This plaque appears at the entrance to Bishop Ahern National school.

The foundation stone of Bishop Ahern National School was laid in 1986 and the school was officially opened in 1988 with 96 pupils on the roll book.  Named in honour of past pupil John Ahern, Bishop of the Diocese of Cloyne from 1956-1986, the school is situated above the location of the prefabs.

THE HISTORY OF OUR SCHOOL

Leamlara Old School was built in 1847 as part of the Famine Relief scheme and after a span of 120 years it closed its doors in 1967. Adjacent to the old school is the building known as the Teacher’s House. It was built in 1905 for the principal teacher of the time, Mr. Ahern, and the subsequent principal, Mr. Neville. The building was sold in the 1970s.

The Prefab (1967 – 1987)

At a time when small schools were being amalgamated, local people were determined to keep the identity of Leamlara alive by keeping a school open. The site of the new school, a prefab, was where the basketball court now stands. Erected in 1967, it had indoor toilets and two classrooms. It was, at the time, a state-of-the-art building. Principals were Mr. Browne, Mr. Tadhg Buckley, Mr. Con Barry and Mr. Séamus Healy. The teacher of the four junior classes was Ms. Anne Fitzgerald, Ballyedmund, who taught in the prefab from 1969 – 1977.

At a time when small schools were being amalgamated, local people were determined to keep the identity of Leamlara alive by keeping a school open. The site of the new school, a prefab, was where the basketball court now stands. Erected in 1967, it had indoor toilets and two classrooms. It was, at the time, a state-of-the-art building. Principals were Mr. Browne, Mr. Tadhg Buckley, Mr. Con Barry and Mr. Séamus Healy. The teacher of the four junior classes was Ms. Anne Fitzgerald, Ballyedmund, who taught in the prefab from 1969 – 1977.

Bishop Ahern National School (1987)

During 1986 and 1987, while the building of Bishop Ahern National School was in progress, the six junior classes moved to the old school and 5^th and 6^th were taught in the gallery of Leamlara Church. Named in honour of past pupil John Ahern, Bishop of the Diocese of Cloyne from 1956 – 1986, the new school is situated above the location of the prefab school. With 96 pupils on the roll books, the school was officially opened in 1988 by Bishop John Ahern and Bishop John Magee.

During Mr. Shane Fennessy’s term as principal the school was extended with the addition of a fifth classroom and an assembly hall in 2010. Two resource rooms were added in 2013, a sixth classroom was built in 2015, followed in 2019 by a sensory room, kitchen and a seventh classroom.

As present, at the latter stage of the Covid Coronavirus epidemic in 2022, we have 163 pupils on our roll books. There are sixteen members of staff – seven mainstream class teachers (Ms. Úna Kirwan, Ms. Lorna O’Sullivan, Ms. Marella Fitzgerald, Ms. Laura Butler, Ms. Claire O’Sullivan, Ms. Maeve Dooley, Ms. Katie Kelleher), four learning support teachers (Principal Mr. Billy O’Connor, Deputy Principal Mrs. Marie Murphy, Ms. Rachel Lee, Ms. Louise O’Driscoll) and five special needs assistants (Ms. Deirdre Ahern, Ms. Valerie Murphy, Ms. Veronica Hyland, Ms. Pauline Joyce, Ms. Mairéad Farmer).  A fulltime secretary, Ms. Sinéad Harrington, has been employed since 2015. In September 2021 Mr. Billy O’Connor joined our staff as Principal.