Photo: Shaun Nolan · CC BY-SA 2.0Around Mullingar, 11% of schools teach every subject through Irish, more than around Co. Westmeath’s towns or Irish towns
That leaves Mullingar above both Co. Westmeath’s towns (0%) and Irish towns (8%). They have 6,384 pupils between them, in or within 3 km of Mullingar. These schools are described rather than graded, because Ireland publishes no school results and the Education Act 1998 restricts comparing them.
Schools in the town or within 3 km of its outline, Department of Education lists for 2025/26; the Ireland figures cover all schools listed.
Where the 18 schools in and around Mullingar 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 Mullingar’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 Mullingar
Schools by the language they teach in; the black tick is Ireland’s share.
2 of Mullingar’s 18 schools teach every subject through Irish: Gaelscoil an Mhuilinn and Gaelscoil An Choillín.
Who Mullingar’s schools serve
Shares of the pupils at the area’s schools, beside Co. Westmeath’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 Mullingar | Co. Westmeath | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at DEIS schools | 34% | 23% | 27% |
| Pupils at all-Irish schools | 5% | 3% | 6% |
| Girls | 57% | 51% | 49% |
| Post-primary pupils at single-sex schools | 28% | 23% | 29% |
| Post-primary pupils at fee-paying schools | 0% | 0% | 6% |
34% of the pupils around Mullingar are at a DEIS school, more than the 27% across Ireland (23% in Co. Westmeath). Where this area differs most from Ireland is girls, at 57% against 49%. Scoil Cholmain Naofa, with 445 pupils, is the largest school here in DEIS.
Each of the 18 schools
| School | Pupils | Girls | DEIS | All-Irish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Finian's CollegePost-primary · Voluntary secondary | 891 | 55% | ||
| Colaiste Mhuire,Post-primary · Voluntary secondary | 873 | – | ||
| Loreto CollegePost-primary · Voluntary secondary | 825 | 100% | ||
| Scoil Cholmain NaofaPrimary | 445 | 48% | ✓ | |
| Holy Family Primary SchoolPrimary | 439 | 53% | ||
| Scoil na mBraithrePrimary | 409 | 49% | ✓ | |
| Mullingar Educate Together NSPrimary | 381 | 46% | ✓ | |
| Mullingar Community CollegePost-primary · ETB | 367 | 41% | ✓ | |
| Scoil na Maighdine MhuirePrimary | 307 | 50% | ✓ | |
| Presentation Convent (Jnr)Primary | 277 | 47% | ✓ | |
| Gaelscoil an MhuilinnPrimary | 179 | 49% | ✓ | |
| Gaelscoil An ChoillínPrimary | 154 | 48% | ✓ | |
| St Brigids Spec SchSpecial | 93 | 56% | ||
| S N na Naomh UilePrimary | 86 | 49% | ||
| Saplings Special SchoolSpecial | 36 | 14% | ||
| Kilpatrick N.S.Primary | 224 | 52% | ||
| S N na nDunPrimary | 159 | 48% | ||
| St. Colmcille's N.S.Primary | 239 | 53% |
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 Mullingar’s schools
Ethos as listed for 2025/26: each bar splits the schools by who runs them.
13 of Mullingar’s 18 schools have a Catholic ethos, against 80% across Ireland. The patrons with most schools here: Bishop of Meath (11), Edmund Rice Schools Trust (1) and Loreto Education Trust (1). 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 8 patrons of Mullingar’s schools
Each school has a patron that owns it and sets its ethos; its board of management runs it.
Bishop of Meath is patron of 11 of the 18 schools around Mullingar, which teach 57% of their pupils; 8 patrons run them in all. One is an ETB school. Educate Together runs one.
| Patron | Ethos | Schools | Pupils |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bishop of MeathSt Finian's College, Scoil Cholmain Naofa, Holy Family Primary School, Scoil na mBraithre, Scoil na Maighdine Mhuire, Presentation Convent, St. Colmcille's, Kilpatrick, Gaelscoil an Mhuilinn, S N na nDun, St Brigids Spec Sch | Catholic | 11 | 3,662 |
| Edmund Rice Schools TrustColaiste Mhuire, | Catholic | 1 | 873 |
| Loreto Education TrustLoreto College | Catholic | 1 | 825 |
| Educate TogetherMullingar Educate Together NS | Multi-denominational | 1 | 381 |
| Longford & Westmeath ETBMullingar | Multi-denominational | 1 | 367 |
| An Foras PátrúnachtaGaelscoil An Choillín | Inter-denominational | 1 | 154 |
| Bishop of Meath & Kildare COIS N na Naomh Uile | Church of Ireland | 1 | 86 |
| Sapling School Company Limited by GuaranteeSaplings Special School | Multi-denominational | 1 | 36 |
Department of Education school lists: patron 2024/25, ethos 2025/26.
