Dear Parents,

On behalf of the whole school community, I wish to warmly welcome you and your child to Good Shepherd Primary & Nursery School, Derry. Our School has served the Waterside Parish Community for over 40 years. Our whole school community takes pride in the fact that Good Shepherd Primary School is a happy, family and community based school where the pupils themselves, staff, parents and governors all have vital roles to play in helping all pupils reach their potential spiritually, physically, emotionally, academically and morally.

An atmosphere of concern, tolerance and respect for others is evident amongst all staff, pupils, parents and governors. Our school ethos is firmly based on Catholic Christian values and this ethos is reflected in our partnership between home, school and the parish. As a Catholic school, we welcome children from all denominations, cultures and traditions.

As a school we focus on ensuring that our pupils are happy, safe and secure. This provides the bedrock so that they can progress in the core curriculum areas, where they can reach their full potential. Here, we nurture talents and inspire our children to be lifelong learners. We firmly believe that strong relationships and routines support the holistic development of our pupils and accordingly, we place great emphasis on developing and maintaining these throughout the school.

A child attending Good Shepherd Primary & Nursery School can be assured of the highest quality of care, a broad and balanced curriculum with specific emphasis on literacy and numeracy as well as very high expectations. As a self - evaluating school, we consistently endeavour to improve and extend our practice. Accordingly, the school has a well-deserved reputation as being an innovative place of learning that works very effectively with all partner organisations.

We are a rights respecting school and this is central to all that we do.  Child centered provision is paramount. Our Mission Statement is Learn, Believe, Respect, Achieve. The purpose of this website is to help you have a better understanding of our school, how it operates and what we offer our pupils. However, no website can convey the real ethos or atmosphere of a school. We invite you, therefore, to come and visit us and see the school for yourself.

Yours sincerely,

Mrs Suzann McCafferty (Principal)