School planning area

Carraroe

8 primary schools and 565 pupils in 2025/26, in County Galway.

Pupils in 2025/26
565
−9 on 2024/25
Since 2015/16
−0.7%
569 pupils in 2015/16
Schools
8
No change on 2024/25
Average class size
19.10
Average school size: 70.6

Each year counts the schools in this planning area today, plus any that closed from 2023/24. Dotted lines bridge 1983/84 to 1992/93. 1974/75 is left out because that year's source file is missing five counties.

Earlier years are incomplete

The Department's files only record planning areas from 2023/24, so schools that closed or amalgamated before then aren't counted in any area. The further back you go, the more pupils are missing, and an amalgamation can look like a sudden rise. Across County Galway, schools with no planning area had 4.9% of pupils in 2015/16, 9.0% in 2005/06 and 34.0% in 1975/76. Known data issues

Pupils

565

−9 on 2024/25

1975/762025/26

Schools

8

5 in 1975/76

1975/762025/26

Average pupils per school

70.6

85.8 in 1975/76

1975/762025/26

Average class size

19.10

+0.33 on 2024/25

2006/072025/26

Pupils in these schools

Junior infants, girls and boys, and Irish-medium schools over time, for the same schools as the trends above.

Junior infants

Pupils starting school each year. Class-by-class figures start in 2020/21. 70 in 2025/26, −3 on 2024/25.

Girls and boys

From 1976/77: earlier files don't split every school's pupils into girls and boys.

Irish-medium schools

Pupils in schools that teach all subjects through Irish (8 schools today). 565 pupils in 2025/26, 100.0% of the area's pupils, against 100.0% in 2015/16. Each school counts under its current classification for every year.

Growing and falling since 2015/16

Each school's change in pupils over 10 years, from 2015/16 to 2025/26. A change of 10% or more either way counts as growing or falling.

Every school's change

7 schools with figures for both years

Schools still filling their classes in 2015/16, and schools opened since, are listed separately.

5fell by 10% or more
0within 10%
2grew by 10% or more
Down 25% or more · 4Down 10 to 25% · 1Within 10% · 0Up 10 to 25% · 1Up 25% or more · 1

Average class size in these schools went from 20.2 in 2015/16 to 18.9 in 2025/26. 2 of the 5 schools that fell by 10% or more kept or added classes. A fall in pupils can mean smaller classes rather than fewer children wanting places. Smaller classes

Sort the table below by the change column to see which schools grew or fell most.

Newer schools

1 school still filling its classes in 2015/16 or opened since, with 81 pupils. It isn’t in the figures above.

Class sizes

Mainstream class groups only. The source does not identify which standard/year group each class group belongs to.

Average class size
19.10
Mainstream classes
29
Classes of 30 or more
2
Schools with a class of 30+
1

Teachers

Teachers in the 8 mainstream primary schools here, 2006/07 to 2025/26. Class teachers are counted every year; all teaching posts where they're known.

How we count teachers
Class teachers in 2025/26
29
Up 7 since 2006/07, while pupils rose 26%
Teaching posts in 2025/26
about 48
Estimate: 29 class teachers, 1 principals and deputies, 16 special education and 2 special class teachers
Teachers in 2015/16
42
The Department's last count of every teacher
Since 2024/25
0 / 1
0 schools gained a class teacher, 1 lost one

Class teachers since 2006/07

One for each mainstream class, every school year

Special schools and special classes

1 special school in the Carraroe planning area, and the special classes in its 8 mainstream schools. Special schools aren't counted in the pupils, class sizes or teachers above.

All special schools
Pupils in special schools
19
In 1 school, up from 13 in 2015/16
Special classes in 2025/26
2
In 2 of 8 schools. 2 in 2021/22
Allocated for 2026/27
3
In 3 schools: 1 new class, 1 school with its first
Autism classes
2
100% of special classes

Special classes since 2021/22

In the Carraroe planning area's mainstream schools, from the NCSE's yearly lists

  • 2021/22 2
  • 2022/23 2
  • 2023/24 2
  • 2024/25 2
  • 2025/26 2
  • 2026/27 3

2026/27, dashed: allocated for next year.

