Photo: William Murphy from Dublin, Ireland · CC BY-SA 2.0One of the secondary schools around Newbridge charges fees: Newbridge College
Of the post-primaries around Newbridge, 40% are single-sex, above Co. Kildare’s towns (10%) and close to Irish towns (39%). 7,450 pupils go to the 11 primary schools, 5 secondary schools and 2 special schools in or within 3 km of Newbridge. These schools are described rather than graded, because Ireland publishes no school results 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 Newbridge’s schools
One fee-paying secondary school
One secondary school within reach charges fees; the others are free. The fee-paying one: Newbridge College (923). Every school ↓
A wide choice at twelve
9 post-primary schools lie within 10 km, so families here have a real choice at twelve; each admits on its own policy. The nearest: St Conleth's Community College (0.4 km), Patrician Secondary School (1 km) and Holy Family Secondary School (1.1 km). Post-primary choices ↓
From the Department of Education’s school lists: facts, not judgements of how well a school teaches.
The 18 schools in and around Newbridge
Every school in Newbridge or within 3 km of its outline, each linked to its own page. Ireland publishes no results school by school, so these cards carry no letters or results.
Where the 18 schools in and around Newbridge 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 Newbridge’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 Newbridge
Schools by the language they teach in; the black tick is Ireland’s share.
1 of Newbridge’s 18 schools teach every subject through Irish: Gaelscoil Chill Dara.
Who Newbridge’s schools serve
How the area’s pupils divide, against Co. Kildare’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 Newbridge | Co. Kildare | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at DEIS schools | 28% | 17% | 27% |
| Pupils at all-Irish schools | 4% | 6% | 6% |
| Girls | 48% | 49% | 49% |
| Post-primary pupils at single-sex schools | 47% | 26% | 29% |
| Post-primary pupils at fee-paying schools | 25% | 6% | 6% |
DEIS schools teach 28% of the pupils around Newbridge, much as across Ireland (27%; Co. Kildare: 17%). Furthest from Ireland’s mix is the share of post-primary pupils at fee-paying schools: 25% here against 6%. The biggest school in DEIS is St Conleth's Community College (752 pupils).
Each of the 18 schools
| School | Pupils | Girls | DEIS | All-Irish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patrician Secondary SchoolPost-primary · Voluntary secondary | 932 | 0% | ||
| Newbridge CollegePost-primary · Voluntary secondary | 923 | 47% | ||
| Holy Family Secondary SchoolPost-primary · Voluntary secondary | 789 | 100% | ||
| St Conleth's Community CollegePost-primary · ETB | 752 | 51% | ✓ | |
| Scoil na Naomh UiligPrimary | 589 | 48% | ||
| Newbridge Educate Together NSPrimary | 406 | 50% | ||
| Scoil MhuirePrimary | 389 | 46% | ✓ | |
| St Conleths and Marys N.S.Primary | 345 | 49% | ||
| Ballymany Junior N.S.Primary | 333 | 50% | ✓ | |
| Scoil Chonnla PhadraigPrimary | 306 | 49% | ||
| Gaelscoil Chill DaraPrimary | 288 | 51% | ✓ | |
| S.N. Connlaodh Naofa NPrimary | 285 | 47% | ||
| St Patricks N.S.Primary | 187 | 44% | ✓ | |
| St Marks Special SchoolSpecial | 109 | 32% | ||
| St Annes Special SchoolSpecial | 74 | 35% | ||
| Scoil BridePrimary | 304 | 47% | ||
| St. Catherine of SiennaPrimary | 151 | 54% | ✓ | |
| Curragh Community CollegePost-primary · ETB | 288 | 51% | ✓ |
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 Newbridge’s schools
Ethos as listed for 2025/26: each bar splits the schools by who runs them.
13 of Newbridge’s 18 schools have a Catholic ethos, against 80% across Ireland. The patrons with most schools here: Bishop of Kildare & Leighlin (8), Kildare & Wicklow ETB (2) and KARE, Promoting Inclusion for People with Intellectual Disabilities (2). 6 of the 18 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 9 patrons of Newbridge’s schools
The patron owns the school and sets its ethos; a board of management runs it day to day.
Of the 18 schools around Newbridge, 8 have Bishop of Kildare & Leighlin as patron, teaching 45% of the pupils; 9 patrons in all. 2 are ETB schools. Educate Together runs one.
| Patron | Ethos | Schools | Pupils |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bishop of Kildare & LeighlinHoly Family, Scoil na Naomh Uilig, Scoil Mhuire, St Conleths and Marys, Ballymany Junior, Scoil Chonnla Phadraig, Scoil Bride, S.N. Connlaodh Naofa N | Catholic | 8 | 3,340 |
| Kildare & Wicklow ETBSt Conleth's, Curragh | Multi-denominational | 2 | 1,040 |
| KARE, Promoting Inclusion for People with Intellectual DisabilitiesSt Marks Special School, St Annes Special School | Multi-denominational, Catholic | 2 | 183 |
| Le Chéile Schools TrustPatrician | Catholic | 1 | 932 |
| Dominican FathersNewbridge College | Catholic | 1 | 923 |
| Educate TogetherNewbridge Educate Together NS | Multi-denominational | 1 | 406 |
| An Foras PátrúnachtaGaelscoil Chill Dara | Catholic | 1 | 288 |
| Bishop of Meath & Kildare COISt Patricks | Church of Ireland | 1 | 187 |
| Joint patronage between the Minister for Defence and the Bishop of Kildare & LeighlinSt. Catherine of Sienna | Catholic | 1 | 151 |
Department of Education school lists: patron 2024/25, ethos 2025/26.
