Co-Curricular Activities

The aim of any successful school must be to develop the whole person as well as stretching them academically.

Team sports flourish at the Royal School and it is well renowned for its rugby and hockey successes. The Royal School was one of the first schools in the province to adopt the game of Rugby Football with the 1st XV being the winners of the first Schools’ Cup competition which was held in 1875. Since then the Royal School has won the competition in 1977 and 2004 and were winners of the Subsidiary Shield in 1999 and 2012. The School has been involved in hockey since the amalgamation with the Armagh Girls High School in 1986 with players regularly representing the Ulster and Irish teams. The 1st XI squad were winners of the Schools Cup competition in 2002, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2010 as well as winning the Kate Russell All-Ireland in 2002, 2004, 2007 and 2008. Other extra-curricular activities include :-

Athletics

Equestrian

Scripture Union

Badminton

Fantasy Football League

Running Club

Card Club

Food safety and Catering

Shooting

Chamber Choir

Flying (CCF Air Section)

Ski Trip

Choir

Geography Club

Survival Cookery

Chess Club

Hill walking Club

Talking Newspaper

Cricket

Hockey

Tennis

Charity Club

Italian

Volley Ball

Dance Club

Languages Cultural Trip

War Games

Debating

Library Committee

Rugby

Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme

(Bronze, silver and Gold)

Netball Club

 

Orchestra

Peer Tutoring

 

The co-curricular programme is complemented by the school’s House System where pupils represent one of four Houses, which are eponymously named after former Archbishops – Armstrong, Beresford, d’Arcy and Rokeby.

The Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme continues to be very popular with expeditions to the Mountains of Mourne, Connamara, Scotland, England and Switzerland.

Music and Drama have a long standing tradition at the School and continue to thrive and grow in popularity. There is a Junior Choir and a Senior Choir as well as Chamber Choirs and School Orchestra and Band. The annual Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols is one of the musical highlights each year taking place in St. Patrick’s Cathedral Armagh. There is one major dramatic society theatrical performance bi-annually with recent productions having included Calamity Jane, Annie, The Sound of Music, Oliver and Starlight Express.