Photo: TheLizardQueen · CC BY 2.0Most post-primaries around Crosshaven take girls and boys: 0% are single-sex, below Co. Cork’s towns and Irish towns
In the comparison, Crosshaven comes below both Co. Cork’s towns (44%) and Irish towns (39%). Its one secondary school within 3 km, Colaiste Muire, has 523 pupils. 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 Crosshaven’s schools
A wide choice at twelve
Families here can choose among 8 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: Colaiste Muire (0.5 km), Coláiste Muire (6 km) and Carrignafoy Community College (6.1 km). Post-primary choices ↓
Drawn from the Department of Education’s lists; none of it judges how well a school teaches.
The 5 schools in and around Crosshaven
Each school in or within 3 km of Crosshaven links to a page of its own. No letters, no results: Irish schools aren’t ranked one by one.
Where the 5 schools in and around Crosshaven 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 Crosshaven’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 Crosshaven
How many schools teach through each language; the tick marks Ireland’s share.
None of the 5 schools in and around Crosshaven teaches every subject through Irish.
Who Crosshaven’s schools serve
The pupils at the area’s schools by share, beside 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 Crosshaven | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at DEIS schools | 5% | 18% | 27% |
| Pupils at all-Irish schools | 0% | 8% | 6% |
| Girls | 50% | 49% | 49% |
5% of the pupils around Crosshaven are at a DEIS school, fewer than the 27% across Ireland (18% in Co. Cork). The biggest difference from Ireland is in pupils at all-Irish schools: 0% here, 6% there. Of the DEIS schools here, Ringaskiddy Lower Harbour N.S. is the biggest: 58 pupils.
Each of the 5 schools
| School | Pupils | Girls | DEIS | All-Irish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colaiste MuirePost-primary · Voluntary secondary | 523 | 52% | ||
| S.N. Cros TseainPrimary | 215 | 0% | ||
| S.N. Bun an TsabhairnePrimary | 193 | 100% | ||
| Templebrady N.S.Primary | 68 | 54% | ||
| Ringaskiddy Lower Harbour N.S.Primary | 58 | 45% | ✓ |
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 Crosshaven’s schools
Who runs each school, as listed for 2025/26; the bars give the share of schools of each kind.
4 of Crosshaven’s 5 schools have a Catholic ethos, against 80% across Ireland. The patrons with most schools here: Bishop of Cork & Ross (3), CEIST (1) and Bishop of Cork, Cloyne & Ross COI (1). 1 of the 5 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 3 patrons of Crosshaven’s schools
The patron owns the school and sets its ethos; a board of management runs it day to day.
Of the 5 schools around Crosshaven, 3 have Bishop of Cork & Ross as patron, teaching 44% of the pupils; 3 patrons in all.
| Patron | Ethos | Schools | Pupils |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bishop of Cork & RossS.N. Cros Tseain, S.N. Bun an Tsabhairne, Ringaskiddy Lower Harbour | Catholic | 3 | 466 |
| CEISTColaiste Muire | Catholic | 1 | 523 |
| Bishop of Cork, Cloyne & Ross COITemplebrady | Church of Ireland | 1 | 68 |
Department of Education school lists: patron 2024/25, ethos 2025/26.
How children get a place in Crosshaven
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.
Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018; each school’s admission policy and notice are on its own website.
Which schools are growing
2 schools here have grown by 5% or more since 2019/20, 3 have shrunk by as much, out of 5; across Ireland: +5%.
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 Crosshaven’s schools
The Inspectorate’s published reports for each school, linked, without ratings
Reports come from whole-school evaluations (teaching, learning, leadership and management), subject inspections and follow-through visits that check earlier advice; gov.ie publishes each one with the school’s response.
Reports say what inspectors found and what should improve, without an overall grade, so none appears here; each of the 5 schools below links its own.
| School | Reports on gov.ie |
|---|---|
| Colaiste MuirePost-primary · Voluntary secondary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| S.N. Cros TseainPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| S.N. Bun an TsabhairnePrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Templebrady N.S.Primary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Ringaskiddy Lower Harbour N.S.Primary | Inspection reports ↗ |
Department of Education Inspectorate reports on gov.ie, found by each school’s roll number.
