NEW: CBS Kilkenny release statement on new school complex

Staff and students at CBS Kilkenny are looking forward to building on the school's 'strong traditions' as works officially began on the school's new Dunningstown Road site on Monday.

Minister for Education, Norma Foley, announced that the Kilkenny school, currently based on James' Street in the city, would be one of three Kilkenny schools to receive funding as part of 'Project Nore' with a new school building that will cater for 1,000 students and include special classes for students with additional needs.

Works on the new site are expected to take 18 months.

In a statement released to Kilkenny Live on Wednesday, a school spokesperson stated: "CBS Secondary School Kilkenny has served the population of the city and surrounds for more than 160 years at its current location on James’s Street in the heart of the city. This week work will commence on a new 1,000 student school at a greenfield site on Dunningstown road.

"This major building project which heralds a new and exciting chapter for the Community of CBS Secondary School Kilkenny is the culmination of many years of hard work by successive Boards of Management working closely with the Department of Education and the Edmund Rice Schools Trust. In addition, a large number of friends, parents and alumni of the school have provided very valuable support in a myriad of ways. 

"CBS Secondary School Kilkenny has a proud tradition as an inclusive academic school with a unique ethos and tradition. The whole school community looks forward to building on the strong traditions of academic excellence and success in sport, music, STEM and the arts as preparations begin to move to Dunningstown road."

Principal, Tom Clarke, added: "The main focus for school management now is the development of the most modern and innovative facilities on the new extensive site which will provide for the holistic education of many more generations of young men from the city and the county of Kilkenny into the future."

The community of CBS Secondary School Kilkenny looks forward to joining the Dunningstown Road community and are heartened by the positive and supportive welcome and support received to date. A priority of the Board of Management will be to engage constructively with the Dunningstown residential and business communities into the future," Mr Clarke concluded.