ST JOSEPHS FOR BLIND NS
School Details
About
St. Joseph’s Primary School for Children with Visual Impairment is a Special National School that provides a broad, balanced and appropriately challenging curriculum for pupils who are blind or have a significant visual impairment. The school’s ethos is Catholic yet inclusive, welcoming families of any faith or none, and it places the child’s ability at the centre of learning rather than the disability. Small class sizes and a specialised environment enable personalised teaching, while additional curriculum opportunities such as touch‑typing, computer skills, individual and group music lessons, orientation and mobility training, tactile art, pottery and swimming are delivered by staff funded by the City of Dublin Education and Training Board, which also funds a part‑time music therapist. The school is situated beside ChildVision on Gracepark Road, Drumcondra, and works closely with the range of therapeutic services offered there, including occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, physiotherapy, nursing support, low‑vision clinics and orientation‑and‑mobility training. Pupils benefit from shared facilities such as a sensory garden, pet farm and library, enhancing sensory development and social interaction. All children are day pupils, travelling to and from school by bus from across Dublin and surrounding counties.
History
In 1955 the Rosminian Fathers joined the Carmelite Brothers on the Gracepark Road campus in Drumcondra and began delivering training workshops for men who were blind. St Joseph’s School for Blind Boys was subsequently opened by the Department of Education in 1960 as a special national school under the patronage of the Archbishop of Dublin.