Photo: Mike Searle · CC BY-SA 2.0In and around Castlegar, 32 schools: 20 primary schools, 7 secondary schools and 5 special schools
Teaching through Irish: 13% of the schools around Castlegar, below Co. Galway’s towns (15%) but above Irish towns (8%). They have 9,971 pupils between them, in or within 3 km of Castlegar. Nothing here grades or ranks these schools: Ireland publishes no results school by school, and the Education Act 1998 restricts comparing them.
Counted from the Department of Education’s 2025/26 lists: every school in the town or within 3 km of it, against every school in Ireland.
What stands out about Castlegar’s schools
A wide choice at twelve
Families here can choose among 12 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: Galway Community College (1.3 km), Galway City & Oranmore Educate Together Secondary School (2.7 km) and St Joseph's College (3 km). Post-primary choices ↓
Drawn from the Department of Education’s lists; none of it judges how well a school teaches.
Where the 32 schools in and around Castlegar 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 Castlegar’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 Castlegar
How many schools teach through each language; the tick marks Ireland’s share.
4 of Castlegar’s 32 schools teach every subject through Irish, 1 of them in the Gaeltacht: Gaelscoil Dara, S.N. Iognaid and S.N. Brighde.
Who Castlegar’s schools serve
Shares of the pupils at the area’s schools, beside Co. Galway’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 Castlegar | Co. Galway | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at DEIS schools | 34% | 21% | 27% |
| Pupils at all-Irish schools | 12% | 14% | 6% |
| Girls | 47% | 49% | 49% |
| Post-primary pupils at single-sex schools | 32% | 9% | 29% |
| Post-primary pupils at fee-paying schools | 0% | 0% | 6% |
More of the pupils around Castlegar are at DEIS schools than across Ireland: 34% against 27% (Co. Galway: 21%). The biggest difference from Ireland is in pupils at all-Irish schools: 12% here, 6% there. Of the DEIS schools here, Coláiste Mhuirlinne/Merlin College is the biggest: 710 pupils.
Each of the 32 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 Castlegar’s schools
Each school’s ethos, 2025/26: the bars show the share of schools of each kind.
25 of Castlegar’s 32 schools have a Catholic ethos, against 80% across Ireland. The patrons with most schools here: Bishop of Galway, Kilmacduagh & Kilfenora (20), Galway & Roscommon ETB (2) and Educate Together (2). 11 of the 32 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 10 patrons of Castlegar’s schools
The patron owns the school and sets its ethos; a board of management runs it day to day.
Of the 32 schools around Castlegar, 20 have Bishop of Galway, Kilmacduagh & Kilfenora as patron, teaching 50% of the pupils; 10 patrons in all. The local Education and Training Board runs 2. Educate Together runs 2.
| Patron | Ethos | Schools | Pupils |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bishop of Galway, Kilmacduagh & KilfenoraS.N. Iognaid, Gaelscoil Dara, Merlin Woods Primary School, Bushy Park, S.N. Caitriona Sinsear, Radharc na Mara, S.N. Caitriona Sois, Tirellan Heights, Scoil Náisiúnta Róis, Niochlas, Scoil an Linbh Iosa, Scoil Mhuire, S.N. Padraic Naofa, S.N. Bride Naofa, S.N. Brighde, Scoil Croi Iosa, Lakeview School, Rosedale School, S.N. Colmcille, Scoil Aine | Catholic | 20 | 4,983 |
| Le Chéile Schools TrustSt Joseph's College, Dominican College | Catholic | 2 | 1,355 |
| Galway & Roscommon ETBColáiste Mhuirlinne/Merlin College, Galway | Multi-denominational, Inter-denominational | 2 | 1,105 |
| Educate TogetherGalway City & Oranmore Educate Together, Galway Educate Together NS | Multi-denominational | 2 | 752 |
| CEIST & Bishop of Galway, Kilmacduagh, KilfenoraColáiste Muire Máthair | Catholic | 1 | 738 |
| Society of Jesus (Jesuits)Coláiste Iognáid S.J. | Catholic | 1 | 637 |
| Minister for Education & SkillsS.N. Fhursa | Catholic | 1 | 216 |
| Ability WestSt Josephs Special Sch | Multi-denominational | 1 | 80 |
| Bishop of Tuam, Killala and Achonry COIParochial | Church of Ireland | 1 | 75 |
| Irish Autism ActionÁbalta Special School | Multi-denominational | 1 | 30 |
Department of Education school lists: patron 2024/25, ethos 2025/26.
How children get a place in Castlegar
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, 4 of the 25 grew by 5% or more and 14 shrank as much, while Ireland’s pupil numbers moved +5%.