Post-primary schools within reach of Crosshaven
Every post-primary school within 10 km of the town; families choose and apply to each, at about twelve
8 post-primary schools are within 10 km of Crosshaven: 4 voluntary secondary schools, 2 ETB schools and 2 community schools. Of these, one teaches only girls or only boys. Just one teaches every subject through Irish.
| School | Takes | Also | Pupils | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colaiste MuireVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | – | 523 | 0.5 km |
| Coláiste MuireVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | – | 709 | 6 km |
| Carrignafoy Community CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 322 | 6.1 km |
| Edmund Rice CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | – | 580 | 6.3 km |
| Carrigaline Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 1,072 | 6.9 km |
| St Peter's Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 354 | 8 km |
| Gaelcholáiste Charraig Ui LeighinETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | Gaelcholáiste | 302 | 8.1 km |
| St Francis Capuchin CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | – | 730 | 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 Crosshaven
No special school is in or near Crosshaven. 2 of the 4 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.
Crosshaven beside the 85 other Irish towns of 2,300 to 4,400 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Courtown | 4,365 | 1 | 304 | 0 | 100% | 5.4 km |
| … | ||||||
| Clara | 3,403 | 3 | 699 | 0 | 100% | 0.3 km |
| Annacotty | 3,398 | 8 | 4,443 | 1 | 0% | 0.5 km |
| Tower | 3,300 | 6 | 2,638 | 1 | 17% | 3.2 km |
| Rathangan | 3,263 | 3 | 1,345 | 0 | 33% | 0.6 km |
| Crosshaven | 3,263 | 5 | 1,057 | 0 | 20% | 0.5 km |
| Virginia | 3,211 | 3 | 1,430 | 0 | 0% | 0.7 km |
| Ballinrobe | 3,148 | 3 | 1,391 | 0 | 0% | 0.7 km |
| Taylor's Hill | 3,141 | 30 | 10,795 | 4 | 23% | 0.4 km |
| Blackpool | 3,124 | 65 | 18,866 | 5 | 52% | 0.6 km |
| … | ||||||
| Thomastown | 2,305 | 2 | 732 | 0 | 50% | 0.1 km |
More pupils attend the schools around 71 of the other 85 towns than around Crosshaven. Teaching through Irish is on offer within 3 km in 48 of the 86.
Department of Education school lists 2025/26 (preliminary); CSO Census 2022 populations.
Pupil numbers around Crosshaven
Each September’s pupils at every school in or within 3 km of the town, counted where the school stands today.
The schools in and around Crosshaven had 1,135 pupils in 2015/16 and 1,057 in 2025/26, fewer than before. Templebrady N.S. grew most: +19% since 2019/20.
Pupils at schools in and around Crosshaven
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 Crosshaven
Each town’s schools in or within 3 km of its outline; distances as the crow flies.
| Town | Schools | Pupils | All-Irish | DEIS schools | Nearest post-primary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crosshaven | 5 | 1,057 | 0 | 20% | 0.5 km |
| Whitegate 5.6 km | 2 | 391 | 0 | 0% | 5.2 km |
| Cobh 5.9 km | 13 | 3,613 | 1 | 23% | 0.8 km |
| Aghada-Rostellan 6.8 km | 3 | 574 | 0 | 0% | 5.5 km |
| Carrigaline 7.3 km | 12 | 4,439 | 2 | 8% | 0.5 km |
| Passage West-Monkstown 8.1 km | 16 | 4,438 | 0 | 6% | 0.1 km |
| Douglas 12 km | 66 | 20,250 | 10 | 20% | 1.8 km |
Douglas has the most schools teaching through Irish nearby: 10. Pupils around Crosshaven: +2% since 2019/20. Among the neighbours, Carrigaline led (+9%) and Cobh trailed (−11%).
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Which schools count. Every school in Crosshaven 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 Crosshaven
How many schools are there in Crosshaven?
In Crosshaven or within 3 km of it: 4 primary schools and 1 secondary school, with 1,057 pupils between them.
Are there schools in Crosshaven that teach through Irish?
None in Crosshaven or within 3 km of it teaches every subject through Irish; some teach it as a subject only.
Are there fee-paying secondary schools near Crosshaven?
No: the secondary school here is free.
What is the best school in Crosshaven?
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 Crosshaven?
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).