Derry teenagers' terrifying haunted house raising vital youth club funds

Club Óige Setanta have been located in many centers over the years but the young people were finally given a place they could call home in 2019, giving life to the Old Schoolhouse on Great James’ Street. The building was initially build in the 1800s as a private home before it was transformed into one of the first girls’ schools in Ireland, certainly the first in Ulster. The youth club have repurposed the ground floor but other floors are in disrepair because of a lack of funding and resources to upgrade things. Fortunately for the youth club, the peeling wallpaper, sun beds from the 70s and and old, brown bath is the perfect backdrop for a terrifying haunted house!

Cara Park, who runs Club Óige Setanta, says the young people and leaders have been working extensively to prepare the building for the event. She said: “Over the years, the building has lots of different uses from the school to a shirt factory, sauna, spa and it has this weird 1970s apartment at the top, too. We’ve looked into a bit of that and used some artistic licence to incorporate it into the haunted house.

"The teenagers from the club are doing all the acting, so we’ve been practicing for a while. It’s the first time we’ve done something like this and it’s getting us ready for our first ever panto, too, which will be a Christmas Carol in Irish. The building itself here is a bit creepy anyway and there’s a lot of artefacts that have been left so in some respects, it’s been quite easy to do and in other respects it’s been like herding cats. It has been a bit of a task to prepare the actual building but we’re chipping away at it a few hours at a time.

"Like everyone at the minute, people are feeling the pinch of prices rising and we only get funded for a certain amount of things. Our numbers are growing, which is brilliant, but with that, we need to raise more money. So come along, hopefully you’ll get your wits scared out of you! If you’re a bit of a scardy pants, though, you can go to the bonfire and storytelling in the ‘creepy car park’ outside the Glassworks on halloween day itself.”

Jake said: “We’re doing a haunted house to raise some funds for the club so we can buy more equipment and make the place more like a youth club. I think it’ll be good for people to come and scare their friends and have a few nights to just have fun and scare people. I’ve been coming to the club since I was three for four so it’s been in my life for a long time. The club has moved around the whole city but it has never lost its value to me, no matter where it was. It’s always meant a lot and I’ve always looked forward to coming here after school. It’s been a great thing to me.”

Reece Healey said: “The haunted house is going to be great because even by looking at the building, it already looks scary. We’re decking out all the rooms in the building now with lights and scary music and we’re going to scare people. We’re really excited for this and we’re all looking forward to scaring people.”

"Normally in the club, we spend a lot of time just chatting but we’re really bonding now with our friends. The club means a lot to me because when I’m not at school, I spend a lot of time in the house. The club gets me out and I’m able to speak to my friends face-to-face, which we never do at school because we’re always working and studying.”

The haunted house is suitable for ages 12+ and will be open between 7-9pm on the 26th, 27th, and 29th of October. Tickets cost £5 at www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/433455837077.