St Brendans Monastery
Birr · Roll number 12370C
- Catholic ethos
- DEIS
- Ordinary with Special Classes
- Pupils in 2025/26
- 178
- −11 on 2024/25
- Over 10 years
- −19%
- Down 41 from 219 in 2015/16
- 9 classes in 2015/16, 9 now; average class 23.1 → 17.3
- Over 20 years: −13% from 204 in 2005/06
- Girls and boys
- 0 / 178
- 0% girls
Pupils since 1974
Total enrolment each school year
Shaded: the last 10 years, 2015/16 to 2025/26. 1983/84 is left out because its source file is incomplete, and no files exist for 1984/85 to 1992/93. Known data issues
Pupils by class
Published for each class from 2020/21.
This year, 2025/26
178 pupils across 8 classes
Every class, every year
Darker cells have more pupils. A group of pupils moves down one class and right one year.
| 2020/21 | 2021/22 | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 | 2025/26 | Average | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Junior Infants | 21 | 24 | 12 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 18.7 |
| Senior Infants | 21 | 20 | 24 | 12 | 23 | 21 | 20.2 |
| 1st Class | 20 | 23 | 19 | 23 | 14 | 22 | 20.2 |
| 2nd Class | 22 | 19 | 24 | 16 | 23 | 17 | 20.2 |
| 3rd Class | 18 | 21 | 20 | 22 | 20 | 27 | 21.3 |
| 4th Class | 21 | 17 | 22 | 21 | 23 | 22 | 21.0 |
| 5th Class | 22 | 19 | 18 | 22 | 22 | 28 | 21.8 |
| 6th Class | 24 | 25 | 20 | 18 | 24 | 24 | 22.5 |
JI and SI are Junior and Senior Infants.
Started Junior Infants in 2024/25
19 in Junior Infants (2024/25), 21 in Senior Infants (2025/26): 2 pupils more.
- 19Junior Infants2024/25
- 21Senior Infants2025/26
Started Junior Infants in 2023/24
19 in Junior Infants (2023/24), 22 in 1st Class (2025/26): 3 pupils more.
- 19Junior Infants2023/24
- 23Senior Infants2024/25
- 221st Class2025/26
Started Junior Infants in 2022/23
12 in Junior Infants (2022/23), 17 in 2nd Class (2025/26): 5 pupils more.
- 12Junior Infants2022/23
- 12Senior Infants2023/24
- 141st Class2024/25
- 172nd Class2025/26
Started Junior Infants in 2021/22
24 in Junior Infants (2021/22), 27 in 3rd Class (2025/26): 3 pupils more.
- 24Junior Infants2021/22
- 24Senior Infants2022/23
- 231st Class2023/24
- 232nd Class2024/25
- 273rd Class2025/26
Started Junior Infants in 2020/21
21 in Junior Infants (2020/21), 22 in 4th Class (2025/26): 1 pupil more.
- 21Junior Infants2020/21
- 20Senior Infants2021/22
- 191st Class2022/23
- 162nd Class2023/24
- 203rd Class2024/25
- 224th Class2025/26
In Senior Infants in 2020/21
21 in Senior Infants (2020/21), 28 in 5th Class (2025/26): 7 pupils more.
- 21Senior Infants2020/21
- 231st Class2021/22
- 242nd Class2022/23
- 223rd Class2023/24
- 234th Class2024/25
- 285th Class2025/26
In 1st Class in 2020/21
20 in 1st Class (2020/21), 24 in 6th Class (2025/26): 4 pupils more.
- 201st Class2020/21
- 192nd Class2021/22
- 203rd Class2022/23
- 214th Class2023/24
- 225th Class2024/25
- 246th Class2025/26
In 2nd Class in 2020/21
22 in 2nd Class (2020/21), 24 in 6th Class (2024/25): 2 pupils more.
- 222nd Class2020/21
- 213rd Class2021/22
- 224th Class2022/23
- 225th Class2023/24
- 246th Class2024/25
In 3rd Class in 2020/21
18 in 3rd Class (2020/21), 18 in 6th Class (2023/24): no change.
- 183rd Class2020/21
- 174th Class2021/22
- 185th Class2022/23
- 186th Class2023/24
In 4th Class in 2020/21
21 in 4th Class (2020/21), 20 in 6th Class (2022/23): 1 pupil fewer.
