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Since its foundation, the Loreto Institute has been involved in education. With almost 150 schools worldwide and 5,500 staff members serving 70,000 students, Loreto has an international network of schools and colleges.

In Ireland there are over 30 schools under Loreto trusteeship. Of these, sixteen are Voluntary Secondary schools and seven are Primary/Junior schools, and two in Northern Ireland are Voluntary Grammar schools.

Loreto also shares trusteeship with others in five Community schools. Four other primary schools in Ireland and Gibraltar also retain links with Loreto.

Loreto Education Trust
The Loreto Education Trust is the body responsible for these schools and it serves the schools through the Loreto Education Centre. We believe that our schools and colleges play an important role in personal and social transformation.

The person of Jesus Christ is at the heart of Loreto/IBVM education and Gospel values permeate the curriculum and the whole school experience. Mary Ward's core values of Justice, Freedom, Sincerity, Truth and Joy are the foundation of the schools' spirituality.

Discernment, and reflection on experience in the light of the Holy Spirit, leading to action, informs and influences policies, structures, practice and pedagogy.

Services to the Schools
The Loreto Education Centre serves the schools on behalf on the Trust Board. This includes:

• Promoting the characteristic spirit and educational values of Loreto schools
• Supporting the schools in the practical implementation of these values
• Leadership training
• Board of Management support
• In-service at school and Loreto network level
• Maximising expertise within the network of schools
• Facilitating exchange of ideas between school personnel
• Ensuring that relevant research and current information is available to schools
• Provision of consultation with schools on a range of issues.

The Centre organises various courses and seminars for staffs, boards of management, students and parents of Loreto schools.

The work of the centre is supported by the Loreto Network Education Committee, which is representative of Principals, staffs and parents from both Loreto Primary and Post-Primary schools.

In the last number of years these activities have included:
• Annual induction seminars for teachers new to Loreto schools
• Annual seminars for Principals and Deputy Principals of both Primary and Post-Primary schools
• Annual Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation seminar for student and teachers interested in justice and peace issues
• Annual seminar for catechists and chaplains
• Annual seminar for student councils
• Seminars for school personnel involved in school development planning and learning support
• Seminar for staff interested in developing their leadership skills in a Loreto context
• Seminar of chairpersons of Parents' Associations
• Loreto Network Day for Boards of Management, Principals and Deputy Principals
• Training for new Boards of Management.

As we look to the future of Loreto education, we continue to support, in partnership with our school colleagues, the traditional values and ethos of our schools, as well as planning to meet the challenges faced by schools today.

Full-time Officers
Michael Denny - Education Development Officer
Estelle McGoldrick, IBVM - Office Manager

Support Services
Marie Céline Clegg IBVM - Boards of Management and Legal Support Service
Eileen Randles IBVM - Consultant to Management Team
Denise Harvey IBVM - Primary Schools
Angela Powell IBVM - School Properties
Martin Hanrahan - School and Trust Board Finances
Anne O'Dwyer IBVM - Administrative Assistant

Loreto Education Centre, Springfield Park, Foxrock, Dublin 18