Photo: William Murphy · CC BY-SA 3.0Around Enniskerry, only 0% of schools teach through Irish, fewer than around Co. Wicklow’s towns or Irish towns
That leaves Enniskerry below both Co. Wicklow’s towns (9%) and Irish towns (8%). In or within 3 km of Enniskerry: 6 primary schools, 3 secondary schools and 1 special school, 2,487 pupils in all. Nothing here grades or ranks these schools: Ireland publishes no results school by school, and the Education Act 1998 restricts comparing them.
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 Enniskerry’s schools
Fee-paying secondary schools
Several of the secondary schools within reach charge fees; the others are free. Fee-paying schools are listed with the rest below, each with its own page. Fee-paying: St. Gerard's School (623) and John Scottus Secondary School (211). Every school ↓
A wide choice at twelve
Within 10 km of the town there are 22 post-primary schools to choose from, of different kinds; each sets its own admission policy, and many families apply to several. The nearest: St. Gerard's School (2.9 km), St. Kilian's Community School (3.3 km) and John Scottus Secondary School (3.7 km). Post-primary choices ↓
Drawn from the Department of Education’s lists; none of it judges how well a school teaches.
The 10 schools in and around Enniskerry
Here are the schools in Enniskerry or within 3 km of it, every one with its own page. No letters, no results: Irish schools aren’t ranked one by one.
Where the 10 schools in and around Enniskerry 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 Enniskerry’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 Enniskerry
Schools by the language they teach in; the black tick is Ireland’s share.
None of the 10 schools in and around Enniskerry teaches every subject through Irish.
Who Enniskerry’s schools serve
How the area’s pupils divide, against Co. Wicklow’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 Enniskerry | Co. Wicklow | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at DEIS schools | 32% | 23% | 27% |
| Pupils at all-Irish schools | 0% | 6% | 6% |
| Girls | 45% | 49% | 49% |
| Post-primary pupils at single-sex schools | 0% | 20% | 29% |
| Post-primary pupils at fee-paying schools | 66% | 4% | 6% |
More of the pupils around Enniskerry are at DEIS schools than across Ireland: 32% against 27% (Co. Wicklow: 23%). The biggest difference from Ireland is in post-primary pupils at fee-paying schools: 66% here, 6% there. Of the DEIS schools here, St. Kilian's Community School is the biggest: 427 pupils.
Each of the 10 schools
| School | Pupils | Girls | DEIS | All-Irish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S.N. Muire Is GearardPrimary | 206 | 43% | ||
| Powerscourt N.S.Primary | 114 | 51% | ||
| S.N. Padraig NaofaPrimary | 47 | 40% | ||
| St. Gerard's SchoolPost-primary · Voluntary secondary | 623 | 43% | ||
| St. Kilian's Community SchoolPost-primary · Community school | 427 | 39% | ✓ | |
| Bray School Project N.S.Primary | 223 | 48% | ||
| St Fergal's National SchoolPrimary | 373 | 50% | ✓ | |
| John Scottus Secondary SchoolPost-primary · Voluntary secondary | 211 | 46% | ||
| St Kierans Spec SchoolSpecial | 59 | 47% | ||
| Kilmacanogue N.S.Primary | 204 | 52% |
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 Enniskerry’s schools
Each school’s ethos, 2025/26: the bars show the share of schools of each kind.
6 of Enniskerry’s 10 schools have a Catholic ethos, against 80% across Ireland. The patrons with most schools here: Archbishop of Dublin (5), Archbishop of Dublin & Bishop of Glendalough COI (1) and Board of Governors of St Gerard's School (1). 2 of the 10 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 6 patrons of Enniskerry’s schools
Patrons own the schools and set their ethos; boards of management run them day to day.
Of the 10 schools around Enniskerry, 5 have Archbishop of Dublin as patron, teaching 36% of the pupils; 6 patrons in all. The local Education and Training Board runs one.
| Patron | Ethos | Schools | Pupils |
|---|---|---|---|
| Archbishop of DublinSt Fergal's, S.N. Muire Is Gearard, Kilmacanogue, St Kierans Spec School, S.N. Padraig Naofa | Catholic | 5 | 889 |
| Board of Governors of St Gerard's SchoolSt. Gerard's School | Catholic | 1 | 623 |
| Kildare Wicklow ETB & Order of Friars Minor (Franciscan Fathers)St. Kilian's | Inter-denominational | 1 | 427 |
| The Bray School ProjectBray School Project | Multi-denominational | 1 | 223 |
| The John Scottus Education TrustJohn Scottus | Inter-denominational | 1 | 211 |
| Archbishop of Dublin & Bishop of Glendalough COIPowerscourt | Church of Ireland | 1 | 114 |
Department of Education school lists: patron 2024/25, ethos 2025/26.
