Photo: Original uploader was Sarah777 at en.wikipedia · Public domainAround Newcastle, only 0% of schools are in DEIS, fewer than around Co. Dublin’s towns or Irish towns
On this, Newcastle is below both Co. Dublin’s towns (40%) and Irish towns (35%). 6 of its 11 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.
Schools in the town or within 3 km of its outline, Department of Education lists for 2025/26; the Ireland figures cover all schools listed.
What stands out about Newcastle’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. They are Scoil Chronain (354) and Gaelscoil Lir (53). 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 Holy Family Community School (998), Coláiste pobail Fóla (758), Citywest & Saggart Community National School (413) and City West Educate Together National School (376), and 2 more. Who runs them ↓
More pupils every year
Pupil numbers at the schools here have grown faster than across Ireland (+5% since 2019/20), so classes and new places are a question worth asking. Pupils over time ↓
A wide choice at twelve
Families here can choose among 29 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: Holy Family Community School (2.4 km), Coláiste pobail Fóla (4 km) and Adamstown Community College (5 km). Post-primary choices ↓
Drawn from the Department of Education’s lists; none of it judges how well a school teaches.
Teaching through Irish in and around Newcastle
The schools by teaching language, with Ireland’s share as the black tick.
2 of Newcastle’s 11 schools teach every subject through Irish: Scoil Chronain and Gaelscoil Lir.
Who runs Newcastle’s schools
Ethos as listed for 2025/26: each bar splits the schools by who runs them.
5 of Newcastle’s 11 schools have a Catholic ethos, against 80% across Ireland. The patrons with most schools here: Archbishop of Dublin (5), Educate Together (2) and Dublin & Dún Laoghaire ETB (2). None of the 11 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.
Pupil numbers around Newcastle
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 Newcastle had 3,741 pupils in 2015/16 and 5,403 in 2025/26.
Pupils at schools in and around Newcastle
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.
Where the 11 schools in and around Newcastle 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 Newcastle’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 Newcastle’s schools serve
Shares of the pupils at the area’s schools, beside 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 Newcastle | Co. Dublin | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at DEIS schools | 0% | 28% | 27% |
| Pupils at all-Irish schools | 8% | 6% | 6% |
| Girls | 47% | 49% | 49% |
| Post-primary pupils at single-sex schools | 0% | 38% | 29% |
| Post-primary pupils at fee-paying schools | 0% | 18% | 6% |
0% of the pupils around Newcastle are at a DEIS school, fewer than the 27% across Ireland (28% in Co. Dublin). Furthest from Ireland’s mix is the share of post-primary pupils at single-sex schools: 0% here against 29%.
Each of the 11 schools
| School | Pupils | Girls | DEIS | All-Irish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Caisleain Nua LiamhnaPrimary | 626 | 50% | ||
| Scoil ChronainPrimary | 354 | 44% | ✓ | |
| Holy Family National SchoolPrimary | 671 | 48% | ||
| Holy Family Community SchoolPost-primary · Community school | 998 | 48% | ||
| Rathcoole ETNSPrimary | 114 | 40% | ||
| Coláiste pobail FólaPost-primary · ETB | 758 | 47% | ||
| S.N. Naomh MhuirePrimary | 666 | 45% | ||
| Citywest & Saggart Community National SchoolPrimary | 413 | 46% | ||
| Gaelscoil LirPrimary | 53 | 49% | ✓ | |
| City West Educate Together National SchoolPrimary | 376 | 47% | ||
| Scoil Naomh PadraigPrimary | 374 | 47% |
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 5 patrons of Newcastle’s schools
Each school has a patron that owns it and sets its ethos; its board of management runs it.
5 patrons run the 11 schools around Newcastle; the largest, Archbishop of Dublin, has 5 of them and 50% of the pupils. The local Education and Training Board runs 3. Educate Together runs 2.
| Patron | Ethos | Schools | Pupils |
|---|---|---|---|
| Archbishop of DublinHoly Family, S.N. Naomh Mhuire, Caisleain Nua Liamhna, Scoil Naomh Padraig, Scoil Chronain | Catholic | 5 | 2,691 |
| Dublin & Dún Laoghaire ETBColáiste pobail Fóla, Citywest & Saggart Community | Multi-denominational | 2 | 1,171 |
| Educate TogetherCity West Educate Together, Rathcoole ETNS | Multi-denominational | 2 | 490 |
| Dublin & Dún Laoghaire ETB & The Spiritan Education TrustHoly Family | Inter-denominational | 1 | 998 |
| An Foras PátrúnachtaGaelscoil Lir | Multi-denominational | 1 | 53 |
Department of Education school lists: patron 2024/25, ethos 2025/26.
How children get a place in Newcastle
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
Between 2019/20 and now, 1 of the 8 grew by 5% or more and 4 shrank as much, while Ireland’s pupil numbers moved +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 11 schools in and around Newcastle
Every school in Newcastle or within 3 km of its outline, each linked to its own page. Without school-level results from Ireland, the cards show no letters.
