St. John's officially opened its doors in September 1971, although it actually took up residence a year earlier, when twelve classes moved on-site. Its first principal, Hugh Kelly, took charge at a turbulent part of Derry’s history – the civil rights protests of the late sixties had given way to widespread rioting and August that year saw the introduction of internment. It was against this background of upheaval and unrest that staff at St. John’s went about their duties. In September 2000, dozens of young boys and girls took the first tentative steps in their formal education, when they turned up for class as Year 1 students at St. John’s in Creggan. Wide-eyed and innocent, uncertain and perhaps apprehensive, they were too young and too “new” to appreciate the improvement work that had begun around them.

One year previously, the school had embarked on a £4m building programme which would have dramatically transformed their surroundings by the time these youngsters moved onto the next stage in the learning process – whatever that might be. The Minister for Education had announced a review of the Transfer Procedure and one way or another, its outcome would affect the future of each and every one of these young students. It was an uncertain but exciting time for education generally, and for St. John’s in particular, and yet it could hardly be any more dramatic than the circumstances in which the school itself came into existence.

St. John’s Primary School is located in the heart of Creggan, one of the communities that has suffered most as a result of Northern Ireland’s ‘Troubles’. For most of its history, the school provided an oasis of normality for its pupils amid the conflict that swirled around them. The streets outside have seen more than their fair share of death, destruction and discrimination, but in the corridors and classrooms inside, it’s been the priority of the teaching staff to prepare their young students for the challenges that lie ahead – in adolescence and adulthood – and to encourage them to realise the potential which lies within each and every one of them.

St. John’s ethos is child-centred and Christ-centred, which means in effect that its pupils are given the best preparation possible – in educational and spiritual terms – within the maintained (Catholic school) system. The partnership with the home, the parish and the community in Creggan has been a key element in the school’s success. The co-operation and support of parents, the priests at St. Mary’s, and those in the wider community, have contributed enormously to the development of our children.