Seeconnell Project
Seeconnell is a picturesque area near the Mourne Mountains. It has a rugged landscape and on a clear day it’s possible to see the Isle of Man and Scotland. On a dull day, when the cloud is at ground level and the rain is pelting down in stairrods, it’s not even possible to see where you’re going.
In February 2002, I was in the company of a group of people who had a vision for the future of the Seeconnell area. This vision was for a lake and open green space at the site. John McGrady, chairman of the Seeconnell Initiative, was the driving force behind the initiative and he applied for funding through various organisations to get the project up and running. I expressed an interest in having groups of children from local schools help plan the area and contribute ideas for what facilities should be at the site. The idea was that it should cater for all members of the community, from very young children to the elderly and disabled. It would be a living legacy for them, their children and grandchildren to enjoy.
With funding from Entrust, through Down District Council, and a donation from Conservation Volunteers Northern Ireland, eight groups of school children visited the site. These groups were from Clough, Guiness, St Franci’s, Drumaroad, Sacred Heart and Downshire, Dundrum, St Mary’s, Newcastle and Castlewellan. They are all schools within easy travelling distance of the site. The children discussed the plans for the lake and surrounding area, formed a committee to complete a project back in their classrooms where they would debate what should be at the site to encourage visits from school groups and tourists alike. A plan was devised and a representative elected by each school group to bring it forward. The ideas were brought to Mr McGrady who would incorporate some of them into the overall plan for the site.
The sad news came later in the year that Mr McGrady had passed away and the plan for the site was put on hold for an indefinite period. This is still the case. However, again with funding from Entrust, the Managing Director of the Seeconnell site, Mr Lawrence Kelly and a local contractor, Mr Colm O’Connor, Conservation Volunteers were able to do some practical work at the site. Children from 4 schools, St Franci’s, Drumaroad, Guiness, Annsborough Integrated and Clough Primary schools planted a native hedge in the snow, sleet, heavy rain and sunshine at the end of February 2004, in memory of Mr McGrady.
The children thoroughly enjoyed the experience, especially as lunch was provided in the hotel afterwards. A memorial plaque is to be placed at the site, to mark the work of Mr McGrady.