THE bid to build a brand new Irish language school on the outskirts of Omagh took a major stride forward last week with the formal submission of a planning application.

Subject to planning approval and external political matters, construction on the all new Gaelscoil na gCrann could be underway by the end of this year.

Work on the new site, which is on the opposite side of the Drumnakilly Road from the current school, is expected to take around 60 weeks.

Funding for the £2.3m development was first announced by former Education Minister John O’Dowd in June 2014.


The Irish medium school has existed in temporary classrooms next to the Dun Uladh centre and the St Mary’s GAA facility in Ballinamullan since it first opened in 2006.

The planning application was submitted last Thursday (March 23).

It includes a state-of-the-art single-storey seven classroom primary school and single unit nursery on a 2.2 hectare greenfield site nearby to replace the existing gaelscoil and naíscoil (pre-school).

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