Photo: Robin Webster · CC BY-SA 2.03 of the secondary schools in and around Cork City Centre charge fees
48% of the schools around Cork City Centre are DEIS schools, above both Co. Cork’s towns (35%) and Irish towns (35%). 13 of its 25 secondary schools take only boys or only girls. Nothing here grades or ranks these schools: Ireland publishes no results school by school, and the Education Act 1998 restricts comparing them.
Every school in the town or within 3 km of its outline, from the Department of Education’s lists for 2025/26; Ireland’s figures are every school in the lists.
What stands out about Cork City Centre’s schools
Fee-paying secondary schools
Several of the secondary schools within reach charge fees; the others are free. Fee-paying schools are listed with the rest below, each with its own page. Fee-paying: Christian Brothers College (919), Presentation Brothers College (692) and Scoil Mhuire (432). Every school ↓
Mostly single-sex at secondary
Most secondary schools here take only boys or only girls; the mixed ones are marked on the cards below. Single-sex: Christian Brothers College (919), Mount Mercy College (811), Coláiste an Spioraid Naoimh (715) and Christ King Girls' Secondary School (700), and 9 more. Every school ↓
A wide choice at twelve
Families here can choose among 36 post-primary schools within 10 km of the town, of more than one kind; each admits on its own published policy, so applying to more than one is common. The nearest: St Aloysius School (0.5 km), Presentation Brothers College (0.6 km) and St. Angela's College (0.6 km). Post-primary choices ↓
From the Department of Education’s school lists: facts, not judgements of how well a school teaches.
The 77 schools in and around Cork City Centre
Every school in Cork City Centre or within 3 km of its outline, each linked to its own page. No letters and no results: Ireland publishes none school by school.
Show all 25 secondary schools
Show all 43 primary schools
Where the 77 schools in and around Cork City Centre are
Each school where the official list places it, shaded by who runs it and sized by pupils; squares are secondary schools, triangles special schools. The dashed shape is Cork City Centre’s outline; schools within 3 km of it count.
Places from the Department of Education’s school lists (its own coordinates for all but a handful); map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Teaching through Irish in and around Cork City Centre
The schools by teaching language, with Ireland’s share as the black tick.
7 of Cork City Centre’s 77 schools teach every subject through Irish: Coláiste Daibhéid, Gaelcholáiste Mhuire and Gaelscoil Peig Sayers.
Who Cork City Centre’s schools serve
How the area’s pupils divide, against Co. Cork’s and Ireland’s, 2025/26
Each bar is the area’s share; the tick marks Ireland’s.
DEIS by stage: pupils at DEIS schools
| Share of pupils | Around Cork City Centre | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at DEIS schools | 42% | 18% | 27% |
| Pupils at all-Irish schools | 10% | 8% | 6% |
| Girls | 52% | 49% | 49% |
| Post-primary pupils at single-sex schools | 63% | 33% | 29% |
| Post-primary pupils at fee-paying schools | 17% | 7% | 6% |
Around Cork City Centre, 42% of pupils attend a school in DEIS; across Ireland it is 27%, and 18% in Co. Cork. The biggest difference from Ireland is in post-primary pupils at single-sex schools: 63% here, 29% there. Of the DEIS schools here, Coláiste Éamann Rís is the biggest: 811 pupils.
Each of the 77 schools
Department of Education school lists 2025/26 (preliminary): enrolments by sex and the DEIS list. Shares are of pupils, not of schools; a county’s are the schools listed with its towns.
Who runs Cork City Centre’s schools
Each school’s ethos, 2025/26: the bars show the share of schools of each kind.
62 of Cork City Centre’s 77 schools have a Catholic ethos, against 80% across Ireland. The patrons with most schools here: Bishop of Cork & Ross (41), CEIST (5) and Edmund Rice Schools Trust (4). 37 of the 77 are in DEIS, the extra support for schools in disadvantaged areas (30% across Ireland).
