Take the first step is Ireland's campaign to support people who have difficulty with reading, writing, maths or technology to get the help they need.

Taking the first steps on any difficult journey requires courage and commitment – and for those who have difficulties with reading, writing, maths or technology, the stigma attached can prove daunting and discouraging. Often people who return to education say the hardest part was making the first call or taking the first step into an Adult Education Centre.

 

Take the first step is Ireland’s campaign to promote the free help that’s available across the country. And it’s not like being back at school. It’s relaxed and friendly and can take just a couple of hours a week. Have a look at this video.

 

YOUTH SERVICES WORK TOGETHER TO LAUNCH THE SLEEP PROGRAMME

 The Sleep Programme is recommended for young people aged 12 – 14 as an education and prevention programme. The Sleep Programme provides parents, teachers and youth workers with the tools to support young adults improve or maintain their sleep routine.
 The programme sets out ways to prevent sleep becoming a problem. It addresses areas like stress, diet, physical activity, drug and alcohol use in young people and encourages changes to poor sleep hygiene. The programme aims to provide practical information for young people, which they can then implement in their day to day lives.
 The resource was funded by the National Youth Council of Ireland’s (NYCI) Connected Communities programme.
 ‘The Sleep Programme’ is available for download here.
A team of inter-agency professionals based in Arklow, Co. Wicklow, including our own East Wicklow Youth Service, have developed this new practical tool for addressing the issue of sleep deprivation with young people.
The 2015 TY3 group from Avondale Community College took part in the pilot programmes and contributed this module. Our students were delighted to be involved in it's development. Sam Arslan represented us at it's official launch by Simon Harris TD, Minister for Health earlier this year.
 
Speaking at the event, Minister Harris said:
"I was really honoured to launch this toolkit, the Sleep Programme, in Arklow and to celebrate the work of those who have come together to develop this very important aide. We know that children and young people are faced today with busier, more pressurised lives and this in turns means that their overall health and well-being suffers. Although technology has many benefits, it can also have have a serious impact on our sleep and this toolkit provides guidance on how to deal with this.
This is a really positive initiative to help young people and I am delighted my Department was in a position to support and promote its development. I want to thank everyone who has worked to develop the Sleep Programme.”
 
HEALTHY SLEEP LAUNCH

Way2Pay image

As part of our commitment to improving efficiencies and security in our school - while making life easier for parents & guardians, we are introducing a new school payments system, "way2pay". This enables parents/guardians to pay for school events & activities online and on your smartphone.

When a payment is due, you will receive a text to your phone which will have a link that you follow without registration.

You can login to your dashboard on way2pay.org.

Click on the above logo for more detailed instructions including how to keep track of all payments by registering with way2pay.org

Avondale Community College is one of seven pilot schools in Ireland were selected to participate in the Improving Gender Balance in Ireland project in 2017. Improving Gender Balance is a pilot project designed to address issues around gender and physics in schools.

Click on the logo to read the full artice.

 Improving Gender Balance logo

Deirdre O'Neill, Project Officer and Eilish McLoughlin, Associate Professor present a Certificate of Participation to Rosaleen O'Neill , Principal Techer and Geraldine Kelleher, Deputy Principal.

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