History
As the population of the Andersonstown area grew rapidly in the early 1960s, local parishes worked in partnership with the De La Salle Brothers to establish a Secondary Intermediate School to serve the educational needs of local families. While only 65% of the capital cost was funded by the state, parish communities raised the remaining £90,000 required to bring the project to fruition.
La Salle Boys' Secondary School and its sister school, St Genevieve’s, welcomed their first pupils in September 1966. On 5 September 1966, 275 boys enrolled in the new school under the leadership of its first Principal, Brother Cornelius. The school quickly became known throughout the community as La Salle Boys' School.
The early years of the school coincided with the outbreak of the Troubles. In 1969, the school served as a refuge for families displaced by violence on the Lower Falls Road, resulting in a seven-week delay to the start of the academic year. Similar challenges arose in 1972 during Operation Motorman, when part of the school was occupied by the British Army and the school gymnasium was destroyed in an explosion.
Despite these difficulties, the school continued to grow. Originally designed for 450 to 500 pupils, enrolment had risen to almost 1,200 by the early 1980s. Under the leadership of Brother Dominic, mobile classrooms were introduced to accommodate increasing numbers, although this inevitably reduced the outdoor sporting facilities available to pupils.
In 1989, the junior school relocated to the former Cross and Passion College building on the Glen Road. While this eased pressure on the Edenmore Drive site, it also brought the challenges of operating across two locations. What was intended as a temporary arrangement remained in place for almost two decades.
By the early 2000s, the original buildings had reached the end of their lifespan. In 2005, the senior school building on Edenmore Drive was demolished, with pupils temporarily accommodated in the former St Genevieve’s building while a new school was constructed.
In September 2008, after more than twenty years of operating across two sites, pupils and staff moved into a new state-of-the-art school building on the Edenmore Drive campus. In 2009, the school formally became known as De La Salle College.
A special link with the school's origins remains today. Before the demolition of the original building, sections of the gymnasium floor were carefully preserved and engraved with the names recorded in the school's first register in 1966. This display remains a treasured feature of the College, connecting current pupils with those who helped shape the school's history.
Our College Today
Today, De La Salle College is one of Northern Ireland's leading post-primary schools, combining modern facilities with a strong commitment to academic excellence, personal development and student wellbeing.
The College benefits from modern classrooms, specialist science laboratories, technology and engineering workshops, creative arts facilities and extensive ICT provision. The campus also includes the Chapel of St John Baptist de La Salle, reflecting the school's enduring Lasallian identity and Catholic ethos.
Our excellent sporting facilities include a large sports hall, gymnasium, fitness suite and access to outdoor pitches at neighbouring St Genevieve's High School. These facilities support a vibrant programme of curricular and extra-curricular activities that encourages every pupil to participate and excel.
While much has changed since 1966, our mission remains the same: to provide a high-quality Catholic education that enables every young person to fulfil his potential, contribute positively to society and live out the Lasallian values of faith, service, community and respect.