How children get a place in Newbridge
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 fee-paying school here sets its 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
Since 2019/20, 4 of these 15 schools have grown by 5% or more and 8 have shrunk as much; across Ireland the number of pupils changed by +5%.
All 15 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 Newbridge’s schools
The Department of Education’s Inspectorate: every school’s reports linked, none rated
The Inspectorate inspects schools in several ways: a whole-school evaluation covers teaching, learning and how the school is led; a subject inspection looks at one subject; a follow-through checks on earlier advice. Reports go on gov.ie with the school’s reply.
Reports say what inspectors found and what should improve, without an overall grade, so none appears here; each of the 18 schools below links its own.
Department of Education Inspectorate reports on gov.ie, found by each school’s roll number.
Post-primary schools within reach of Newbridge
All post-primaries within 10 km; at about twelve, families choose and apply school by school
9 post-primary schools are within 10 km of Newbridge: 5 voluntary secondary schools, 3 ETB schools and one community school. 2 teach girls and boys apart: 1 girls’ and 1 boys’ schools. One of them charges fees. Just one teaches every subject through Irish.
| School | Takes | Also | Pupils | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Conleth's Community CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 752 | 0.4 km |
| Patrician Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | – | 932 | 1 km |
| Holy Family Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | – | 789 | 1.1 km |
| Newbridge CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | Fee-paying | 923 | 1.3 km |
| Curragh Community CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 288 | 4 km |
| Cross And Passion CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | – | 843 | 6.7 km |
| Kildare Town Community SchoolCommunity school · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 1,014 | 7.4 km |
| Piper's Hill CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 1,049 | 9.1 km |
| Gaelcholáiste Chill DaraVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | Gaelcholáiste | 401 | 9.9 km |
Department of Education post-primary list 2025/26; straight-line distances from the town’s centre point.
Special schools and classes around Newbridge
2 special schools serve the area: St Marks Special School and St Annes Special School, 183 pupils between them. 8 of the 11 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.
Newbridge beside the 45 other Irish towns of 17,100 to 32,900 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ennis | 27,923 | 18 | 7,595 | 1 | 33% | 0.3 km |
| … | ||||||
| Kilkenny | 27,184 | 19 | 8,557 | 2 | 11% | 0.6 km |
| Naas | 26,180 | 15 | 8,304 | 2 | 7% | 0.1 km |
| Tralee | 26,079 | 18 | 6,726 | 2 | 39% | 0.6 km |
| Blanchardstown | 24,613 | 91 | 36,302 | 5 | 44% | 0.7 km |
| Newbridge | 24,366 | 18 | 7,450 | 1 | 33% | 0.4 km |
| Balbriggan | 24,322 | 17 | 8,295 | 2 | 29% | 0.3 km |
| Portlaoise | 23,494 | 13 | 6,518 | 1 | 15% | 0.6 km |
| Jobstown | 23,437 | 53 | 19,772 | 5 | 45% | 0.1 km |
| Lucan | 23,033 | 74 | 34,600 | 5 | 28% | 0.4 km |
| … | ||||||
| Maynooth | 17,259 | 12 | 6,742 | 3 | 0% | 0.3 km |
More pupils attend the schools around 34 of the other 45 towns than around Newbridge. Every one of them has an all-Irish school within 3 km.
Department of Education school lists 2025/26 (preliminary); CSO Census 2022 populations.
Pupil numbers around Newbridge
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 Newbridge had 7,476 pupils in 2015/16 and 7,450 in 2025/26, fewer than before. Curragh Community College grew most: +112% since 2019/20.
Pupils at schools in and around Newbridge
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 Newbridge
For each nearby town, its schools in or within 3 km of its outline, with straight-line distances.
Of Newbridge’s neighbours, Carragh saw the most growth in pupils since 2019/20 (+43%) and Kilmeage the least (−17%); Newbridge itself: +2%.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Which schools count. Every school in Newbridge 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 Newbridge
How many schools are there in Newbridge?
In Newbridge or within 3 km of it: 11 primary schools, 5 secondary schools and 2 special schools, with 7,450 pupils between them.
Are there schools in Newbridge that teach through Irish?
Yes, 1: Gaelscoil Chill Dara teach every subject through Irish.
Are there fee-paying secondary schools near Newbridge?
1 of the 5: Newbridge College. The others are free.
What is the best school in Newbridge?
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 Newbridge?
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).