Photo: Drozwik Drones · CC BY 3.0Of Cobourg’s 9 tested schools, 2 sit above the middle in Ontario and 3 below
Top of the area on results: Notre Dame Catholic Elementary School and St. Michael Catholic Elementary School. Results have climbed at 5 of 9 schools over three years. Counting a 3 km margin, Cobourg has 7 elementary schools, 2 secondary schools and 1 alternative or adult school, for 4,165 students.
What stands out about Cobourg’s schools
No French-language school
None of the 10 schools here teaches in French; in Ontario, 10% of schools do. Language ↓
The comparisons are with the province’s schools, never across provinces.
How Cobourg’s schools do on Ontario’s tests
EQAO’s Grade 3, 6 and 9 assessments and the literacy test, 2024-25: each school against every school in Ontario.
Its School Grade is B+: it compares these results with the other towns of the province.
The area’s schools by fifth of the province
Each school’s band is the average of its measures’ fifths. The mark shows an even fifth of the area’s schools.
| Measure | Schools | Middle here | Ontario |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 3 reading | 7 | 82% | 76% |
| Grade 3 writing | 7 | 74% | 65% |
| Grade 3 math | 7 | 69% | 65% |
| Grade 6 reading | 7 | 86% | 88% |
| Grade 6 writing | 7 | 83% | 86% |
| Grade 6 math | 7 | 44% | 51% |
| Grade 9 math | 2 | 55% | 55% |
| Literacy test (OSSLT), first try | 2 | 78% | 85% |
Furthest from the provincial middle is Grade 3 writing: 74% here, against 65% in Ontario. Above the middle on 3, below on 3: that is the 8 measures.
Every school’s results (9)
| School | Measure | Band |
|---|---|---|
| Notre Dame Catholic Elementary SchoolElementary · Grades JK–8 | G3 reading 82% · G3 writing 88% · G3 math 76% · G6 reading 96% · G6 writing 92% · G6 math 65% | Second fifth |
| St. Michael Catholic Elementary SchoolElementary · Grades JK–8 | G3 reading 89% · G3 writing 83% · G3 math 72% · G6 reading 94% · G6 writing 94% · G6 math 44% | Second fifth |
| Burnham Public SchoolElementary · Grades JK–6 | G3 reading 87% · G3 writing 74% · G3 math 68% · G6 reading 81% · G6 writing 83% · G6 math 56% | Middle fifth |
| C R Gummow Public SchoolElementary · Grades JK–8 | G3 reading 83% · G3 writing 65% · G3 math 59% · G6 reading 89% · G6 writing 88% · G6 math 53% | Middle fifth |
| Merwin Greer Public SchoolElementary · Grades JK–6 | G3 reading 81% · G3 writing 62% · G3 math 69% · G6 reading 80% · G6 writing 80% · G6 math 35% | Middle fifth |
| Terry Fox Public SchoolElementary · Grades JK–8 | G3 reading 75% · G3 writing 78% · G3 math 62% · G6 reading 86% · G6 writing 81% · G6 math 43% | Middle fifth |
| Cobourg Collegiate InstituteSecondary · Grades 9–12 | G9 math 53% · OSSLT 81% | Fourth fifth |
| St. Joseph Catholic Elementary SchoolElementary · Grades JK–8 | G3 reading 65% · G3 writing 56% · G3 math 71% · G6 reading 80% · G6 writing 80% · G6 math 27% | Fourth fifth |
| St. Mary Catholic Secondary SchoolSecondary · Grades 9–12 | G9 math 57% · OSSLT 75% | Fourth fifth |
Ontario Ministry of Education, School Information Finder 2024–25 (EQAO results; N/R where groups are too small). Open Government Licence – Ontario.
Where the 10 schools in and around Cobourg are
Each pin is a school, coloured by the system that runs it, sized by its students where the province publishes them.
Points from the provincial lists.
Schooling in English and French around Cobourg
English, French and other languages of instruction, beside the mix in Ontario.
The mark on each bar is the share of schools in Ontario.
None of them teaches in French.
Section 23 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms gives French-speaking parents the right to French-language schooling for their children, through the French-language boards.
Who runs Cobourg’s schools
Each level’s schools by system: English public, English Catholic, French-language, and independent or other.
The split by system: English public 6 and English Catholic 4.
The provincial school lists: each school’s board, language and Catholic or public status.
Which of the 2 boards runs which school
Each board’s schools in the area, largest first.
Of 2 boards, the largest here is Kawartha Pine Ridge DSB, with 6.
| Board | System | Schools | Students |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kawartha Pine Ridge DSBCobourg, C R Gummow, Terry Fox, Burnham, Merwin Greer, Centre for Individual Studies Northumberland | English public | 6 | 2,815 |
| Peterborough Victoria Northum Clarington CDSBSt. Mary Catholic, St. Joseph Catholic, St. Michael Catholic, Notre Dame Catholic | English Catholic | 4 | 1,350 |
Boards as Ontario’s list names them (its short forms: DSB, CDSB, CS).
