Photo: Oliver Dixon · CC BY-SA 2.0Around Roscrea, only 0% of schools teach through Irish, fewer than around Co. Tipperary’s towns or Irish towns
That leaves Roscrea below both Co. Tipperary’s towns (8%) and Irish towns (8%). 4 of its 8 schools are in DEIS, the extra support for schools in disadvantaged areas, against 30% across Ireland. 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 Roscrea’s schools
One fee-paying secondary school
One secondary school within reach charges fees; the others are free. The fee-paying one: Cistercian College (255). Every school ↓
Extra support for many schools
Many schools here are in DEIS, which gives schools in disadvantaged areas more teachers, money and help; across Ireland, 30% of schools are. In DEIS: Colaiste Phobáil Ros Cré (594), S.N. Iosef Naofa (299), Sacred Heart Primary School (201) and St Johns (163). Who runs them ↓
Drawn from the Department of Education’s lists; none of it judges how well a school teaches.
The 8 schools in and around Roscrea
Here are the schools in Roscrea or within 3 km of it, every one with its own page. Ireland doesn’t publish results for individual schools, so none of these carries a letter.
Who runs Roscrea’s schools
Each school’s ethos, 2025/26: the bars show the share of schools of each kind.
6 of Roscrea’s 8 schools have a Catholic ethos, against 80% across Ireland. The patrons with most schools here: Bishop of Killaloe (5), Tipperary ETB (1) and Bishop of Limerick, Killaloe & Ardfert COI (1). 4 of the 8 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.
Where the 8 schools in and around Roscrea 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 Roscrea’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 Roscrea
Schools by the language they teach in; the black tick is Ireland’s share.
None of the 8 schools in and around Roscrea teaches every subject through Irish.
Who Roscrea’s schools serve
Shares of the pupils at the area’s schools, beside Co. Tipperary’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 Roscrea | Co. Tipperary | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at DEIS schools | 71% | 31% | 27% |
| Pupils at all-Irish schools | 0% | 3% | 6% |
| Girls | 41% | 49% | 49% |
| Post-primary pupils at single-sex schools | 30% | 41% | 29% |
| Post-primary pupils at fee-paying schools | 30% | 4% | 6% |
Around Roscrea, 71% of pupils attend a school in DEIS; across Ireland it is 27%, and 31% in Co. Tipperary. Where this area differs most from Ireland is post-primary pupils at fee-paying schools, at 30% against 6%. Colaiste Phobáil Ros Cré, with 594 pupils, is the largest school here in DEIS.
Each of the 8 schools
| School | Pupils | Girls | DEIS | All-Irish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colaiste Phobáil Ros CréPost-primary · ETB | 594 | 51% | ✓ | |
| S.N. Iosef NaofaPrimary | 299 | 49% | ✓ | |
| Sacred Heart Primary SchoolPrimary | 201 | 42% | ✓ | |
| St JohnsPrimary | 163 | 48% | ✓ | |
| Roscrea N.S. No 2Primary | 31 | 48% | ||
| St Annes Special SchSpecial | 49 | 18% | ||
| S.N. Cronain NaofaPrimary | 171 | 49% | ||
| Cistercian CollegePost-primary · Voluntary secondary | 255 | 0% |
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 4 patrons of Roscrea’s schools
The patron owns the school and sets its ethos; a board of management runs it day to day.
The schools around Roscrea answer to 4 patrons, and Bishop of Killaloe leads with 5 of the 8 schools and 50% of their pupils. An Education and Training Board runs one of them.
| Patron | Ethos | Schools | Pupils |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bishop of KillaloeS.N. Iosef Naofa, Sacred Heart Primary School, S.N. Cronain Naofa, St Johns, St Annes Special Sch | Catholic | 5 | 883 |
| Tipperary ETBColaiste Phobáil Ros Cré | Inter-denominational | 1 | 594 |
| Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (Trappist Monks)Cistercian College | Catholic | 1 | 255 |
| Bishop of Limerick, Killaloe & Ardfert COIRoscrea N.S. No 2 | Church of Ireland | 1 | 31 |
Department of Education school lists: patron 2024/25, ethos 2025/26.
How children get a place in Roscrea
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
4 schools here have grown by 5% or more since 2019/20, 3 have shrunk by as much, out of 7; across Ireland: +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.