All 25 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.
The 32 schools in and around Castlegar
Each school in or within 3 km of Castlegar links to a page of its own. You won’t find letters or results below: Ireland publishes none for single schools.
Inspection reports for Castlegar’s schools
The Inspectorate’s published reports for each school, linked, without ratings
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 32 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 Castlegar
Every post-primary school within 10 km of the town; families choose and apply to each, at about twelve
Families in Castlegar have 12 post-primary schools within 10 km: 8 voluntary secondary schools and 4 ETB schools. Of these, 3 are single-sex: 2 for girls and 1 for boys. Just one teaches every subject through Irish.
| School | Takes | Also | Pupils | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Galway Community CollegeETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 395 | 1.3 km |
| Galway City & Oranmore Educate Together Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 379 | 2.7 km |
| St Joseph's CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | – | 791 | 3 km |
| Coláiste Iognáid S.J.Voluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | – | 637 | 3.4 km |
| Coláiste Mhuirlinne/Merlin CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 710 | 3.4 km |
| Coláiste Muire MáthairVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | – | 738 | 3.6 km |
| Dominican CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | – | 564 | 4.2 km |
| Coláiste EindeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | DEIS | 808 | 5 km |
| Jesus & Mary Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | – | 658 | 5.2 km |
| Coláiste na CoiribeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | Gaeltacht school | 711 | 6.7 km |
| Calasanctius CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | – | 906 | 7.2 km |
| Coláiste Bhaile ChláirETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 1,269 | 7.7 km |
Department of Education post-primary list 2025/26; straight-line distances from the town’s centre point.
Special schools and classes around Castlegar
5 special schools serve the area: Lakeview School, Rosedale School, Ábalta Special School, St Josephs Special Sch and Scoil Aine, 306 pupils between them. 13 of the 20 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.
Castlegar beside the 95 other Irish towns of 3,000 to 5,800 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rathcoole | 5,792 | 11 | 5,371 | 2 | 9% | 0.5 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 |
| Castlegar | 4,315 | 32 | 9,971 | 4 | 34% | 1.3 km |
| St Luke's | 4,278 | 70 | 20,531 | 6 | 51% | 0.1 km |
| Lehenagh | 4,154 | 43 | 14,801 | 4 | 33% | 2.3 km |
| Mervue | 4,126 | 30 | 9,041 | 4 | 37% | 0.9 km |
| Prospect and Newtown Pery | 4,122 | 46 | 15,489 | 5 | 48% | 0.7 km |
| … | ||||||
| Togher | 3,007 | 60 | 20,680 | 6 | 45% | 1 km |
More pupils attend the schools around 47 of the other 95 towns than around Castlegar. Within 3 km, 68 of these 96 towns have a school teaching through Irish.
Department of Education school lists 2025/26 (preliminary); CSO Census 2022 populations.
Pupil numbers around Castlegar
Every school in or within 3 km of the town each September, counted where it stands today.
The schools in and around Castlegar had 9,779 pupils in 2015/16 and 9,971 in 2025/26. Galway City & Oranmore Educate Together Secondary School grew most: +924% since 2019/20.
Pupils at schools in and around Castlegar
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 Castlegar
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Castlegar | 32 | 9,971 | 4 | 34% | 1.3 km |
| Ballinfoile and Terryland 1.1 km | 33 | 11,082 | 5 | 33% | 1.5 km |
| Mervue 1.7 km | 30 | 9,041 | 4 | 37% | 0.9 km |
| Eyre Square 2.5 km | 36 | 12,413 | 5 | 33% | 1.2 km |
| Woodquay and Nuns Island 2.5 km | 33 | 11,452 | 5 | 33% | 0.2 km |
| Murrough 3.1 km | 22 | 7,826 | 2 | 41% | 1.6 km |
| Dangan 3.1 km | 30 | 10,789 | 5 | 23% | 1.6 km |
Ballinfoile and Terryland has the most schools teaching through Irish nearby: 5. The roll around Castlegar moved +2% since 2019/20; nearby, Mervue grew most (+3%) and Dangan least (+1%).
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Which schools count. Every school in Castlegar 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 Castlegar
How many schools are there in Castlegar?
In Castlegar or within 3 km of it: 20 primary schools, 7 secondary schools and 5 special schools, with 9,971 pupils between them.
Are there schools in Castlegar that teach through Irish?
Yes, 4: Gaelscoil Dara, S.N. Iognaid and S.N. Brighde teach every subject through Irish.
Are there fee-paying secondary schools near Castlegar?
No: all 7 secondary schools here are free.
What is the best school in Castlegar?
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 Castlegar?
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).