Issue 116 - Lisburn BT25 • BT26 •BT27 •BT28 • BT29
Lisburn school participates in phone-free pilot Friends’ School, Lisburn is one of 9 schools participating in a new phonefree pilot scheme, which will involve more than 8,000 young people across Northern Ireland.
Among those present on the rollcall at the re-opening of Hilden School were: Councillor Tim Mitchell, Chair of the Council’s Communities & Wellbeing Committee: Margaret Hanthorne and Ann Ferguson, both former pupils and co-authors of Hilden: The Story of a School and its Community; Dr Sally Montgomery, Northern Ireland Committee Member for The National Lottery Heritage Fund and Adrian Bird, Director of the Resurgam Trust.
Hilden School reopens doors again
One of Lisburn’s most loved buildings, Hilden School, was officially reopened by Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council recently following a £2 million restoration project in partnership with the Resurgam Trust and The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Originally opened in 1912 to serve the children of Hilden Mill workers, the school closed in 2008. The B1listed site has now been sensitively restored to provide high-quality
childcare services through Little Weavers Daycare. The Tea Room at Hilden Mill also forms part of the refurbishment and will open to the public on Monday 22nd September. Collectively
both businesses will employ 20 staff. A permanent heritage exhibition celebrating the history of the Hilden area is also included within the building. The £2m project was
delivered by Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council, in partnership with the Resurgam Trust.
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The phone-free pilot, launched recently by Education Minister Paul Girvan, will run until March 2026. It will explore the potential benefits of restricting mobile phone use during the school day, with a focus on supporting student wellbeing and improving concentration in the classroom. Paul Givan said: “There is growing unease about the amount of time young people spend on smartphones, and research increasingly points to a link between excessive use and declining mental health among adolescents. “In response, I committed to piloting a phone-free solution that would prevent pupils from
using their devices during the school day—helping them to fully engage with learning, social interaction, and all aspects of school life.” King’s College London has been appointed to carry-out an external evaluation of the phonefree pilot. The research will provide the evidence to inform future decisions. A report about the evaluation of the phone free pilot is due to be published in June 2026. Five of the nine schools went live with the pilot from September. The four remaining schools, Hazelwood IC, Larne HS, Markethill HS and St Joseph’s Boys’ are planning to start in the coming weeks.