Photo: Andrew Mcmillan · CC BY 3.0Fewer of the schools around Donabate are in DEIS than around Co. Dublin’s towns or Irish towns: 0%
That leaves Donabate below both Co. Dublin’s towns (40%) and Irish towns (35%). 3 of its 6 schools are multi- or inter-denominational, against 14% across Ireland. With no school results published in Ireland, and the Education Act 1998 restricting comparisons of them, these schools are described, not graded or ranked.
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 Donabate’s schools
More all-Irish schools than most places
Families here have more choice of a school that teaches every subject through Irish than in most of Ireland, where 8% of schools do. The school is Gaelscoil na Mara (123). Language ↓
A choice beyond the church schools
Most schools in Ireland have a church patron; here more of them are multi- or inter-denominational than in most places (14% across Ireland). They are Donabate Community College (799), Donabate/Portrane Educate Together NS (414) and Gaelscoil na Mara (123). Who runs them ↓
A wide choice at twelve
Within 10 km of the town there are 14 post-primary schools to choose from, of different kinds; each sets its own admission policy, and many families apply to several. The nearest: Donabate Community College (0.3 km), Lusk Community College (4.5 km) and St Joseph's Secondary School (5.1 km). Post-primary choices ↓
No school in DEIS
None of the schools here is in DEIS, the extra support for schools in disadvantaged areas; across Ireland, 30% of schools are. Who runs them ↓
From the Department of Education’s school lists: facts, not judgements of how well a school teaches.
Teaching through Irish in and around Donabate
How many schools teach through each language; the tick marks Ireland’s share.
1 of Donabate’s 6 schools teach every subject through Irish: Gaelscoil na Mara.
Who runs Donabate’s schools
Each school’s ethos, 2025/26: the bars show the share of schools of each kind.
2 of Donabate’s 6 schools have a Catholic ethos, against 80% across Ireland. The patrons with most schools here: Dublin & Dún Laoghaire ETB (2), Archbishop of Dublin (2) and Educate Together (1). None of the 6 is 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.
Where the 6 schools in and around Donabate 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 Donabate’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.
Who Donabate’s schools serve
How the area’s pupils divide, against Co. Dublin’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 Donabate | Co. Dublin | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at DEIS schools | 0% | 28% | 27% |
| Pupils at all-Irish schools | 6% | 6% | 6% |
| Girls | 46% | 49% | 49% |
DEIS schools teach 0% of the pupils around Donabate, a smaller share than Ireland’s 27% (Co. Dublin: 28%).
Each of the 6 schools
| School | Pupils | Girls | DEIS | All-Irish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Donabate Community CollegePost-primary · ETB | 799 | 44% | ||
| Donabate/Portrane Educate Together NSPrimary | 414 | 47% | ||
| S.N. C Naomh PadraigPrimary | 376 | 100% | ||
| St Patricks Boys National SchoolPrimary | 370 | 0% | ||
| Gaelscoil na MaraPrimary | 123 | 39% | ✓ | |
| Crannog Nua Special SchoolSpecial | 5 | 40% |
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.
The 4 patrons of Donabate’s schools
Each school has a patron that owns it and sets its ethos; its board of management runs it.
The schools around Donabate answer to 4 patrons, and Dublin & Dún Laoghaire ETB leads with 2 of the 6 schools and 39% of their pupils. Education and Training Boards run 2 of them. Educate Together runs one.
| Patron | Ethos | Schools | Pupils |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dublin & Dún Laoghaire ETBDonabate, Crannog Nua Special School | Multi-denominational, Other | 2 | 804 |
| Archbishop of DublinS.N. C Naomh Padraig, St Patricks Boys | Catholic | 2 | 746 |
| Educate TogetherDonabate/Portrane Educate Together NS | Multi-denominational | 1 | 414 |
| An Foras PátrúnachtaGaelscoil na Mara | Multi-denominational | 1 | 123 |
Department of Education school lists: patron 2024/25, ethos 2025/26.
How children get a place in Donabate
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
Since 2019/20, 0 of these 4 schools have grown by 5% or more and 3 have shrunk as much; across Ireland the number of pupils changed by +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.
The 6 schools in and around Donabate
Each school in or within 3 km of Donabate links to a page of its own. No letters, no results: Irish schools aren’t ranked one by one.