Department of Education school lists: ethos 2025/26, patron 2024/25 (the 2025/26 lists don’t give it). DEIS list 2025/26.
The 19 patrons of Cork City Centre’s schools
The patron owns the school and sets its ethos; a board of management runs it day to day.
Bishop of Cork & Ross is patron of 41 of the 77 schools around Cork City Centre, which teach 44% of their pupils; 19 patrons run them in all. Education and Training Boards run 6 of them. Educate Together runs 2.
| Patron | Ethos | Schools | Pupils |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bishop of Cork & RossS.N. Naomh Antaine, Scoil Oilibheir, Bunscoil Chriost Ri, Scoil an Athair Tadhg O Murchu, Scoil Naomh Caitriona, Scoil Mhuire Gan Smal B, St Columbas, Scoil Naomh Brid C, S.N. Barra Naofa Cailini, Scoil Naomh Mhuire, Scoil Mhuire agus Eoin, Muire Gan Smal C, North Presentation Primary School, Gaelscoil Peig Sayers, S.N. Barra Naofa Bhuach, Scoil Colmcille, Scoil Padre Pio, Gaelscoil Ui Riada, S.N. B Togher Cork, S.N. Athair Maitiu C, Ballintemple, Greenmount Monastery, Scoil Aiseiri Chriost, Scoil Iosagain, St Patricks College, S.N. Iosef Naofa, Our Lady of Lourdes, St Vincents Convent, Scoil Mhuire Fatima Boys Senior, Scoil Mhuire ar Chnoc hAoine, Gaelscoil an Teaghlaigh Naofa, Scoil Maria Assumpta, St Patricks B, S.N. Padraig Naofa C, S.N. Bhreanndain C, Realt na Maidine, St Killians Spec Sch, S.N. Mharcuis B, S.N. Padraig Naofa, School of the Divine Child, St Kevins School | Catholic | 41 | 10,312 |
| CEISTMount Mercy College, Christ King Girls', St Aloysius School, Presentation, Nano Nagle College | Catholic | 5 | 2,185 |
| Edmund Rice Schools TrustChristian Brothers College, Coláiste Éamann Rís, Gaelcholáiste Mhuire, North Monastery | Catholic | 4 | 2,691 |
| Presentation Brothers Schools TrustColáiste an Spioraid Naoimh, Presentation Brothers College, Coláiste Chríost Rí | Catholic | 3 | 1,909 |
| Cork ETBSt Aidan's, Terence Mac Swiney, Coláiste Daibhéid | Inter-denominational, Multi-denominational | 3 | 762 |
| Bishop of Cork & Ross & COPE FoundationSt Bernadettes Spec Sch, St Paul's School, Scoil Eanna | Catholic | 3 | 290 |
| Bishop of Cork, Cloyne & Ross COIScoil Naomh Micheal, St Lukes Mxd, S.N. Barra Naofa | Church of Ireland | 3 | 273 |
| Cork ETB & Bishop of Cork and RossDouglas, Mayfield | Inter-denominational | 2 | 967 |
| Le Chéile Schools TrustSt. Angela's College, Ursuline College Blackrock | Catholic | 2 | 958 |
| Educate TogetherCork Educate Together, South Lee Educate Together | Multi-denominational | 2 | 565 |
| Regina Mundi (Cork) LtdRegina Mundi College | Catholic | 1 | 564 |
| Bishop of Cork, Cloyne & Ross COI/ Cork ETBAshton School | Church of Ireland | 1 | 539 |
| Named IndividualScoil Mhuire | Catholic | 1 | 432 |
| An Foras PátrúnachtaGaelscoil an Ghoirt Alainn | Multi-denominational | 1 | 393 |
| Religious Sisters of CharitySt Vincent's | Catholic | 1 | 283 |
| Cork School ProjectCork Educate Together | Multi-denominational | 1 | 193 |
| Brothers of Charity (Southern Services) Brother John O'SheaCara Junior School | Catholic | 1 | 72 |
| COPE FoundationScoil Aislinn | Other | 1 | 36 |
| CEO of Cork University HospitalCork University Hos School | Multi-denominational | 1 | 17 |
Department of Education school lists: patron 2024/25, ethos 2025/26.
