The Dickson Plan

The Dickson Plan is a two-tier post-primary system of education which was introduced in Lurgan, Portadown and Tandragee in 1969. Pupils leave primary school without sitting an academic test and transfer to a Junior High School for three years.

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Pupils sit transfer examinations in the Junior High School to facilitate appropriate pathways to the Senior High Schools. The Dickson Plan affords young people opportunities for maturation so that, age 14, they are enabled to make informed choices about the next stage of their education.

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As a result, the ‘system’ enjoys widespread parental support which is a key reason for its existence, 50 years after its introduction by the then ‘Director of Education’, Mr J Dickson.