How children get a place in Mullingar
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
Since 2019/20, 6 of these 16 schools have grown by 5% or more and 6 have shrunk as much; across Ireland the number of pupils changed by +5%.
All 16 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 18 schools in and around Mullingar
Here are the schools in Mullingar or within 3 km of it, every one with its own page. Without school-level results from Ireland, the cards show no letters.
Inspection reports for Mullingar’s schools
Reports from the Department of Education’s Inspectorate, every school’s linked and none rated
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 18 schools below each link their own.
| School | Reports on gov.ie |
|---|---|
| St Finian's CollegePost-primary · Voluntary secondary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Colaiste Mhuire,Post-primary · Voluntary secondary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Loreto CollegePost-primary · Voluntary secondary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Scoil Cholmain NaofaPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Holy Family Primary SchoolPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Scoil na mBraithrePrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Mullingar Educate Together NSPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Mullingar Community CollegePost-primary · ETB | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Scoil na Maighdine MhuirePrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Presentation Convent (Jnr)Primary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Gaelscoil an MhuilinnPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Gaelscoil An ChoillínPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| St Brigids Spec SchSpecial | Inspection reports ↗ |
| S N na Naomh UilePrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Saplings Special SchoolSpecial | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Kilpatrick N.S.Primary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| S N na nDunPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| St. Colmcille's 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 Mullingar
All post-primaries within 10 km; at about twelve, families choose and apply school by school
4 post-primary schools are within 10 km of Mullingar: 3 voluntary secondary schools and one ETB school. One of them is single-sex. None within 10 km teaches every subject through Irish.
| School | Takes | Also | Pupils | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colaiste Mhuire,Voluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | – | 873 | 0.4 km |
| Mullingar Community CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 367 | 0.6 km |
| Loreto CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | – | 825 | 0.7 km |
| St Finian's CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | – | 891 | 1.9 km |
Department of Education post-primary list 2025/26; straight-line distances from the town’s centre point.
Special schools and classes around Mullingar
2 special schools serve the area: St Brigids Spec Sch and Saplings Special School, 129 pupils between them. 6 of the 12 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.
Mullingar beside the 50 other Irish towns of 15,900 to 30,600 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 |
| … | ||||||
| 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 |
| Clondalkin | 22,788 | 120 | 39,367 | 6 | 54% | 0.2 km |
| Mullingar | 22,667 | 18 | 6,384 | 2 | 33% | 0.4 km |
| Rathmines West | 22,667 | 136 | 39,314 | 9 | 38% | 0 km |
| Letterkenny | 22,549 | 15 | 6,825 | 2 | 20% | 0.4 km |
| Clonsilla | 22,510 | 56 | 29,411 | 3 | 21% | 0.6 km |
| Sandymount | 22,340 | 133 | 40,801 | 10 | 26% | 0.8 km |
| … | ||||||
| East Wall | 15,907 | 138 | 39,486 | 10 | 44% | 1.1 km |
Of these 50 other towns, 46 count more pupils at their schools than Mullingar. 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 Mullingar
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 Mullingar had 5,931 pupils in 2015/16 and 6,384 in 2025/26. Gaelscoil An Choillín grew most: +111% since 2019/20.
Pupils at schools in and around Mullingar
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 Mullingar
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mullingar | 18 | 6,384 | 2 | 33% | 0.4 km |
| Rochfortbridge 12 km | 2 | 1,343 | 0 | 0% | 0.5 km |
| Killucan-Rathwire 14 km | 4 | 698 | 0 | 25% | 0.9 km |
| Kinnegad 18 km | 1 | 413 | 0 | 0% | 7.1 km |
| Castlepollard 18 km | 3 | 512 | 0 | 67% | 1 km |
Of Mullingar’s neighbours, Rochfortbridge saw the most growth in pupils since 2019/20 (+18%) and Kinnegad the least (−23%); Mullingar itself: +3%.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Which schools count. Every school in Mullingar 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 Mullingar
How many schools are there in Mullingar?
In Mullingar or within 3 km of it: 12 primary schools, 4 secondary schools and 2 special schools, with 6,384 pupils between them.
Are there schools in Mullingar that teach through Irish?
Yes, 2: Gaelscoil an Mhuilinn and Gaelscoil An Choillín teach every subject through Irish.
Are there fee-paying secondary schools near Mullingar?
No: all 4 secondary schools here are free.
What is the best school in Mullingar?
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 Mullingar?
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).