How children get a place in Cobourg
Catholic schools
Families who aren’t Catholic can usually choose a Catholic high school, though rarely a Catholic elementary one.
The neighbourhood school
Where a family lives settles it: the board’s map ties every address to one school, and a seat anywhere else waits on spare room.
The provinces’ education acts and the boards’ own admission policies; check with the board for a given address.
The 10 schools in and around Cobourg
High schools within reach of Cobourg
The high schools a family here could reach, within 15 km.
Within 15 km, families can reach 3 high schools: 2 English public and 1 English Catholic. St. Mary Catholic Secondary School is closest, at 1.5 km.
| School | Board | System | Band | Students | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Mary Catholic Secondary SchoolSecondary · Grades 9–12 | Peterborough Victoria Northum Clarington CDSB | English Catholic | Fourth fifth | 835 | 1.5 km |
| Cobourg Collegiate InstituteSecondary · Grades 9–12 | Kawartha Pine Ridge DSB | English public | Fourth fifth | 1,110 | 2.1 km |
| Port Hope High SchoolSecondary · Grades 9–12 | Kawartha Pine Ridge DSB | English public | Bottom fifth | 220 | 11 km |
Distances in a straight line from the town’s centre point.
Alternative, adult and other schools around Cobourg
Besides the elementary and high schools: adult and continuing education at Centre for Individual Studies Northumberland. Their cards ↑
The kinds as the provincial lists give them (alternative, adult and continuing education, online, provincial schools).
Towns its size in Ontario
Towns of a similar population, with their schools in or within 3 km; described, not ranked.
| Town | Population | Schools | Students | French | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leamington | 34,653 | 12 | 4,490 | 1 | 1.8 km |
| … | |||||
| Humber Bay Shores | 22,633 | 34 | 17,595 | 1 | 1.8 km |
| Uxbridge | 22,618 | 22 | 9,240 | 2 | 2.3 km |
| Bayview Village | 22,617 | 76 | 28,670 | 5 | 2.1 km |
| Flemingdon Park | 22,553 | 66 | 34,335 | 2 | 1 km |
| Cobourg | 22,529 | 10 | 4,165 | 0 | 1.3 km |
| Binbrook | 22,497 | 19 | 12,470 | 0 | 3.7 km |
| Willowridge-Martingrove-Richview | 22,456 | 54 | 22,205 | 2 | 0.5 km |
| Church-Wellesley | 22,415 | 78 | 23,965 | 4 | 0.5 km |
| Bedford Park-Nortown | 22,376 | 73 | 36,035 | 0 | 1.2 km |
| … | |||||
| Streetsville | 13,535 | 77 | 39,725 | 6 | 1.5 km |
More schools are within reach in 249 of the 273 other towns. Schooling in French is on hand in 222 of the 274.
Populations from Statistics Canada; schools from the provincial lists, in or within 3 km of each town.
Schools in the towns around Cobourg
Each town’s schools in or within 3 km of its outline; distances as the crow flies.
| Town | Schools | French | Catholic or independent | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cobourg | 10 | 0 | 4 | 1.3 km |
| Hamilton 9.5 km | 15 | 0 | 4 | 8.5 km |
| Port Hope 11 km | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1.1 km |
| Alnwick/Haldimand 15 km | 6 | 0 | 1 | 14 km |
Of the neighbours, Hamilton counts the most schools: 15.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The kinds of school. The levels follow each school’s published grades: elementary below Grade 7 or 9, secondary above, all-grade when it runs the whole way.
- Which schools count. A school counts when it sits inside Cobourg or less than 3 km beyond its edge.
- What isn’t here. Enrolment is a single year, where published at all, and no inspectorate rates schools.
- Bands, not ranks. EQAO publishes shares at the provincial standard; the band places each among Ontario’s schools by fifths.
- Boards and systems. Boards come in one language each, and where the province funds Catholic schools, as public or Catholic; independent schools stand outside them.
- The year. The province’s school list, 2024-25.
Questions about schools in Cobourg
How many schools are there in Cobourg?
All 10 sit within the town’s own boundary.
Is there a French-language school in Cobourg?
Not near Cobourg: within 3 km there is none, and the French-language board points to the closest.
Which boards run the schools in Cobourg?
By number of schools: Kawartha Pine Ridge DSB (6) and Peterborough Victoria Northum Clarington CDSB (4).
How do I get a place at a school in Cobourg?
Ask the board which school serves your street, then register through it.
Sources: Ontario Ministry of Education, School Information Finder 2024–25 and school contact list (Open Government Licence – Ontario) · map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors. Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).