How children get a place in Cork City Centre
Starting primary school
Children can start primary school once they are four, and must be in school by six. Families apply to each school directly. Every school publishes an admission policy and a yearly admission notice; a school with more applicants than places admits on the criteria in its policy. Since the Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018, a Catholic or other majority-faith primary school can’t put baptised children first; a school of a minority faith still can, to keep its ethos.
Moving to secondary school
Children move to post-primary school at about twelve, after sixth class. Again, families apply to each school, usually a year or more ahead, and an oversubscribed school admits on its published criteria, often brothers and sisters and its feeder primary schools. The 3 fee-paying schools here set their own fees and admissions.
Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018; each school’s admission policy and notice are on its own website.
Which schools are growing
18 schools here have grown by 5% or more since 2019/20, 29 have shrunk by as much, out of 67; across Ireland: +5%.
All 67 schools
Department of Education enrolments at 30 September, 2019/20 and 2025/26 (preliminary). No capacity is published, so how full a school is can’t be shown.
Inspection reports for Cork City Centre’s schools
Reports from the Department of Education’s Inspectorate, every school’s linked and none rated
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.
The reports describe what inspectors saw and what each school should do next. They give no overall grade, so none is shown here; the 77 schools below each link their own.
Department of Education Inspectorate reports on gov.ie, found by each school’s roll number.
Post-primary schools within reach of Cork City Centre
All post-primaries within 10 km; at about twelve, families choose and apply school by school
Families in Cork City Centre have 36 post-primary schools within 10 km: 24 voluntary secondary schools, 7 ETB schools, 4 community schools and one comprehensive school. 14 of them are single-sex, 8 for girls and 6 for boys. Fees are charged at 3 of them. Every subject is taught through Irish at 4 of them.
| School | Takes | Also | Pupils | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Aloysius SchoolVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | – | 323 | 0.5 km |
| Presentation Brothers CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | Fee-paying | 692 | 0.6 km |
| St. Angela's CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | – | 606 | 0.6 km |
| Scoil MhuireVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | Fee-paying | 432 | 0.7 km |
| St Vincent's Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | DEIS | 283 | 0.8 km |
| Christian Brothers CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | Fee-paying | 919 | 0.8 km |
| Coláiste DaibhéidETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | Gaelcholáiste, DEIS | 151 | 1 km |
| North Monastery Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | DEIS | 271 | 1 km |
| Coláiste Éamann RísVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | DEIS | 811 | 1.1 km |
| Gaelcholáiste MhuireVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | Gaelcholáiste, DEIS | 690 | 1.1 km |
| Cork Educate Together Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 403 | 1.3 km |
| Coláiste Chríost RíVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | – | 502 | 1.4 km |
All 36 post-primary schools within reach
| School | Takes | Also | Pupils | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nano Nagle CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | DEIS | 161 | 1.5 km |
| Presentation Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | DEIS | 190 | 1.7 km |
| St Patricks CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | DEIS | 218 | 1.8 km |
| Terence Mac Swiney Community CollegeETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 302 | 1.9 km |
| Ashton SchoolComprehensive · Church of Ireland | Girls and boys | – | 539 | 1.9 km |
| Christ King Girls' Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | – | 700 | 2 km |
| St Aidan's Community CollegeETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 309 | 2.6 km |
| Mayfield Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 362 | 2.7 km |
| Mount Mercy CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | – | 811 | 2.9 km |
| Regina Mundi CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | – | 564 | 2.9 km |
| Coláiste an Spioraid NaoimhVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | – | 715 | 3.3 km |
| Douglas Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Boys | – | 605 | 3.3 km |
| Bishopstown Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 306 | 3.8 km |
| Ursuline College BlackrockVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | DEIS | 352 | 4.2 km |
| Nagle Community CollegeETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 315 | 5.2 km |
| Colaiste An PhiarsaighVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | Gaelcholáiste, Boarding | 578 | 5.8 km |
| Scoil Mhuire gan SmalVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | – | 1,124 | 6.7 km |
| Coláiste ChoilmETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | Irish stream | 1,357 | 7.2 km |
| Glanmire Community CollegeETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 1,141 | 7.3 km |
| St Francis Capuchin CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | – | 730 | 7.7 km |
| Ballincollig Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 987 | 8.6 km |
| Le Cheile Secondary School BallincolligVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | – | 254 | 8.7 km |
| Coláiste an Chroí NaofaVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | – | 461 | 9.5 km |
| Gaelcholáiste Charraig Ui LeighinETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | Gaelcholáiste | 302 | 9.6 km |
Department of Education post-primary list 2025/26; straight-line distances from the town’s centre point.
