Towards the end of the eighteenth century, Fr. Daniel Delaney was appointed curate to the parish Tullow. He was shocked by the evils of his time, namely the results of the Penal Laws, which he wanted to lessen. Therefore he trained young men and with their help, established Sunday classes in the Church.

In 1788 Fr. Delaney was appointed Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin. He continued the Sunday school system but he found it difficult to maintain a supply of good teachers. Because of this difficulty and his wish to provide regular schooling for the children, he founded his own Congregations; the Brigidine sisters in 1807 and the Patrician Brothers in 1808.

In 1810, some of the Tullow Brothers established a school in Mountrath. In the course of time, Patrician schools were opened throughout Ireland. In 1875 the Brothers started work on the Foreign Mission. At present most of the Brothers who worked in India and Australia are native born.

The Patrician Brothers arrived in Ballyfin in 1930, when the boarding school was transferred from Mountrath, because of growing numbers and a demand for more spaces. Since their foundation, the Patrician Brothers’ apostolate has been in education, where they share the same vision as their founder, that of making education available to all.