Photo: Andreas F. Borchert · CC BY-SA 4.0Fewer of the schools around Portlaoise are in DEIS than around Irish towns: 15%
That leaves Portlaoise below Irish towns (35%). Its primary schools are big ones: 443 pupils each on average, against 175 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 Portlaoise’s schools
One school growing fast
The fastest-growing school here is Portlaoise College: 574 pupils in 2019/20, 1,005 now. Getting a place ↓
A wide choice at twelve
Families here can choose among 5 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: Dunamase College (Coláiste Dhún Másc) (0.6 km), Scoil Chriost Ri (1.4 km) and Portlaoise College (1.4 km). Post-primary choices ↓
Drawn from the Department of Education’s lists; none of it judges how well a school teaches.
The 13 schools in and around Portlaoise
Every school in Portlaoise or within 3 km of its outline, each linked to its own page. These schools carry no letter or result: Ireland doesn’t release them school by school.
Where the 13 schools in and around Portlaoise 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 Portlaoise’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 Portlaoise
The schools by teaching language, with Ireland’s share as the black tick.
1 of Portlaoise’s 13 schools teach every subject through Irish: Gaelscoil Phort Laoise.
Who Portlaoise’s schools serve
How the area’s pupils divide, against Co. Laois’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 Portlaoise | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at DEIS schools | 27% | 22% | 27% |
| Pupils at all-Irish schools | 6% | 2% | 6% |
| Girls | 50% | 49% | 49% |
| Post-primary pupils at single-sex schools | 53% | 24% | 29% |
| Post-primary pupils at fee-paying schools | 0% | 0% | 6% |
Around Portlaoise, 27% of pupils attend a school in DEIS, near Ireland’s 27% and Co. Laois’s 22%. Furthest from Ireland’s mix is the share of post-primary pupils at single-sex schools: 53% here against 29%. The biggest school in DEIS is Portlaoise College (1,005 pupils).
Each of the 13 schools
| School | Pupils | Girls | DEIS | All-Irish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portlaoise CollegePost-primary · ETB | 1,005 | 51% | ✓ | |
| Scoil Bhride N.S.Primary | 727 | 53% | ✓ | |
| Holy Family Senior SchoolPrimary | 644 | 50% | ||
| Holy Family Junior SchoolPrimary | 599 | 51% | ||
| Dunamase College (Coláiste Dhún Másc)Post-primary · ETB | 506 | 49% | ||
| St Francis S SSpecial | 121 | 32% | ||
| The Kolbe Special SchoolSpecial | 49 | 29% | ||
| Maryboro N.S.Primary | 96 | 54% | ||
| Portlaoise Educate Together NSPrimary | 457 | 47% | ||
| Gaelscoil Phort LaoisePrimary | 369 | 51% | ✓ | |
| Scoil Chriost RiPost-primary · Voluntary secondary | 880 | 100% | ||
| St. Mary's C.B.S.Post-primary · Voluntary secondary | 853 | 0% | ||
| Fraoch Mor N.S.Primary | 212 | 49% |
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 Portlaoise’s schools
Each school’s ethos, 2025/26: the bars show the share of schools of each kind.
9 of Portlaoise’s 13 schools have a Catholic ethos, against 80% across Ireland. The patrons with most schools here: Bishop of Kildare & Leighlin (5), Laois & Offaly ETB (2) and Sisters of Charity of Jesus and Mary, Moore Abbey (1). 2 of the 13 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 8 patrons of Portlaoise’s schools
The patron owns the school and sets its ethos; a board of management runs it day to day.
The schools around Portlaoise answer to 8 patrons, and Bishop of Kildare & Leighlin leads with 5 of the 13 schools and 35% of their pupils. 2 are ETB schools. Educate Together runs one.
| Patron | Ethos | Schools | Pupils |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bishop of Kildare & LeighlinScoil Bhride, Holy Family Senior School, Holy Family Junior School, Fraoch Mor, St Francis S S | Catholic | 5 | 2,303 |
| Laois & Offaly ETBPortlaoise College, Dunamase College | Multi-denominational | 2 | 1,511 |
| CEISTScoil Chriost Ri | Catholic | 1 | 880 |
| Edmund Rice Schools TrustSt. Mary's C.B.S. | Catholic | 1 | 853 |
| Educate TogetherPortlaoise Educate Together NS | Multi-denominational | 1 | 457 |
| An Foras PátrúnachtaGaelscoil Phort Laoise | Catholic | 1 | 369 |
| Bishop of Cashel, Ferns & Ossory COIMaryboro | Church of Ireland | 1 | 96 |
| Sisters of Charity of Jesus and Mary, Moore AbbeyThe Kolbe Special School | Catholic | 1 | 49 |
Department of Education school lists: patron 2024/25, ethos 2025/26.