Inspection reports for Newcastle’s schools
Reports from the Department of Education’s Inspectorate, every school’s linked and 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 11 schools below links its own.
| School | Reports on gov.ie |
|---|---|
| Caisleain Nua LiamhnaPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Scoil ChronainPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Holy Family National SchoolPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Holy Family Community SchoolPost-primary · Community school | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Rathcoole ETNSPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Coláiste pobail FólaPost-primary · ETB | Inspection reports ↗ |
| S.N. Naomh MhuirePrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Citywest & Saggart Community National SchoolPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Gaelscoil LirPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| City West Educate Together National SchoolPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Scoil Naomh PadraigPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
Department of Education Inspectorate reports on gov.ie, found by each school’s roll number.
Post-primary schools within reach of Newcastle
All post-primaries within 10 km; at about twelve, families choose and apply school by school
29 post-primary schools are within 10 km of Newcastle: 15 ETB schools, 9 community schools and 5 voluntary secondary schools. 6 of them are single-sex, 3 for girls and 3 for boys. Every subject is taught through Irish at 3 of them.
| School | Takes | Also | Pupils | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Holy Family Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 998 | 2.4 km |
| Coláiste pobail FólaETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 758 | 4 km |
| Adamstown Community CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 981 | 5 km |
| St Aidan's Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 561 | 5.6 km |
| Deansrath Community CollegeETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 425 | 5.8 km |
| Mount Seskin Community CollegeETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 350 | 5.9 km |
| St Wolstan's Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls | – | 846 | 6.1 km |
| Kishoge Community CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 937 | 6.4 km |
| Griffeen Community CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 576 | 6.4 km |
| Lucan Community CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 966 | 6.5 km |
| Coláiste ChilliainETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | Gaelcholáiste | 400 | 6.9 km |
| Killinarden Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 471 | 6.9 km |
All 29 post-primary schools within reach
| School | Takes | Also | Pupils | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moyle Park CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | – | 763 | 7 km |
| St Marks Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 931 | 7.1 km |
| Coláiste Cois LifeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | Gaelcholáiste | 592 | 7.1 km |
| Coláiste BrídeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | – | 993 | 7.4 km |
| Coláiste ChiaráinCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 676 | 7.5 km |
| St Joseph's CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | – | 934 | 7.8 km |
| Salesian CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | – | 880 | 7.8 km |
| Celbridge Community SchoolCommunity school · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 712 | 7.9 km |
| Coláiste Phádraig CBSVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | – | 745 | 7.9 km |
| Kingswood Community CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 1,006 | 8.2 km |
| Collinstown Park Community CollegeETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 630 | 8.2 km |
| Old Bawn Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 1,024 | 8.4 km |
| Confey Community CollegeETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 934 | 8.6 km |
| St. Kevin's Community CollegeETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 525 | 8.7 km |
| Coláiste de hÍdeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | Gaelcholáiste, DEIS | 266 | 9.7 km |
| Phobailscoil IosoldeCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 764 | 9.7 km |
| Firhouse Community CollegeETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 825 | 10 km |
Department of Education post-primary list 2025/26; straight-line distances from the town’s centre point.
Special schools and classes around Newcastle
No special school is in or near Newcastle. 6 of the 9 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.
Newcastle beside the 95 other Irish towns of 3,200 to 6,100 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passage West-Monkstown | 6,051 | 16 | 4,438 | 0 | 6% | 0.1 km |
| … | ||||||
| Bohernabreena | 4,613 | 54 | 19,297 | 5 | 46% | 0.9 km |
| Athenry | 4,603 | 5 | 3,133 | 2 | 0% | 0.4 km |
| Saggart | 4,573 | 23 | 9,161 | 3 | 61% | 0.7 km |
| Kilcoole | 4,569 | 8 | 3,046 | 0 | 0% | 0.6 km |
| Newcastle | 4,526 | 11 | 5,403 | 2 | 0% | 2.4 km |
| Gurranebraher | 4,502 | 64 | 19,573 | 6 | 55% | 0.6 km |
| Glanmire | 4,454 | 27 | 7,395 | 5 | 26% | 0.9 km |
| Tivoli | 4,449 | 76 | 23,233 | 10 | 45% | 1 km |
| Courtown | 4,365 | 1 | 304 | 0 | 100% | 5.4 km |
| … | ||||||
| Virginia | 3,211 | 3 | 1,430 | 0 | 0% | 0.7 km |
Of the other 95 towns, 52 have more pupils at the schools around them than Newcastle. Within 3 km, 70 of these 96 towns have a school teaching through Irish.
Department of Education school lists 2025/26 (preliminary); CSO Census 2022 populations.
Schools in the towns around Newcastle
Each town’s schools in or within 3 km of its outline; distances as the crow flies.
Fettercairn has the most schools teaching through Irish nearby: 8. Since 2019/20 the pupils around Newcastle changed by +18%; among its neighbours, Rathcoole’s grew most (+23%) and Deansrath’s least (−1%).
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Which schools count. Every school in Newcastle 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 Newcastle
How many schools are there in Newcastle?
In Newcastle or within 3 km of it: 9 primary schools and 2 secondary schools, with 5,403 pupils between them.
Are there schools in Newcastle that teach through Irish?
Yes, 2: Scoil Chronain and Gaelscoil Lir teach every subject through Irish.
Are there fee-paying secondary schools near Newcastle?
No: all 2 secondary schools here are free.
What is the best school in Newcastle?
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 Newcastle?
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).