About
About Our Amazing SchoolA Message From
Welcome from Our Principal
As Principal of Danu Community Special School I would like to welcome you to our school website. Danu CSS was sanctioned in July 2019 by the Department of Education under the Patronage of Dublin and Dún Laoghaire Education and Training Board (DDLETB). We welcomed our first students on 18th November 2019 in our temporary school facility based in the Hansfield Educate Together Secondary School. On 24th April 2022, the school moved into a six classroom school facility on the campus of the Rathdara Community College in Dublin 15.
Our school is a centre of excellence where high professional standards are maintained and where students learn and achieve in a safe, nurturing, and caring environment in partnership with all stakeholders. The well-being of all members of our school community is paramount.
We want our students coming to school happy and participating fully in school life. We recognise Parents as primary educators. We aim to provide purposeful and relevant learning opportunities so students can be as independent as possible and reach their full potential with joy, confidence and pride.
— Pat Doran, Principal
About Danu CSS
Ethos
Danu Community Special School is committed to a spirit of inclusion, equality and partnership in education. The school actively seeks to promote an ethos that provides a safe, warm, welcoming, caring environment where all members of the school community are valued and treated with respect and dignity.
We believe that students learn to the best of their ability when they feel happy and secure in school. The school seeks to develop a sense of community and partnership with children, parents and staff. We believe that every member of the school community has an integral part to play in the overall wellbeing of the school.
Danu CSS is a caring, learning environment where each child is welcomed, respected, cherished and facilitated in reaching their full potential whatever their background, nationality or faith.
Who the School is For
Danu Community Special School, under the patronage of Dublin and Dún Laoghaire Education and Training Board (DDLETB), seeks to provide high quality education, services and supports to children and young people across the Dublin 15 region and to:
Enable each student to develop their full potential
Provide a safe and secure environment for learning
Promote respect for the diversity of values, beliefs, traditions, languages and ways of life in society
Our School Vision
The Background of Our Name
Danu is the most ancient of the Celtic gods. She was referred to as the mother of the Irish gods, which indicates that she was a mother goddess. Rivers are associated with her, and represent the fertility and abundance in the land. The root "dan" in ancient Irish means art, skill, poetry, knowledge, and wisdom. She is seen as being a nurturing goddess, the teacher imparting wisdom, as well as the warrior goddess who does not give up.
Our Patron — DDLETB
Our Patron is Dublin and Dún Laoghaire Education and Training Board (DDLETB). In its Statement of Strategy, "Learn Achieve Succeed", the Board outlines five core values:
- Equality
- Professionalism
- Integrity
- Collaboration
- Innovation