Special schools and classes around Cork City Centre
9 special schools serve the area: St Kevins School, Scoil Aislinn, Scoil Eanna, St Paul's School, St Bernadettes Spec Sch, School of the Divine Child (Scoil an Linbh Íosa), Cork University Hos School, St Killians Spec Sch and Cara Junior School, 577 pupils between them. 34 of the 43 primary schools have special classes for children who need more support. Their cards ↑
Special schools and primary schools with special classes as the Department lists them; the National Council for Special Education places pupils in special classes.
Cork City Centre beside the 93 other Irish towns of 2,600 to 5,000 people
Towns of a similar size, with the schools in or within 3 km of each; ordered by population, never ranked
| Town | People | Schools | Pupils | All-Irish | DEIS schools | Nearest post-primary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Glounthaune | 5,000 | 32 | 10,210 | 4 | 19% | 3.7 km |
| … | ||||||
| Shanakiel | 3,804 | 52 | 16,547 | 5 | 54% | 0.6 km |
| Mitchelstown | 3,744 | 5 | 1,646 | 0 | 40% | 0.4 km |
| Stamullen | 3,720 | 3 | 1,043 | 0 | 0% | 2.1 km |
| Ballinacurra | 3,719 | 48 | 15,810 | 6 | 46% | 0.8 km |
| Cork City Centre | 3,701 | 77 | 23,441 | 7 | 48% | 0.5 km |
| Cahir | 3,679 | 2 | 1,300 | 0 | 50% | 0.6 km |
| Riverstown | 3,664 | 12 | 4,146 | 3 | 8% | 0.8 km |
| Enfield | 3,663 | 4 | 1,342 | 0 | 0% | 0.7 km |
| Westbury | 3,636 | 29 | 9,896 | 3 | 55% | 0.9 km |
| … | ||||||
| Baltinglass | 2,611 | 3 | 912 | 0 | 0% | 0.2 km |
Of these 93 other towns, 1 count more pupils at their schools than Cork City Centre. Teaching through Irish is on offer within 3 km in 60 of the 94.
Department of Education school lists 2025/26 (preliminary); CSO Census 2022 populations.
Pupil numbers around Cork City Centre
Pupils every September at the schools in or within 3 km of the town, each counted at today’s site.
The schools in and around Cork City Centre had 23,466 pupils in 2015/16 and 23,441 in 2025/26, fewer than before. Coláiste Éamann Rís grew most: +149% since 2019/20.
Pupils at schools in and around Cork City Centre
Department of Education enrolments at 30 September each year, 2015/16 to 2025/26 (preliminary), for every school placed in the area today; schools that have since closed or merged count where they stood.
