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School planning area

Sligo

13 primary schools and 3,218 pupils in 2025/26, in County Sligo.

Pupils in 2025/26
3,218
+18 on 2024/25
Since 2015/16
+8.7%
2,961 pupils in 2015/16
Schools
13
No change on 2024/25
Average class size
22.13
Average school size: 247.5

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 Sligo, schools with no planning area had 2.7% of pupils in 2015/16, 6.0% in 2005/06 and 45.3% in 1976/77. Known data issues

Pupils

3,218

+18 on 2024/25

1976/772025/26

Schools

13

5 in 1976/77

1976/772025/26

Average pupils per school

247.5

262.6 in 1976/77

1976/772025/26

Average class size

22.13

−0.40 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.

Area figures by year (CSV) Each school by year (CSV)

Junior infants

Pupils starting school each year. Class-by-class figures start in 2020/21. 381 in 2025/26, +18 on 2024/25.

Girls and boys

Each school year.

Irish-medium schools

Pupils in schools that teach all subjects through Irish (1 school today). 208 pupils in 2025/26, 6.5% of the area's pupils, against 8.3% 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

13 schools with figures for both years

2fell by 10% or more
5within 10%
6grew by 10% or more
Down 25% or more · 0Down 10 to 25% · 2Within 10% · 5Up 10 to 25% · 4Up 25% or more · 2

Average class size in these schools went from 25.7 in 2015/16 to 22.1 in 2025/26. 1 of the 2 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.

Class sizes

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

Average class size
22.13
Mainstream classes
142
Classes of 30 or more
9
Schools with a class of 30+
6

Teachers

Teachers in the 13 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
142
Up 31 since 2006/07, while pupils rose 15%
Teaching posts in 2025/26
about 219
Estimate: 142 class teachers, 11 principals and deputies, 53 special education and 13 special class teachers
Teachers in 2015/16
172
The Department's last count of every teacher
Since 2024/25
2 / 1
2 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

2 special schools in the Sligo planning area, and the special classes in its 13 mainstream schools. Special schools aren't counted in the pupils, class sizes or teachers above.

All special schools
Pupils in special schools
136
In 2 schools, up from 81 in 2015/16
Special classes in 2025/26
13
In 7 of 13 schools. 10 in 2020/21
Allocated for 2026/27
14
In 7 schools: 1 new class
Autism classes
10
77% of special classes

Special classes since 2020/21

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

  • 2020/21 10
  • 2021/22 10
  • 2022/23 10
  • 2023/24 10
  • 2024/25 11
  • 2025/26 13
  • 2026/27 14

2026/27, dashed: allocated for next year.

Special school Pupils Since 2015/16 Teaching posts SNAs
St. Cecilia's SchoolSligo · Moderate general learning disability 93
+126.8%
17 41
St Josephs Special SCHSligo · Mild general learning disability 43
+7.5%
7 11

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

What parents would prefer

1,039 households answered the Department of Education and Youth's Primary School Survey for the Sligo planning area: 706 with children at its schools and 333 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
The Department's own results: All 314 areas (Excel)Interactive mapSummary report with county figures (PDF)
Households that answered
1,039
40% of households asked
Prefer a multi-denominational patron
48% / 50%
Children at school / not yet at school
Prefer teaching through Irish
18% / 23%
Children at school / not yet at school
Prefer single-sex
3% / 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

52 pupils (2%) in 1 school

  • 2%
  • 48%
  • 50%

Teaching through Irish

208 pupils (7%) in 1 school

  • 7%
  • 18%
  • 23%

Single-sex

No school here now

  • 0%
  • 3%
  • 4%

Bars run from 0 to 50%.

Each school's parents

Parents of children at each school. Bold marks the school's set-up now.
Our Lady of Mercy N SSligo 449 104 of 336 ±8 38%17%2% 53 answered
S N UrsulaSligo 439 136 of 318 ±7 42%7%8% 57 answered
Carraroe N SCarraroe 389 91 of 291 ±8.5 40%14%0% 42 answered
Scoil Eoin NaofaSligo 289 69 of 211 ±9.7 45%9%7% –
Scoil AsicusStrandhill 252 69 of 162 ±9.7 64%35%3% 36 answered
Ransboro New CentralKnocknahur 247 59 of 152 ±10.5 51%10%0% 30 answered
Carbury National SchoolSligo 210 61 of 149 ±10.3 61%15%2% –
Gaelscoil Chnoc na ReSligeach 208 53 of 146 ±11 62%91%0% 35 answered
St Edwards N SSligo 207 45 of 128 ±11.9 44%2%2% –
St Patricks NSSligo 182 46 of 118 ±11.8 41%11%2% –
St Brendans NSSligo 177 31 of 120 ±14.2 42%10%3% –
S N Realt na MaraSligo 117 43 of 67 ±12.2 51%12%0% –
Sligo Project SchoolSligo 52 17 of 37 ±18.5 65%24%0% –

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

13 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
Our Lady of Mercy N SSligo 19985F 449
+8.7%
−13.0%
24 17.96 22 0
S N UrsulaSligo 18979F 439
+8.7%
+38.9%
18 24.06 29 0
Carraroe N SCarraroe 14636B 389
+21.6%
+36.5%
16 24.31 28 0
Scoil Eoin NaofaSligo 19974A 289
+11.2%
+84.1%
15 17.80 25 0
Scoil AsicusStrandhill 15004P 252
+6.3%
+31.9%
10 25.20 30 2
Ransboro New CentralKnocknahur 19635B 247
+7.9%
+32.8%
10 23.50 32 2
Carbury National SchoolSligo 19495L 210
−10.3%
+11.7%
8 26.25 30 1
Gaelscoil Chnoc na ReSligeach 20044I 208
−15.8%
+25.3%
8 26.00 30 1
St Edwards N SSligo 17277O 207
+11.9%
+23.2%
11 18.27 21 0
St Patricks NSSligo 19942K 182
−0.5%
−17.6%
7 26.00 32 2
St Brendans NSSligo 19826I 177
+47.5%
+9.9%
7 23.57 31 1
S N Realt na MaraSligo 17641J 117
+11.4%
+7.3%
5 23.40 29 0
Sligo Project SchoolSligo 19910U 52
+116.7%
−55.6%
3 17.33 18 0