Conversion plans for Strabane school

A PLANNING application has been submitted to council to convert the former Evish School in Strabane into a home.

The application was put forward earlier this month, and would see the former school on the Dergalt Road converted to a private residential dwelling.

Evish School opened in 1962 and catered for local children from the Evish, Cavanalee, Dergalt, Keenaghan and Ligfordrun townlands.

Due to falling numbers, the school was closed in 2016 and since then the building has lain vacant.

The site currently consists of an existing large school building with external covered seating and bike store, additional external classroom and associated amenity space and parking areas.

The application describes the site as, “in a good state of repair with no sign of subsidence or wall heave and the roof is currently watertight and structurally in good condition, all windows doors etc are currently in fair condition.”

The applicant proposed to retain the existing external finishes of red brick for the majority of the building, while the school’s timber cladding will be replaced and improved.

The roof is currently finished with multi-layer felt, and it is proposed to change this to a fibre cement slate “more in keeping with the rural design guide and common in the local area”.

The applicants will also change the existing single glazed timber windows to uPVC double glazing.

The application will be brought to councillors for decision at a future Planning Committee meeting.