School of Programming: Frequently Asked Questions
We have put together a summary of questions we've received most often from parents sending their kids to the Code Clock 'School of Programming'. If you have a child attending one of our schools over the coming months, please take time to read the following FAQs. If you still have questions please complete the contact us form by clicking on this link.
This year (2024) we will be hosting four separate schools of programming.
The first 'school' will run over February half-term from Monday 12th to Wednesday 14th February and will be hosted in Friends School Lisburn. This workshop will cater for young people aged 7-14.
The second 'school' will run over Easter from Monday 25th March to Friday 29th March and will be hosted in Friends School Lisburn. This workshop will cater for young people aged 7-14.
The third 'school' will run over the summer holidays from Monday 1st July to Friday 5th July and will be hosted in the Computer Science building at Queens University, Belfast. This workshop is designed specifically for young people aged 7-11.
The third 'school' will run over the summer holidays from Monday 1st July to Friday 5th July and will be hosted in the Computer Science building at Queens University, Belfast. This series of workshops is designed specifically for young people aged 11-18.
We provide light snacks e.g. crisps, water, fruit etc but NOT lunch each day. Young people are encouraged to either bring their own lunch or there is a Spar close by where they can buy freshly made sandwiches to go. Please note that if your child is under the age of 16, they must have written permission from their parents to leave the building.
At the beginning of each day we have a number of ice-breaker/fun activities to help everyone get to know one another. Some of these activities are physical and some cerebral but all are designed to be fun and encourage interaction.
It's not wall-to-wall coding the entire week either, young people will get the chances to compete for various prizes through group-based activities.
Simple answer is NO! All our workshops assume young people have no prior knowledge of programming before they join us for the week. We teach everyone from first principles.
No. All we ask is that young people bring an eager attitude to learn new coding skills.
We take child protection very seriously at Code Clock and ensure that all our staff undertake the Enhanced Access (NI) check before they are allowed to be involved in any of our Code Clock workshops.
All medical conditions should be disclosed to us during the registration process. Any medical conditions which require medication should also be detailed in this disclosure. We'll make other parents and young people aware of any allergies.
About two weeks before each workshop is due to begin, we will send out information to each parent using the email address you provided during registration with these details. The times will vary and will depend on the venue, date and of course workshop type.
Yes absolutely. There is discount available for groups of two or more enrolling on one of your 'School of Programming' workshops. Please email
We pride ourselves on welcoming young people of all abilities and levels of experience along to any of our workshops. During our 'School of Programming' registration process parents/guardians are asked to disclose any special needs, medical conditions or indeed any other relevant information which may be useful for our staff to know when dealing with your child during the workshop. This information is held in complete confidence and shared only with those instructors taking the workshop to ensure your child has the best possible experience.