PICTURE: Tipperary student awarded in national mental health poster competition

A local student from Ursuline Secondary School in Co Tipperary was announced as first-place winner at a ceremony for the Mission Possible School Achievement Awards, hosted by Walk in My Shoes in St Patrick’s University Hospital, Dublin 8 on 29 April 2026.

The Mission Possible School Achievement Awards is an annual competition from Walk in My Shoes, the flagship youth mental health initiative of St Patrick’s Mental Health Services.

Mission Possible showcases the meaningful work schools, Youthreach centres and further education and training centres across the country are undertaking to foster positive mental health and wellbeing in the classroom and in the community.

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For this year’s competition, students across Ireland were invited to design a poster that creatively shares a positive mental health message. Through art, words and imagination, students were invited to explore what positive mental health and wellbeing means to them – and help spark important conversations in their school communities and beyond.

Vega Lopez Lagarma from Ursuline Secondary School in Thurles was announced as the winner in the ‘secondary schools’ category for the poster, A Garden Inside My Head.

The winning students were joined at the awards ceremony by the competition judging panel: Paul Gilligan, CEO, St Patrick’s Mental Health Services; Tamara Nolan, Director of Communications and Advocacy, St Patrick’s Mental Health Services; and Jacqueline Toal, Art Therapist, St Patrick’s Mental Health Services.

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Speaking about this year’s Mission Possible initiative, Paul Gilligan, CEO of St Patrick’s Mental Health Services and Mission Possible judge, said: “For the past nine years, Walk in My Shoes has been proudly running the national Mission Possible School Achievement Awards to showcase and celebrate the meaningful work of schools in promoting positive mental health. The calibre of this year’s entries once again demonstrates the resolute commitment of school staff and young people across the country to fostering positive mental health.

“We know that art and creativity can significantly boost wellbeing, and I want to commend all entrants to this year’s awards for their creativity and originality in bringing to life positive mental health messages that challenge stigma in a visually appealing and imaginative way.”

This year’s competition was open to primary schools, secondary schools and Further Education and Training centres, including Youthreach. Entries in any visual art style were invited, from hand-drawn and painted posters to digital designs.

First-place winners in each category received a €1,000 cash prize for their school, a Mission Possible trophy, a role as a WIMS School Ambassador for the next academic year, a Walk in My Shoes School Support Package and one guaranteed place on the sought-after Walk in My Shoes Transition Year Programme for winners in the secondary school category. Runners-up received a €500 cash prize for their school, a Mission Possible trophy and a Walk in My Shoes Wellbeing Pack.

For more information about Walk in My Shoes and its range of resources and initiatives for young people, teachers and school staff and parents and guardians, visit walkinmyshoes.ie

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