How children get a place in Portlaoise
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
Of these 11 schools, 4 have grown by at least 5% since 2019/20 and 5 have lost as much; Ireland’s pupils changed by +5%.
All 11 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 Portlaoise’s schools
The Inspectorate’s published reports for each school, linked, without ratings
Each school is visited by inspectors from time to time, for a whole-school evaluation of teaching, learning and leadership, for one subject, or to follow up earlier advice, and every report is posted 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 13 schools below each link their own.
| School | Reports on gov.ie |
|---|---|
| Portlaoise CollegePost-primary · ETB | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Scoil Bhride N.S.Primary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Holy Family Senior SchoolPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Holy Family Junior SchoolPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Dunamase College (Coláiste Dhún Másc)Post-primary · ETB | Inspection reports ↗ |
| St Francis S SSpecial | Inspection reports ↗ |
| The Kolbe Special SchoolSpecial | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Maryboro N.S.Primary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Portlaoise Educate Together NSPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Gaelscoil Phort LaoisePrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Scoil Chriost RiPost-primary · Voluntary secondary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| St. Mary's C.B.S.Post-primary · Voluntary secondary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Fraoch Mor 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 Portlaoise
Post-primary schools within 10 km of the town; children move at about twelve, and families apply to each school
5 post-primary schools are within 10 km of Portlaoise: 2 ETB schools, 2 voluntary secondary schools and one community school. 2 teach girls and boys apart: 1 girls’ and 1 boys’ schools. None within 10 km teaches every subject through Irish.
| School | Takes | Also | Pupils | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dunamase College (Coláiste Dhún Másc)ETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | Irish stream | 506 | 0.6 km |
| Scoil Chriost RiVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | – | 880 | 1.4 km |
| Portlaoise CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 1,005 | 1.4 km |
| St. Mary's C.B.S.Voluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | – | 853 | 1.5 km |
| Mountmellick Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 742 | 9 km |
Department of Education post-primary list 2025/26; straight-line distances from the town’s centre point.
Special schools and classes around Portlaoise
2 special schools serve the area: St Francis S S and The Kolbe Special School, 170 pupils between them. 4 of the 7 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.
Portlaoise beside the 48 other Irish towns of 16,400 to 31,700 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ennis | 27,923 | 18 | 7,595 | 1 | 33% | 0.3 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 |
| Athlone | 22,869 | 17 | 6,365 | 1 | 35% | 1.1 km |
| Stepaside | 22,796 | 73 | 25,639 | 5 | 14% | 0.9 km |
| … | ||||||
| Dundrum | 16,570 | 89 | 35,482 | 10 | 7% | 0.4 km |
Among the 48 other towns, 43 have more pupils at their schools than Portlaoise does. 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 Portlaoise
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 Portlaoise had 5,803 pupils in 2015/16 and 6,518 in 2025/26. Dunamase College (Coláiste Dhún Másc) grew most: +175% since 2019/20.
Pupils at schools in and around Portlaoise
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 Portlaoise
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portlaoise | 13 | 6,518 | 1 | 15% | 0.6 km |
| Mountmellick 8.8 km | 5 | 1,405 | 0 | 80% | 0.3 km |
| Stradbally 11 km | 2 | 375 | 0 | 0% | 10 km |
| Mountrath 13 km | 7 | 1,306 | 1 | 29% | 0.8 km |
| Abbeyleix 14 km | 2 | 353 | 0 | 0% | 4.5 km |
| Portarlington 15 km | 5 | 2,657 | 0 | 0% | 1.3 km |
Pupils around Portlaoise: +10% since 2019/20. Among the neighbours, Stradbally led (+24%) and Abbeyleix trailed (−16%).
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Which schools count. Every school in Portlaoise 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 Portlaoise
How many schools are there in Portlaoise?
In Portlaoise or within 3 km of it: 7 primary schools, 4 secondary schools and 2 special schools, with 6,518 pupils between them.
Are there schools in Portlaoise that teach through Irish?
Yes, 1: Gaelscoil Phort Laoise teach every subject through Irish.
Are there fee-paying secondary schools near Portlaoise?
No: all 4 secondary schools here are free.
What is the best school in Portlaoise?
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 Portlaoise?
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).