Special schools in the Carraroe planning area
Special school Pupils Since 2015/16 Teaching posts SNAs
Scoil Speisialta Tigh Nan DooleyAn Cheathrú Rua · Severe or profound general learning disability 19
+46.2%
4 8.66

Sources: Department of Education enrolment lists; NCSE special class lists and special school allocations (CC BY 4.0).

What parents would prefer

214 households answered the Department of Education and Youth's Primary School Survey for the Carraroe planning area: 131 with children at its schools and 83 with children not yet at school. Each said whether they would prefer co-educational or single-sex schooling, a denominational or multi-denominational patron, and teaching through Irish or English.

Compare with other areas
Households that answered
214
47% of households asked
Prefer a multi-denominational patron
24% / 28%
Children at school / not yet at school
Prefer teaching through Irish
92% / 93%
Children at school / not yet at school
Prefer single-sex
1% / 4%
Children at school / not yet at school

Preferences beside what the schools offer now

Share of pupils in schools of each kind in the area, and share of parents who would prefer it

  • Pupils in such schools now
  • Parents: children at school
  • Parents: children not yet at school

Multi-denominational patron

No school here now

  • Pupils in such schools now: 0%
  • Parents: children at school: 24%
  • Parents: children not yet at school: 28%

Teaching through Irish

565 pupils (100%) in 8 schools

  • Pupils in such schools now: 100%
  • Parents: children at school: 92%
  • Parents: children not yet at school: 93%

Single-sex

No school here now

  • Pupils in such schools now: 0%
  • Parents: children at school: 1%
  • Parents: children not yet at school: 4%

Bars run from 0 to 100%.

Each school's parents

Parents of children at each school. Bold marks the school's set-up now.

Share of parents at each school who would prefer each
SN Mhic DaraAn Ceathrú Rua 202 48 of 123 ±11.6 25%96%0% –
S N Choilm ChilleBaile na hAbhann O.P. 83 21 of 57 ±16.9 29%71%0% –
S N Tir an FhiaidhLeitir Móir 83 18 of 38 ±18.1 6%100%0% –
Scoil MhuireBeal an Daingin 81 12 of 34 ±21.4 42%75%0% –
S N Coilm CilleBaile na hAbhann 59 18 of 42 ±18.1 28%94%0% –
S N Leitir MeallainLeitir Meallain 25 10 of 16 ±23.1 0%100%0% –
S N ColmcilleLeitir Móir 17 5 of 8 ±29.6 80%80%20% –
Scoil RonainLeitir Móir 15 Too few to publish – ––– –

Grey margins of error are 15 points or more: so few parents answered that the figures could be well off. “Too few to publish”: the Department held back the school's results, but its parents' answers still count in the area figures. Not yet at school: how many parents of children not yet at school chose the school, shown where 30 or more did. Special schools in the area are counted in the area figures above.

Source: Department of Education and Youth, Primary School Survey results, published 23 June 2026. The area figures count each household once, including parents at schools too small for their own results, so they aren't the school figures added up. About these figures

Schools

8 schools, largest first. A dash in the change column means the school had no pupils recorded in that year, usually because it opened later or took a new roll number after an amalgamation.

Change over

Select a column heading to sort

Roll number
SN Mhic DaraAn Ceathrú Rua 19932H 202
−10.6%
+27.0%
8 25.25 30 2
S N Choilm ChilleBaile na hAbhann O.P. 18514H 83
−37.1%
−34.6%
4 19.25 23 0
S N Tir an FhiaidhLeitir Móir 17689O 83
+36.1%
+56.6%
4 20.75 24 0
Scoil MhuireBeal an Daingin 20564L 81 – – 4 20.25 24 0
S N Coilm CilleBaile na hAbhann 12946G 59
+22.9%
+40.5%
3 18.00 23 0
S N Leitir MeallainLeitir Meallain 20345W 25
−40.5%
– 2 12.50 14 0
S N ColmcilleLeitir Móir 13699U 17
−48.5%
−37.0%
2 8.50 9 0
Scoil RonainLeitir Móir 14724V 15
−44.4%
−50.0%
2 7.50 9 0