Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S.
Innishmore, Ballincollig, Cork · P31 FH22 · Roll number 18208A
Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S. is one of 3 special schools in or within 3 km of Ballincollig. Every school in and around Ballincollig →
What stands out about Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S.
- 68 pupils, near the middle for special schools in Ireland (the median is 58).
- About as many pupils as in 2019/20 (+0%).
- Teaches through English, with Irish as a subject.
- The largest of the 3 special schools around Ballincollig.
- 21 girls and 47 boys: more of one than the other.
- Its patron is the Bishop of Cork & Ross; its ethos is Catholic.
Pupils over time
2015/16 to 2025/26Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S. had 68 pupils in 2025/26, against 68 in 2015/16 (+0%). Girls are 31% of them. Its largest roll was 68, in 2019/20. Its roll rose in 0 of the 10 years.
Department of Education enrolments at 30 September each year; girls and boys where the lists give them.
No letter for Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S.
Ireland publishes no exam results school by school, and section 53 of the Education Act 1998 restricts comparing schools by them, so this school has no letter and nothing here ranks it. Its facts are the Department of Education’s; its inspection reports are linked below.
What the Department of Education does publish for Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S. is on this page: its pupils each September since 2015/16, girls and boys, its patron and ethos, whether it teaches through Irish, whether it is in DEIS, and its inspection reports.
Newspapers print lists of how many of a school’s leavers go on to college. Those count destinations, not exam results, and depend on who a school takes in; we don’t use them.
Inspection reports on Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S.
The Department of Education’s Inspectorate visits schools and publishes its reports. The reports describe what inspectors saw; they give no overall grade, and we don’t make one. Reports for this school on gov.ie ↗
Inspectors visit every kind of school. Whole-school evaluations look at teaching and learning, leadership and management; subject inspections look at one subject; follow-through inspections check whether earlier advice was taken. Each report is published on gov.ie with the school’s response.
Getting a place at Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S.
Every school admits under its own published admission policy; no admissions numbers are published.
Places at Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S. follow a professional report on the child’s needs; the National Council for Special Education’s local special educational needs organiser helps families apply.
A school with more applicants than places admits on the criteria in its admission policy, often brothers and sisters, the area it serves and, for post-primary schools, its feeder primaries. A family refused a place can appeal.
Places in special classes and special schools are allocated with the National Council for Special Education.
No figures on applications are published, but the roll shows demand: Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S. is about the size it was in 2019/20 (+0%). All the schools around Ballincollig together changed by +10%.
Pupils since 2019/20
Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018; Department of Education enrolments 2019/20 and 2025/26 (preliminary).
Side by side with the nearest special schools
2025/26The nearest schools of the same kind, as the crow flies: their pupils, ethos and language. No results: none are published.
Of the 6 nearest special schools, 1 have more pupils than Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S.. Since 2019/20 its roll has changed by +0%; 1 of the 4 grew faster.
| School | Pupils | Since 2019/20 | Ethos | Language | DEIS | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S. | 68 | +0% | Catholic | English | ||
| St Gabriels Special School | 54 | +26% | Catholic | English | 5 km | |
| Cork University Hos School | 17 | – | Multi-denominational | English | 6.7 km | |
| St Kevins School | 10 | – | Catholic | English | 9.7 km | |
| Scoil Aislinn | 36 | +0% | Other | English | 11 km | |
| Scoil Eanna | 66 | −14% | Catholic | English | 12 km | |
| St Paul's School | 92 | −5% | Catholic | English | 12 km |
The other 12 special schools in Co. Cork
| School | Pupils | Since 2019/20 | Ethos | Language | DEIS | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Bernadettes Spec Sch | 132 | +1% | Catholic | English | 12 km | |
| School of the Divine Child (Scoil an Linbh Íosa) | 46 | +28% | Catholic | English | 12 km | |
| St Killians Spec Sch | 106 | +31% | Catholic | English | 12 km | |
| Cara Junior School | 72 | +11% | Catholic | English | 13 km | |
| Scoil Triest | 72 | +1% | Catholic | English | 14 km | |
| Rochestown Community Special School | 66 | – | Multi-denominational | English | 15 km | |
| St Marys Spec Sch | 85 | +29% | Catholic | English | 16 km | |
| Sonas Special Primary Junior School | 48 | +14% | Other | English | 16 km | |
| Carrigaline Community Special School | 47 | – | Multi-denominational | English | 17 km | |
| East Cork Community Special School | 21 | – | Multi-denominational | English | 24 km | |
| North Cork Community Special School | 19 | – | Multi-denominational | English | 35 km | |
| Holy Family S S | 87 | −1% | Catholic | English | 52 km |
Living in Ballincollig
The town’s figures, not this street’s.
Homes in the P31 Eircode area
Housing in Ballincollig →The median sale price rose from €373,100 in 2023 to €442,000 in 2025 (+18%).
New against second-hand, 2023 to 2025
Property Price Register sales in the P31 Eircode routing area, 2023 to 2025.
Renting in Ballincollig
Cost of living in Ballincollig →New tenancies in Ballincollig averaged €1,656 a month in 2025, against €1,558 in 2024 (+6%).
Residential Tenancies Board rent index, new tenancies, 2024 and 2025.
Location
Directions ↗Ballincollig, P31 FH22
Special schools near Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S.
Nearest first, as the crow flies, up to 25 km. Each school’s own admission policy decides who gets a place.
Questions about Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S.
Is Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S. a good school?
We don’t grade it: Ireland publishes no exam results school by school, and section 53 of the Education Act 1998 restricts comparing them. Its inspection reports on gov.ie, a visit and a talk with the principal will tell you more than any table could.
How many pupils does Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S. have?
68 pupils in 2025/26. That is +0% since 2019/20.
Does Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S. teach through Irish?
No: Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S. teaches in English, with Irish as a subject.
Who runs Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S.?
Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S. has a Catholic ethos. Its patron is Bishop of Cork & Ross.
How do pupils get a place at Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S.?
Apply to the school directly. It publishes an admission policy and a yearly admission notice with its dates; if more children apply than it has places, it admits on the criteria in its policy.
Which schools of the same kind are near Our Lady of Good Counsel N.S.?
The nearest are St Gabriels Special School (5 km), Cork University Hos School (6.7 km) and St Kevins School (9.7 km).
Sources: Department of Education, school lists 2025/26 (preliminary) and enrolments since 2015/16, CC BY 4.0 · inspection reports on gov.ie, linked by roll number. Under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).
Facts from the Department of Education’s school lists. Listed with Ballincollig; nothing here rates the school.
Contains Central Statistics Office (CSO) data, Census 2022, and Tailte Éireann boundaries (CSO Urban Areas, Small Areas, local electoral areas, constituencies), under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).