How children get a place in Enniskerry
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 2 fee-paying schools here set their 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
Of these 9 schools, 3 have grown by at least 5% since 2019/20 and 4 have lost as much; Ireland’s pupils changed by +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 Enniskerry’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 10 schools below links its own.
| School | Reports on gov.ie |
|---|---|
| S.N. Muire Is GearardPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Powerscourt N.S.Primary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| S.N. Padraig NaofaPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| St. Gerard's SchoolPost-primary · Voluntary secondary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| St. Kilian's Community SchoolPost-primary · Community school | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Bray School Project N.S.Primary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| St Fergal's National SchoolPrimary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| John Scottus Secondary SchoolPost-primary · Voluntary secondary | Inspection reports ↗ |
| St Kierans Spec SchoolSpecial | Inspection reports ↗ |
| Kilmacanogue 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 Enniskerry
Post-primary schools within 10 km of the town; children move at about twelve, and families apply to each school
Within 10 km of Enniskerry there are 22 post-primary schools: 17 voluntary secondary schools, 3 community schools and 2 ETB schools. 6 of them are single-sex, 4 for girls and 2 for boys. Fees are charged at 7 of them. Just one teaches every subject through Irish.
| School | Takes | Also | Pupils | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Gerard's SchoolVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | Fee-paying | 623 | 2.9 km |
| St. Kilian's Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 427 | 3.3 km |
| John Scottus Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | Fee-paying | 211 | 3.7 km |
| Woodbrook CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | DEIS | 623 | 4.4 km |
| North Wicklow Educate Together Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 324 | 4.5 km |
| Loreto Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | – | 747 | 4.6 km |
| Presentation CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | – | 667 | 4.8 km |
| Coláiste RaithínETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | Gaelcholáiste | 326 | 4.9 km |
| Blackrock Educate Together Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 236 | 6 km |
| St Laurence CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | DEIS | 302 | 6.9 km |
| Temple Carrig Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Church of Ireland | Girls and boys | – | 931 | 7.5 km |
| Stepaside Educate Together Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 741 | 7.7 km |
All 22 post-primary schools within reach
| School | Takes | Also | Pupils | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Holy Child KillineyVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | Fee-paying | 382 | 7.8 km |
| Cabinteely Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 512 | 7.9 km |
| Rosemont SchoolVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | Fee-paying | 307 | 8.3 km |
| Clonkeen CollegeVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Boys | – | 635 | 8.6 km |
| Loreto College FoxrockVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls | Fee-paying | 660 | 8.9 km |
| St David's Holy Faith SecondaryVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | – | 792 | 9.2 km |
| St Joseph Of Cluny Secondary SchoolVoluntary secondary · Catholic | Girls and boys | Fee-paying | 270 | 9.3 km |
| Holy Child Community SchoolCommunity school · Inter-denominational | Girls and boys | DEIS | 275 | 9.6 km |
| Greystones Community CollegeETB · Multi-denominational | Girls and boys | – | 765 | 9.8 km |
| Rathdown SchoolVoluntary secondary · Church of Ireland | Girls and boys | Fee-paying, Boarding | 364 | 9.8 km |
Department of Education post-primary list 2025/26; straight-line distances from the town’s centre point.
Special schools and classes around Enniskerry
St Kierans Spec School is the special school here, with 59 pupils. 2 of the 6 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.
Enniskerry beside the 90 other Irish towns of 1,400 to 2,700 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Callan | 2,678 | 2 | 1,112 | 0 | 0% | 0.5 km |
| … | ||||||
| Dunleer | 2,143 | 5 | 1,205 | 0 | 20% | 0.8 km |
| Mountrath | 2,070 | 7 | 1,306 | 1 | 29% | 0.8 km |
| Bunclody | 2,053 | 5 | 1,912 | 0 | 40% | 0.5 km |
| Templemore | 2,005 | 5 | 973 | 0 | 60% | 0.3 km |
| Enniskerry | 2,000 | 10 | 2,487 | 0 | 20% | 2.9 km |
| Termonfeckin | 1,983 | 2 | 508 | 0 | 0% | 5.4 km |
| Strandhill | 1,982 | 1 | 252 | 0 | 0% | 7.1 km |
| Cloyne | 1,967 | 2 | 653 | 0 | 0% | 5.8 km |
| Dunmanway | 1,964 | 5 | 1,019 | 0 | 0% | 0.8 km |
| … | ||||||
| Stradbally | 1,404 | 2 | 375 | 0 | 0% | 10 km |
More pupils attend the schools around 5 of the other 90 towns than around Enniskerry. An all-Irish school is within 3 km of 15 of the 91.
Department of Education school lists 2025/26 (preliminary); CSO Census 2022 populations.
Pupil numbers around Enniskerry
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 Enniskerry had 3,505 pupils in 2015/16 and 2,487 in 2025/26, fewer than before. John Scottus Secondary School grew most: +77% since 2019/20.
Pupils at schools in and around Enniskerry
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 Enniskerry
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Enniskerry | 10 | 2,487 | 0 | 20% | 2.9 km |
| Kilmacanogue 3.4 km | 11 | 2,706 | 1 | 18% | 2.2 km |
| Bray 3.9 km | 30 | 9,081 | 4 | 27% | 0.7 km |
| Shankill 5.7 km | 43 | 13,386 | 5 | 28% | 1.9 km |
| Cabinteely 7.4 km | 67 | 21,279 | 4 | 21% | 0.6 km |
| Killiney 7.4 km | 45 | 13,019 | 1 | 31% | 0.7 km |
| Stepaside 7.7 km | 73 | 25,639 | 5 | 14% | 0.9 km |
Shankill has the most schools teaching through Irish nearby: 5. Of Enniskerry’s neighbours, Shankill saw the most growth in pupils since 2019/20 (+9%) and Kilmacanogue the least (−3%); Enniskerry itself: +4%.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Which schools count. Every school in Enniskerry 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 Enniskerry
How many schools are there in Enniskerry?
In Enniskerry or within 3 km of it: 6 primary schools, 3 secondary schools and 1 special school, with 2,487 pupils between them.
Are there schools in Enniskerry that teach through Irish?
None in Enniskerry 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 Enniskerry?
2 of the 3: St. Gerard's School and John Scottus Secondary School. The others are free.
What is the best school in Enniskerry?
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 Enniskerry?
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).