Synonymous with agricultural training since 1947, Gurteen College continues to nurture the next generation of farmers from what is the largest college farm in Ireland.
The centre of excellence offers students training courses in agriculture for farms and rural enterprises, and provides a solid foundation for progression to higher level courses and future careers. Founded over 75 years ago by the Methodist Church in Ireland to encourage young farmers to stay at home rather than emigrate, Gurteen College is located in the heart of Ireland from where it provides quality education in pleasant surroundings.
Gurteen College is dedicated to providing education, training and facilities to the highest quality standards; demonstrating best modern practice in its farm and other enterprises; promoting the personal development of each student; and fostering an ethos of personal responsibility, community values and lifelong learning.
Gurteen College sits on 1,000 acres in Ballingarry, Co. Tipperary, and is home to over 500 full-time students. It has 10 full-time and six part-time teaching staff on its books, while on the farm itself, there are eight full-time staff employed. The college principal is Jon Parry, while Ken Flynn fills the role of farm manager.
“There are lots of moving parts,” Ken says.
“On the farm side of things, I oversee a team of eight and also have some involvement with students and education. We have three people on dairy, two on drystock and three doing a bit of everything. It’s a full working farm consisting of 100 acres of tillage, 80 acres of willow that is used for heating the college, 100 acres of forestry, 100 acres of bogland. The remainder is grassland plus yards and roadways.
“We’re currently milking 240 cows which we have built up with our own breeding programme. We’re producing 1.3 million litres of milk a year. We also have 70 suckler cows who, for educational purposes, are split between autumn and spring calving. In addition, we finish 140 cattle per year, have a flock of 450 ewes and have reintroduced horses on the back of our new equine course.
“We’re constantly upgrading our farm facilities and recently built a new dungstead which can hold a year’s worth of dung and has doubled our storage capacity.”
Gurteen College has gone green in many ways in recent years, including with its choice of tractor. Last year, Templetuohy Farm Machinery (TFM) won a three-year contract to supply the college with six new John Deeres for running the farm and training the students in machinery operation and management.
“We were with New Holland for a long time before changing over to John Deere in January 2023. When we put the contract out to tender, nine or 10 different dealers expressed an interest. But the deal-breaker for us was TFM’s willingness to offer help with the education of the students,” Ken explains.
“We have six John Deere tractors on hire from TFM. They consist of two 6120Ms with 603M front loaders, a 6140M, a 6R140, a 6R155 and a 6195M. The tractors are upgraded every year and use John Deere GPS guidance and John Deere Operations Center data management which has led to considerable savings thanks to increased spraying and spreading accuracy.
“We’re also running three of our own tractors – a John Deere 6010, a Fiat 8090 and an old Ford 3930. We have a wide array of farm machinery and attachments, including slurry tankers, rakes, tedders, mowers and diet feeders. We also have a new Amazone ZA-V hydraulically-driven ISOBUS fertiliser spreader featuring auto section control with weigh cells and a new Amazone UF 02 mounted 1,300-litre sprayer with 24m boom. Both were supplied by Tom Shaw Machinery in Birr.
“We also have a new McHale Fusion baler on lease from the same dealer.”
Gurteen’s excellent practical facilities ensure that students are encouraged to develop their skills fully, which is essential in the rapidly changing world we live in. At the heart of the college are the McKinny Conference Hall and the main block lecture theatre. There are 100 residential bedrooms, a large canteen, computer suites and a range of student recreational facilities, including a modern sports hall, heated outdoor swimming pool, floodlit tennis and basketball court, GAA and rugby pitches, snooker, pool and table tennis tables, stables and a cross-country course.
There is also a large workshop building, while accommodation is provided for pony camp and youth camp groups during the summer holidays, ensuring the college is a hive of activity all-year around.
Gurteen College offers a wide range of courses in agriculture, equine and veterinary nursing on a full-time, part-time or distance learning basis. The courses aim to provide training in practical areas. To this end, full-time students take part in the day-to-day practical work on the college farm or equine area.
The main agricultural courses are the Level 6 Certificate in Agriculture and the Level 7 Agricultural Science & Sustainability Degree in conjunction with Technical University Shannon (TUS). These are full-time courses as is Gurteen’s Level 6 Certificate in Horsemanship / Equitation. There are also part-time Green Cert courses geared towards mature students.
“There are 80 first year and 60 second year students on the Level 6 Certificate in Agriculture course,” Ken reveals.
“We have 40 first years and 16 second years doing the Level 7 Agricultural Science & Sustainability Degree which will lead on to an optional fourth year Level 8 that is due to start in 2026. We’ve also revived equine training and currently have nine first years on our Level 6 Certificate in Horsemanship / Equitation course, with a further 16-20 starting in September.”
Furthermore, Gurteen College is part of the Teagasc Signpost programme which is a multi-annual campaign to lead climate action by all Irish farmers. The programme aims to achieve early progress in reducing gaseous emissions from Irish agriculture and to also improve water quality as well as to maintain and improve biodiversity.
A native of Kinnegad, Ken is optimistic about what the future holds for Gurteen College and farming in general.
“Our student numbers are very good. We’ve secured planning permission for a new teaching block which will allow us to grow further. Contrary to belief, there is still a huge interest in farming in Ireland. The students we have are very passionate about it. We’re also attracting more and more students who didn’t grow up on a family farm which is great to see,” he concludes.
Gurteen College
Ballingarry,
Roscrea,
Co. Tipperary.
Telephone: 067 21282
Email: [email protected]
First published in Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 12 No 3, September/October 2024
