In pictures: Coleraine Grammar School 10-year anniversary celebrations

As most people know, Coleraine Grammar School is an amalgamation of Coleraine High School and Coleraine Academical Institution. After 10 years working across two school sites, Lodge Road and Castlerock Road, we have now fully relocated to the Castlerock Road campus as of October 2024.

We hosted our first community fun day in June 2024, and this year we wanted to make it bigger and better. On Friday, we held our inaugural 5K race with fantastic support from the school and wider running community.

ChampionChip Ireland tracked runners' times, and over 200 athletes competed across three events: the 5K, 2K, and a 1K fun run. Our challenging cross-country route made full use of the school grounds, including the running track, sports fields, and rowing pavilion. The sun was shining, spirits were high, music was pumping, and our MC for the evening, Peter Jack, got everyone in the mood for a great race.

Afterward, we enjoyed a barbecue while runners socialised and posed for photos with friends and their awards. A huge thanks to our prize sponsors, including Basalt6, Ivan Wilson Texaco, CHS Old Girls Association, Larkhill Service Station, Score Football Centres, Network Auto Store Ltd., FCS Services Ltd., and Parts Doc Ltd.

On Saturday, the weather wasn’t quite as kind but that didn’t stop the fun! First on site were the tractors for our tractor run. Over 30 tractors rolled up and down the driveway and parked proudly in the school quad. Once everyone had arrived, Cecil, our long-serving groundskeeper, led the convoy around town and through the countryside before returning to school for hot dogs or burgers from the barbecue, and a browse through our lawn games, Craft Market, and Car Boot Sale.

There was homemade wheaten bread by Amy McGregor, delicious coffee and treats from Twisted Bakes, beautiful jewellery from Emerald Grace NI, striking art and craft pieces from AJD Designs, lovely gifts from Jose Guoveia, and sculptural metalwork from the always impressive Ian Moran at Metal Moran. Our car boot sale was relocated indoors to the library and gym due to the rain, with some brave sellers sticking it out outside, including Andy McCartney, who sold beautiful plants and donated all proceeds to Macmillan Cancer Support.

The final event of the day was our colour run, which did not disappoint in terms of fun or mess! Our sixth-year prefects led the warm-up for 120 eager runners, who squealed with delight as they were doused in powder paint before and during laps of our obstacle course. The giggles were louder than the music, and the photos captured the joy and chaos that capped off a truly excellent weekend. Apologies to the parents and carers who had to put their rainbow-coloured children into the car for the drive home!

An enormous thank you goes out to our sponsors for the weekend, including those mentioned above as well as Henderson Group, Lynas, and Sainsbury’s, who provided all the food and drink for both the 5K run and community fun day. Additional sponsors and raffle supporters include Exorna Kitchens, The Salt House Hotel, Kon Tiki Boat Bar, Bishops Shoes, Lir Restaurant, Benvarden Estate Tea Rooms, Boots Chemists, Moore’s of Coleraine, Waveney Eye Care NI, Daisy Mae Boutique, Burns Outfitters, Coffee Culture, Morelli’s of Portstewart, Maegden, Infuse Tea Bar, Juice Jar, Yomiko, Avadah Pizza, and Babushka in Portrush.

A special thank you to all the school staff, pupils, parents, and governors who gave so much time and energy to planning, setting up, and supporting the events over these past weeks and months. We couldn’t have done it without the entire school community. Finally, thank you to everyone who attended and supported any part of the weekend. You made it all worthwhile. We can’t wait to see you again next year!