Inspection reports for Roscrea’s schools
The Department of Education’s Inspectorate: every school’s reports linked, 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 8 schools below links its own.
| School | Reports on gov.ie |
|---|---|
| Colaiste Phobáil Ros CréPost-primary · ETB | Inspection reports ↗ |
| S.N. Iosef NaofaPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Sacred Heart Primary SchoolPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| St JohnsPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Roscrea N.S. No 2Primary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| St Annes Special SchSpecial | Inspection reports ↗ |
| S.N. Cronain NaofaPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Cistercian CollegePost-primary · Voluntary secondary | Inspection reports ↗ |
Department of Education Inspectorate reports on gov.ie, found by each school’s roll number.
Post-primary schools within reach of Roscrea
Every post-primary school within 10 km of the town; families choose and apply to each, at about twelve
2 post-primary schools are within 10 km of Roscrea: one ETB school and one voluntary secondary school. One of them is single-sex. One of them charges fees. None within 10 km teaches every subject through Irish.
| School | Takes | Also | Pupils | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colaiste Phobáil Ros CréETB · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 594 | 0.5 km |
| Cistercian CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | Fee-paying, Boarding | 255 | 4 km |
Department of Education post-primary list 2025/26; straight-line distances from the town’s centre point.
Special schools and classes around Roscrea
St Annes Special Sch is the special school here, with 49 pupils. 4 of the 5 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.
Roscrea beside the 96 other Irish towns of 3,900 to 7,500 people
Each town’s schools in or within 3 km, listed by population: Ireland publishes no results, so none is ranked
| Town | People | Schools | Pupils | All-Irish | DEIS schools | Nearest post-primary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walkinstown | 7,442 | 91 | 27,293 | 3 | 51% | 0.2 km |
| … | ||||||
| Blessington | 5,611 | 6 | 1,711 | 1 | 0% | 0.2 km |
| Knocknaheeny | 5,592 | 59 | 18,265 | 5 | 59% | 0.5 km |
| Carrigtwohill | 5,568 | 6 | 2,782 | 0 | 0% | 0.2 km |
| Inishkenny | 5,552 | 43 | 16,164 | 4 | 35% | 1.4 km |
| Roscrea | 5,542 | 8 | 1,763 | 0 | 50% | 0.5 km |
| Ardee | 5,478 | 5 | 2,252 | 0 | 60% | 0.8 km |
| Edmondstown | 5,451 | 57 | 23,063 | 6 | 12% | 1.1 km |
| Salthill | 5,445 | 30 | 10,795 | 4 | 23% | 0.6 km |
| Ballinlough | 5,435 | 79 | 23,116 | 7 | 47% | 0.6 km |
| … | ||||||
| Castleblayney | 3,926 | 9 | 2,076 | 1 | 44% | 0.5 km |
Among the 96 other towns, 86 have more pupils at their schools than Roscrea does. Teaching through Irish is on offer within 3 km in 82 of the 97.
Department of Education school lists 2025/26 (preliminary); CSO Census 2022 populations.
Pupil numbers around Roscrea
Every school in or within 3 km of the town each September, counted where it stands today.
The schools in and around Roscrea had 1,767 pupils in 2015/16 and 1,763 in 2025/26, fewer than before. Sacred Heart Primary School grew most: +41% since 2019/20.
Pupils at schools in and around Roscrea
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 Roscrea
Each town’s schools in or within 3 km of its outline; distances as the crow flies.
| Town | Schools | Pupils | All-Irish | DEIS schools | Nearest post-primary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roscrea | 8 | 1,763 | 0 | 50% | 0.5 km |
| Birr 17 km | 7 | 1,708 | 1 | 86% | 1.4 km |
| Rathdowney 18 km | 2 | 627 | 0 | 50% | 1.1 km |
| Templemore 18 km | 5 | 973 | 0 | 60% | 0.3 km |
Birr has the most schools teaching through Irish nearby: 1. Pupils around Roscrea: +4% since 2019/20. Among the neighbours, Rathdowney led (+21%) and Birr trailed (+4%).
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Which schools count. Every school in Roscrea 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 Roscrea
How many schools are there in Roscrea?
In Roscrea or within 3 km of it: 5 primary schools, 2 secondary schools and 1 special school, with 1,763 pupils between them.
Are there schools in Roscrea that teach through Irish?
None in Roscrea or within 3 km of it teaches every subject through Irish; some teach it as a subject only.
Are there fee-paying secondary schools near Roscrea?
1 of the 2: Cistercian College. The others are free.
What is the best school in Roscrea?
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 Roscrea?
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).