South West College’s Erne Campus in Enniskillen was honoured to welcome Her Royal Highness, The Princess Royal, for a special visit to recognise the College's commitment to education, sustainability, community and business engagement on Thursday 11 April 2024.
Upon arrival The Princess Royal was greeted by Celine McCartan, Principal and Chief Executive of South West College. The £30 million Campus, based at the site of the former Erne Hospital opened in 2021, supported by investment from the Department for the Economy. The landmark campus is the largest Passive House Premium-rated educational building in the world.
The Princess Royal met members of the College team including Dr Nicholas O’Shiel Chair of the College Governing Body, lecturing staff, and students as well as local dignitaries including the Chair of Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, Councillor Thomas O’Reilly, Permanent Secretary, Ian Snowden represented the College’s sponsoring body, the Department for the Economy.
Her Royal Highness, The Princess Royal is welcomed to South West College’s Erne Campus in Enniskillen by Celine McCartan, Chief Executive and Principal.
During her visit, The Princess Royal toured the state-of-the-art facilities and enjoyed participating in a range of sustainability demonstrations, including a water testing demo emphasising the College's commitment to environmental responsibility and water quality. The college’s work with emerging and renewable technologies was showcased and academic and industry support personnel explained the close links between the college curriculum and economic development across the region together with the college’s work on cross-border projects.
The Princess Royal spoke warmly with college students about their college work, special interests, on-going projects, and aspirations for the future.
Reflecting on the visit of Her Royal Highness, The Princess Royal, Celine McCartan said;
“Welcoming Her Royal Highness, The Princess Royal to the Erne Campus has been a pleasure for me and the wider South West College team. The Princess Royal demonstrated a very keen interest in the work of our students and staff across all curriculum areas and was impressed by the sustainability credentials of the wonderful Erne Campus.
The visit provided an opportunity to showcase the college’s commitment to further and higher education, sustainability, community engagement, the continued development of our local economy in Fermanagh and the wider region. As part of the event, we also welcomed to the College, representatives from schools, voluntary organisations and local industry and businesses as well as cross border partners highlighting the College’s commitment to on-going collaboration and partnership working.”
One of the highlights of the visit was The Princess Royal’s engagement with IT students working on the technology and innovation showcase which included meeting the colleges very own Robots and learning about the curriculum provision and academic progression routes.
Her Royal Highness, The Princess Royal is introduced to Pepper the Robot by representatives from the Engineering, IT and Creative Industries Department
Following her tour of the Erne Campus facilities, The Princess Royal visited the Enniskillen Workhouse which opened in 2023 following a restoration programme delivered through a collaborative project between Fermanagh & Omagh District Council and the South West College. The Workhouse is now a hub for local heritage and an enterprise centre for new business startups.
The Princess Royal met with staff from The Workhouse as well as local entrepreneurs and representatives from organisations who are supporting the project. The Princess Royal praised the collaborative efforts of all those involved in supporting the college's mission of empowering individuals and inspiring learning through education and skills development.
Her Royal Highness, The Princess Royal signs the visitor book at Enniskillen Workhouse
Aine McPhillips, a Foundation Degree Business and Management student from Roslea was invited to recite the poem, ‘On Devenish Island’ by Fermanagh poet, Frank Ormsby before The Princess Royal added her signature to the Workhouse visitor book.
The visit concluded with a ceremonial tree planting of a native Rowan Tree and the unveiling of a plaque to commemorate her visit. The tree which will serve as a living testament to the colleges enduring commitment to sustainability and community stewardship.
Her Royal Highness, The Princess Royal was presented with a number of gifts from South West College students, Linda Thompson from Enniskillen and Jamie Livingston from Portadown during her visit to the Erne Campus.
Ahead of her departure from the campus, The Royal Princess was presented with a specially commissioned artwork piece from a local artist by Erne Campus Foundation Degree students, Linda Thompson and Jamie Livingston.