Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College)
Rathkeale, Co. Limerick · V94 Y685 · Roll number 76061W
Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College) is the only one of the post-primary schools in or within 3 km of Rathkeale. Every school in and around Rathkeale →
What stands out about Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College)
- 537 pupils, near the middle for post-primary schools in Ireland (the median is 585).
- About as many pupils as in 2019/20 (+9%).
- Teaches through English, with Irish as a subject.
- An ETB school: run by the county’s Education and Training Board.
- Its patron is the Limerick & Clare ETB; its ethos is inter-denominational.
- The only post-primary school in Rathkeale or within 3 km of it.
Pupils over time
2015/16 to 2025/26Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College) had 537 pupils in 2025/26, against 440 in 2015/16 (+22%). Girls are 49% of them. Its roll rose in 8 of the 10 years.
Department of Education enrolments at 30 September each year; girls and boys where the lists give them.
No letter for Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College)
Ireland publishes no exam results school by school, and section 53 of the Education Act 1998 restricts comparing schools by them, so this school has no letter and nothing here ranks it. Its facts are the Department of Education’s; its inspection reports are linked below.
What the Department of Education does publish for Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College) is on this page: its pupils each September since 2015/16, girls and boys, its patron and ethos, whether it teaches through Irish, whether it is in DEIS, and its inspection reports.
Newspapers print lists of how many of a school’s leavers go on to college. Those count destinations, not exam results, and depend on who a school takes in; we don’t use them.
Inspection reports on Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College)
The Department of Education’s Inspectorate visits schools and publishes its reports. The reports describe what inspectors saw; they give no overall grade, and we don’t make one. Reports for this school on gov.ie ↗
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.
Getting a place at Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College)
Every school admits under its own published admission policy; no admissions numbers are published.
Families apply to Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College) directly, usually in the year before their child finishes sixth class; the school’s yearly admission notice gives the dates for applying and for its decisions.
A school with more applicants than places admits on the criteria in its admission policy, often brothers and sisters, the area it serves and, for post-primary schools, its feeder primaries. A family refused a place can appeal.
No figures on applications are published, but the roll shows demand: Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College) has grown by 9% since 2019/20. All the schools around Rathkeale together changed by +7%.
Pupils since 2019/20
Education (Admission to Schools) Act 2018; Department of Education enrolments 2019/20 and 2025/26 (preliminary).
Side by side with the nearest post-primary schools
2025/26The nearest schools of the same kind, as the crow flies: their pupils, ethos and language. No results: none are published.
Of the 6 nearest post-primary schools, 5 have more pupils than Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College). Since 2019/20 its roll has changed by +9%; 2 of the 6 grew faster.
| School | Pupils | Since 2019/20 | Ethos | Language | DEIS | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College) | 537 | +9% | Inter-denominational | English | ||
| Colaiste Mhuire | 269 | −32% | Inter-denominational | English | 9.2 km | |
| Desmond College | 539 | +38% | Multi-denominational | Irish stream | ✓ | 11 km |
| Scoil Mhuire & Íde | 754 | +6% | Catholic | English | 12 km | |
| Colaiste Chiarain | 821 | +21% | Multi-denominational | English | ✓ | 15 km |
| Salesian Secondary College | 746 | +5% | Catholic | English | 15 km | |
| Hazelwood College | 562 | −1% | Multi-denominational | English | 20 km |
The other 21 post-primary schools in Co. Limerick
| School | Pupils | Since 2019/20 | Ethos | Language | DEIS | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mungret Community College | 991 | +175% | Multi-denominational | English | 21 km | |
| Crescent College Comprehensive | 922 | +5% | Inter-denominational | English | 24 km | |
| Villiers Secondary School | 508 | −5% | Church of Ireland | English | 24 km | |
| Laurel Hill Secondary School FCJ | 746 | +19% | Catholic | English | 25 km | |
| Laurel Hill Coláiste FCJ | 315 | −23% | Catholic | All in Irish | 25 km | |
| St Clements College | 411 | −19% | Catholic | English | ✓ | 25 km |
| Ardscoil Ris | 728 | −3% | Catholic | English | 26 km | |
| Thomond Community College | 597 | +13% | Multi-denominational | English | ✓ | 26 km |
| Colaiste Mhichil | 349 | +6% | Catholic | English | ✓ | 26 km |
| Coláiste Nano Nagle | 365 | +13% | Catholic | English | ✓ | 26 km |
| Gaelcholáiste Luimnigh | 606 | −7% | Inter-denominational | All in Irish | 27 km | |
| Ardscoil Mhuire | 591 | +4% | Catholic | English | ✓ | 27 km |
| Coláiste Iósaef | 505 | +31% | Inter-denominational | English | ✓ | 27 km |
| St Munchin's College | 682 | +4% | Catholic | English | 28 km | |
| Limerick City East Secondary School | 811 | +587% | Multi-denominational | English | 28 km | |
| Coláiste Íde agus Iosaef | 669 | −1% | Multi-denominational | English | 29 km | |
| Castletroy College | 1,360 | +13% | Inter-denominational | English | 31 km | |
| John The Baptist Community School | 960 | −12% | Inter-denominational | English | 34 km | |
| Scoil Pól | 715 | +40% | Catholic | English | 36 km | |
| Glenstal Abbey School | 203 | −11% | Catholic | English | 40 km | |
| Scoil na Tríonóide Naofa | 518 | −19% | Catholic | English | 48 km |
Living in Rathkeale
The town’s figures, not this street’s.
Homes in the V94 Eircode area
Housing in Rathkeale →The median sale price rose from €275,000 in 2023 to €351,500 in 2025 (+28%).
New against second-hand, 2023 to 2025
Property Price Register sales in the V94 Eircode routing area, 2023 to 2025.
Renting in Co. Limerick
Cost of living in Rathkeale →New tenancies in Co. Limerick averaged €1,619 a month in 2025, against €1,436 in 2024 (+13%).
Residential Tenancies Board rent index, new tenancies, 2024 and 2025.
Location
Directions ↗Rathkeale, V94 Y685
Post-primary schools near Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College)
Nearest first, as the crow flies, up to 25 km. Each school’s own admission policy decides who gets a place.
Questions about Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College)
Is Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College) a good school?
We don’t grade it: Ireland publishes no exam results school by school, and section 53 of the Education Act 1998 restricts comparing them. Its inspection reports on gov.ie, a visit and a talk with the principal will tell you more than any table could.
How many pupils does Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College) have?
537 pupils in 2025/26. That is +9% since 2019/20.
Does Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College) teach through Irish?
No: Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College) teaches in English, with Irish as a subject.
Who runs Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College)?
Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College) has a inter-denominational ethos. Its patron is Limerick & Clare ETB.
How do pupils get a place at Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College)?
Apply to the school directly. It publishes an admission policy and a yearly admission notice with its dates; if more children apply than it has places, it admits on the criteria in its policy.
Which schools of the same kind are near Colaiste na Trocaire (Mercy Community College)?
The nearest are Colaiste Mhuire (9.2 km), Desmond College (11 km) and Scoil Mhuire & Íde (12 km).
Sources: Department of Education, school lists 2025/26 (preliminary) and enrolments since 2015/16, CC BY 4.0 · inspection reports on gov.ie, linked by roll number. Under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).
Facts from the Department of Education’s school lists. Listed with Rathkeale; nothing here rates the school.
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).