Inspection reports for Donabate’s schools
The Department of Education’s Inspectorate: every school’s reports linked, none rated
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 6 schools below links its own.
| School | Reports on gov.ie |
|---|---|
| Donabate Community CollegePost-primary · ETB | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Donabate/Portrane Educate Together NSPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| S.N. C Naomh PadraigPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| St Patricks Boys National SchoolPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Gaelscoil na MaraPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Crannog Nua Special SchoolSpecial | Inspection reports ↗ |
Department of Education Inspectorate reports on gov.ie, found by each school’s roll number.
Post-primary schools within reach of Donabate
Post-primary schools within 10 km of the town; children move at about twelve, and families apply to each school
14 post-primary schools are within 10 km of Donabate: 7 ETB schools, 5 voluntary secondary schools and 2 community schools. 2 of them are single-sex, 1 for girls and 1 for boys. Just one teaches every subject through Irish.
| School | Takes | Also | Pupils | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Donabate Community CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 799 | 0.3 km |
| Lusk Community CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 1,104 | 4.5 km |
| St Joseph's Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | DEIS | 945 | 5.1 km |
| Fingal Community CollegeETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 864 | 5.5 km |
| Malahide & Portmarnock Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 696 | 5.6 km |
| St Finians Community CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 671 | 5.7 km |
| Malahide Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 1,250 | 5.8 km |
| Portmarnock Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 955 | 6.5 km |
| Coláiste ChoilmVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | – | 421 | 6.6 km |
| Swords Community CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 952 | 7.1 km |
| Loreto CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | – | 655 | 7.5 km |
| Belmayne Educate Together Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 595 | 9.8 km |
All 14 post-primary schools within reach
| School | Takes | Also | Pupils | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grange Community CollegeETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 553 | 10 km |
| Gaelcholáiste ReachrannETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | Gaelcholáiste | 453 | 10 km |
Department of Education post-primary list 2025/26; straight-line distances from the town’s centre point.
Special schools and classes around Donabate
Crannog Nua Special School is the special school here, with 5 pupils. 3 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.
Donabate beside the 84 other Irish towns of 6,800 to 13,100 people
Schools in or within 3 km of each town, by population; none is ranked, as Ireland publishes no results
| Town | People | Schools | Pupils | All-Irish | DEIS schools | Nearest post-primary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Castlebar | 13,054 | 12 | 4,272 | 1 | 17% | 0.3 km |
| … | ||||||
| Finglas North | 9,805 | 73 | 21,290 | 8 | 62% | 0.7 km |
| Cabra West | 9,786 | 132 | 34,456 | 10 | 63% | 0.2 km |
| Kilmore | 9,786 | 110 | 32,817 | 10 | 42% | 0.6 km |
| Killiney | 9,776 | 45 | 13,019 | 1 | 31% | 0.7 km |
| Donabate | 9,669 | 6 | 2,087 | 1 | 0% | 0.3 km |
| Tuam | 9,647 | 8 | 3,460 | 1 | 25% | 0.3 km |
| Donaghmede | 9,616 | 73 | 21,067 | 4 | 38% | 0.3 km |
| Grantstown and Ballinakill | 9,571 | 31 | 11,459 | 2 | 36% | 2.1 km |
| Trim | 9,563 | 7 | 3,065 | 1 | 14% | 0.5 km |
| … | ||||||
| Eyre Square | 6,801 | 36 | 12,413 | 5 | 33% | 1.2 km |
Among the 84 other towns, 83 have more pupils at their schools than Donabate does. 82 of the 85 towns have an all-Irish school within 3 km.
Department of Education school lists 2025/26 (preliminary); CSO Census 2022 populations.
Pupil numbers around Donabate
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 Donabate had 2,108 pupils in 2015/16 and 2,087 in 2025/26, fewer than before.
Pupils at schools in and around Donabate
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 Donabate
Schools in or within 3 km of each neighbouring town; distances in a straight line.
Portrane has the most schools teaching through Irish nearby: 2. The roll around Donabate moved +2% since 2019/20; nearby, Portrane grew most (+9%) and Kinsealy-Drinan least (−1%).
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Which schools count. Every school in Donabate 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 Donabate
How many schools are there in Donabate?
In Donabate or within 3 km of it: 4 primary schools, 1 secondary school and 1 special school, with 2,087 pupils between them.
Are there schools in Donabate that teach through Irish?
Yes, 1: Gaelscoil na Mara teach every subject through Irish.
Are there fee-paying secondary schools near Donabate?
No: the secondary school here is free.
What is the best school in Donabate?
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 Donabate?
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).