Call for bold action on meeting digital skills demand

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Pictured at the launch of the North Belfast Digital Hub Foundation are Catalyst CEO Steve Orr; Digital Hub Leader at St Malachy’s College Clare McGrath; North Belfast Digital Hub Foundation representatives Paul McBride and Sir Gerry Loughran; Education Minister Paul Given MLA; and MIT Entrepreneur in Residence Paul Cheek

Education Minister Paul Givan MLA was the keynote speaker in North Belfast last night at an event showcasing an innovative facility that will help build a bigger, faster pipeline of digital skills in Northern Ireland’s education sector.

The Minister was speaking to senior education, tech industry, government, community and charity sector leaders at the launch of the North Belfast Digital Hub Foundation.

The newly created non-profit charitable organisation is developing a cutting-edge shared digital innovation centre on the site of a former seminary in St Malachy’s College.

Offering innovative AI-enabled teaching and learning, VR, robotics labs, and music, podcasting and film studios, the Antrim Road facility will be purpose-built to equip students with the skills needed for high-growth sectors such as technology, AI, and digital business.

Providing transformative post-primary digital education for around 12,000 students annually, the proposed centre will strive to serve all 12 North Belfast post-primary schools, operating on a flexible timetable. It will also act as a live innovation lab for future curriculum design, providing insights to help shape Northern Ireland’s education system for a future where human and digital skills must co-exist.

The project is the scaling up of the award-winning Creative Digital Hub at St Malachy’s College, which over the past three years has equipped over 3,000 North Belfast young people with future-ready digital skills that include AI literacy, coding, cybersecurity, robotics and animation.

Its pioneering work, delivered through a partnership between seven North Belfast post-primary schools, has been widely endorsed by industry, education and government stakeholders.

In his keynote address the Minister compared the Digital Hub to being on the deck of the Starship Enterprise. He commended all those associated with the project and said the launch of the campaign to extend it is not just about expanding the facility, but also expanding opportunity, ambition and the future for every young person in our community.

Paul McBride from the North Belfast Digital Hub Foundation said: “The success of the Digital Hub initiative is a clear demonstration of the power of cross-sector collaboration, with industry, education and charitable partners working together to raise aspirations and equip young people with the skills needed for the digital economy.

“The next phase is to scale up and transition into a new building. We have no doubt that expanding this project will enable thousands more young people to thrive, lead and shape a world that is already AI-driven in so many ways.

“That’s why we are inviting government departments, our local schools, industry partners, and philanthropic funders to join us in scaling up what works.

“We have already had huge support, financial and other, from the Belfast Charitable Society, the James Kane Foundation and the Mary Ann McCracken Foundation. We are now calling for further bold collaborative moves to not only address the prevention or relief of digital poverty in North Belfast but support educational advancement and transformation. We want every child in this part of the city, and indeed beyond, to have the opportunity to shine in a digital future.”

Also speaking at the launch event were Paul Cheek, globally renowned Senior Advisor on Entrepreneurship and AI at MIT, and Clare McGrath, Senior Creative Digital Hub Leader at St Malachy’s College.

For further information contact Paula O’Hare:


North Belfast Digital Hub Foundation

c/o St Malachy’s College

36 Antrim Road, Belfast, BT15 2AE

pohare539@c2ken.net | 028 9074 8285