u2019s event serves as a catalyst for student voice in north Wexford inspiring other schools to come join us next year,\u201d a spokesperson said.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Primary School Students Voice Conference at Gorey Community School. Pictured is Pupils from St. Joseph's Primary School, Bunscoil Loreto, St. Kevins NS Tara Hill, Ballycanew NS, Riverchapel NS and Gorey Educate Together.\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/ad412b1b-bd9f-4daf-9742-42b160a5a7c7.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" data-testid=\"article-image\"  \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_caption1 indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_secondary indo-66f0fec7_regular indo-1d70522a_marginbottom0 indo-1d70522a_marginleft0 indo-1d70522a_marginright0 indo-1d70522a_margintop3 indo-b48c4984_left\" style=\"color:var(--color-grey-60)\">Primary School Students Voice Conference at Gorey Community School. Pictured is Pupils from St. Joseph&#8217;s Primary School, Bunscoil Loreto, St. Kevins NS Tara Hill, Ballycanew NS, Riverchapel NS and Gorey Educate Together.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Issues raised among students included more places for young people to socialise, improvements to accessibility for people with disabilities and more accessibility to healthier food in the town were also raised.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Students also suggested the need for more leisure facilities, emphasising the need for a swimming pool, an increase in cycle paths and bus shelters through the town, more footpaths and a shift to a less car-centric focus in Gorey.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Students also highlighted suggestions for online issues including tackling cyberbullying and recommended the possibility of an online community notice board for the community to use.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Local representatives including Wicklow-Wexford TDs Brian Brennan and Malcolm Byrne attended the special event, to take on board to ideas and topics discussed during the event.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Following the conference competition, St Joseph\u2019s Primary School were awarded the inaugural Student Voice Award and took home a prize of \u20ac100 for school facilities.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Principal of Gorey Community School, Michael Finn praised all students for another successful event, and the importance of the school\u2019s student council. He said the event is a \u201cwonderful addition to the school&#8217;s busy calendar. The sharing of ideas with future GCS students is an enriching process for all involved.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">\u201cThe active voice of the student is a significant feature of Gorey community School, and the student Council play an important part in the functioning of the school,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Michael said sharing ideas with students from feeder schools help ensure the community comes together to look to the future.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">In addition to this, honorary membership of the Gorey Community School Student Council was presented to Deputy Brennan and Deputy Byrne to recognise their ongoing support for student voice initiatives.<\/p>\n<p class=\"indo-ebe0ecc6_root indo-ebe0ecc6_paragraph indo-300db776_none indo-91174671_primary indo-1d70522a_marginbottom5 indo-1d70522a_margintop0 indo-b48c4984_inherit\" style=\"color:var(--color-primary-80)\">Following another successful event of discussions, the school is excited to continue this initiative in future years and to create opportunities for student voice within the local community.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Students from Bunscoil Loreto, St Joseph\u2019s Primary School, Gorey Educate Together, Ballycanew National School, St Kevins NS Tara&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":368009,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[11711,61,60,80],"class_list":{"0":"post-368008","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-technology","8":"tag-alan-white","9":"tag-ie","10":"tag-ireland","11":"tag-technology"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/368008","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=368008"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/368008\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/368009"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=368008"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=368008"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=368008"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}