Schools in the towns around Cork City Centre
For each nearby town, its schools in or within 3 km of its outline, with straight-line distances.
| Town | Schools | Pupils | All-Irish | DEIS schools | Nearest post-primary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cork City Centre | 77 | 23,441 | 7 | 48% | 0.5 km |
| Shandon 0.5 km | 63 | 19,030 | 5 | 52% | 0.4 km |
| South Gate 0.8 km | 75 | 23,775 | 7 | 47% | 0.3 km |
| Gurranebraher 0.8 km | 64 | 19,573 | 6 | 55% | 0.6 km |
| Sunday's Well 1 km | 69 | 20,909 | 6 | 52% | 0.5 km |
| St Luke's 1.2 km | 70 | 20,531 | 6 | 51% | 0.1 km |
| Blackpool 1.2 km | 65 | 18,866 | 5 | 52% | 0.6 km |
The roll around Cork City Centre moved +1% since 2019/20; nearby, St Luke's grew most (+1%) and South Gate least (−1%).
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Which schools count. Every school in Cork City Centre or within 3 km of its outline, as the Department places it: families here use them. Schools further out are on the map of each school’s own page.
- The kinds of school. Primary schools take children from junior infants to sixth class, about ages 4 to 12. Post-primary schools teach the Junior and Leaving Certificate, about ages 12 to 18: voluntary secondary schools (mostly with a religious patron), ETB schools and community colleges run by an Education and Training Board, and community and comprehensive schools. Special schools teach children with particular needs.
- Teaching through Irish. All-Irish: every subject taught through Irish, in the Gaeltacht or, outside it, a Gaelscoil or Gaelcholáiste. Partly in Irish: an Irish stream (some classes entirely through Irish) or some subjects through Irish. Every other school teaches Irish as a subject.
- DEIS. DEIS (Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools) gives schools serving disadvantaged areas more teachers, money and support; the Department decides which schools are in it.
- Ethos and patron. Most Irish schools are owned by a patron, mostly a church; the patron sets the school’s ethos. Multi-denominational schools (Educate Together, many ETB schools) teach children of every faith and none together.
- No grade. Section 53 of the Education Act 1998 lets the Minister refuse to release information that would allow schools’ exam results to be compared, and no results are published school by school. So Ireland’s schools have no letters and its towns no School Grade; nothing on this page ranks them.
- What isn’t here. What the UK and French pages show from results, these can’t: results charts, results against pupils’ backgrounds and towns ranked by their schools (no published results), and how full each school is (no capacity is published). Every post-primary school teaches to the Leaving Certificate, so there is no sixth-form split to show.
- Inspections. The Inspectorate’s reports are linked from each school’s page. They give no overall grade, so none is shown.
- The year. The 2025/26 lists are the Department’s preliminary release; numbers can change a little in the final lists.
Questions about schools in Cork City Centre
How many schools are there in Cork City Centre?
In Cork City Centre or within 3 km of it: 43 primary schools, 25 secondary schools and 9 special schools, with 23,441 pupils between them.
Are there schools in Cork City Centre that teach through Irish?
Yes, 7: Coláiste Daibhéid, Gaelcholáiste Mhuire and Gaelscoil Peig Sayers teach every subject through Irish.
Are there fee-paying secondary schools near Cork City Centre?
3 of the 25: Presentation Brothers College, Scoil Mhuire and Christian Brothers College. The others are free.
What is the best school in Cork City Centre?
We don’t say. Ireland publishes no exam results school by school, and section 53 of the Education Act 1998 restricts comparing them; a ranking would rest on guesses. Each school’s page has its own facts and a link to its inspection reports, and visiting the schools you are weighing is still the best guide.
How do I get a place at a school in Cork City Centre?
Apply to each school directly: every school publishes an admission policy and a yearly admission notice with its dates. If it has more applicants than places, it admits on the criteria in its policy.
Sources: Department of Education, school lists 2025/26 (preliminary) and enrolments since 2015/16, CC BY 4.0 · one school placed with OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL). Under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).
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).