IN PICTURES: Special guest at Portarlington school's amazing Christmas funday

Coláiste Iosagáin secondary school in Portarlington on the Laois Offaly border welcomed a very special little guest at their put festive day of fun before the Christmas holidays. See more below this wonderful gallery of photos.

Variety shows and talent competitions are usually organised to mark the last day of term and the start of the holidays at Coláiste ĺosagáin but they decided to do something differently this year.

The Transition Year students with the help of their teachers, Margaret Nolan, Keith Bracken, Conor Mitchell, Programme Co-ordinator Sinead Holloway and Deputy Principal Brendan McGlynn organised a Christmas Fun Fair on Friday, December 22.

However this was no ordinary Fair.

They got to enjoy a live band, a reindeer bucking Bronco, selfies with Santa at his grotto, game and a Tug of War, raffles and spot prizes. There was a Transition Year mini-company market, selling gifts and tasty treats and an ice cream van serving festive treats.

There was also a surprise guest on the day – not Santa – but Jamie Mannion, the little Laois boy at the heart of the Jamie for Trexo fundraiser.

Jamie has a rare and undiagnosed condition and cannot walk. However the Trexo robotic machine enables him to take steps so his family launched a €45,000 fundraiser to buy one. 

In May the school was involved in a fundraising event for Jamie and they raised over €4,000 – the largest single donation to the fundraising campaign. Since then the Trexo has been bought for young Jamie.

Justin Brown is the principal.

"It was great that Jamie and his Mam and Dad -Siobhan and Declan took time to say hello. Jamie joined in on the dancing was like a celebrity -and rightly so," he said.

The morning concluded with a rendition of Fairy Tale of New York by the Leaving Cert students which is a long standing tradition in the school, all the more meaningful with the recent death of Pogues singer Shane MacGowan.

The Parents Council representatives Amanda Kelly and Martina Norman made the draw for their successful Christmas Raffle.

"All in all it was a lovely day to start the Christmas Holidays so well done to all including the hard working and innovative Transition Year students who helped make the day such a memorable and enjoyable success," said the principal.