- 214th Class2020/21
- 195th Class2021/22
- 206th Class2022/23
In 5th Class in 2020/21
22 in 5th Class (2020/21), 25 in 6th Class (2021/22): 3 pupils more.
- 225th Class2020/21
- 256th Class2021/22
Biggest one-year changes in a class
- +11Senior Infants in 2024/25 (12 to 23)
- −12Junior Infants in 2022/23 (24 to 12)
Class sizes
Mainstream class groups, 2006/07 to 2025/26.
Why these won't match pupils by class
Mainstream class groups only. The source does not identify which standard/year group each class group belongs to. So these figures won't match the pupils-by-class figures exactly.
In 2025/26. Choose a figure to chart it.
Class sizes over time
Average class size, 2006/07 to 2025/26
Teachers
Who teaches at St Brendans Monastery, 2006/07 to 2025/26.
How we count teachers
Class teachers come from the Department of Education's class sizes: one for each mainstream class. Special education and special class teachers are the posts the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) allocates. We add a principal who doesn't teach a class where the Department's rules give the school one. These are posts, not people: part of a post can be a teacher shared with another school. Up to 2015/16 the Department counted every teacher itself. Known data issues
In 2025/26
18.4teaching posts
Our estimate: about 18 teachers.
- Class teachersOne for each of the 9 mainstream classes 9
- PrincipalRuns the school and doesn't teach a class 1
- Special education teachers135 hours of support teaching a week 5.4
- Special class teachersFor 2 autism classes and a mild general learning disability class 3
8.66 special needs assistants (SNAs) also work with pupils. 22 pupils are in special classes, which the class sizes leave out.
The NCSE has allocated 5.3 special education teachers, 4 special class teachers and 10.66 SNAs for next year.
Teachers since 2006/07
Teachers each school year, by role
To 2015/16: the Department of Education's count of every teacher. From 2019/20: our estimate, from class sizes and the NCSE's allocations. Dashed boxes: no special education figures were published for those years, so only class teachers and the principal are shown. Known data issues
Sources: Department of Education class sizes and teacher counts; NCSE school allocations and special classes (CC BY 4.0).
Nearby schools
The 6 primary schools closest to St Brendans Monastery, measured in a straight line. Pupil numbers are for 2025/26.
| Number on map | School | Distance | Pupils | Since 2015/16 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Brendans MonasteryThis school | – | 178 |
−18.7%
|
|
| 1 | Mercy Primary School0.3 km · Birr · Girls · DEIS | 0.3 km | 141 |
−18.5%
|
| 2 | S N Osmann1.1 km · Birr · Church of Ireland · DEIS | 1.1 km | 86 |
−1.1%
|
| 3 | Croinchoill N S1.6 km · Birr · DEIS | 1.6 km | 243 |
+19.1%
|
| 4 | Gaelscoil na Laochra1.6 km · Birr · Gaelscoil · Multi-denominational | 1.6 km | 45 | – |
| 5 | S N an Cillin1.8 km · Birr · DEIS | 1.8 km | 140 |
+32.1%
|
| 6 | Carrig N S5.0 km · Birr | 5.0 km | 60 |
−21.1%
|
What parents would prefer
In the Department of Education and Youth's Primary School Survey (November–December 2025), parents said whether they would prefer this school to be co-educational or single-sex, to have a denominational or multi-denominational patron, and to teach through Irish or English. These are preferences, not applications or enrolments.
Children at this school
Their parents: 55 of 128 households answered (43%). The true figures are likely within 10.8 points either way.
Patron
Teaching language
Boys and girls
Children not yet at school
Fewer than 30 parents of children not yet at school chose this school, so the Department didn't publish their answers.
The bracket shows the margin of error the Department published for this school: 10.8 points either way.
| Parents of | Multi-denominational | Through Irish | Single-sex |
|---|---|---|---|
| This school · children at school | 20% | 7% | 31% |
| Birr planning area · children at school | 36% | 15% | 10% |
| Birr planning area · children not yet at school | 38% | 18% | 5% |
| Ireland · children at school | 44% | 20% | 5% |
| Ireland · children not yet at school | 47% | 26% | 6% |
Source: Department of Education and Youth, Primary School Survey results, published 23 June 2026. Planning-area and Ireland figures also count parents at schools where too few answered for the school to get its own results. About these figures
About this school
Inspection reports open on gov.ie, under the name the school had when it was inspected. They describe specific areas of the school's work rather than giving an overall grade. Newer schools may not have one yet.
Contact
- Principal
- Niall Crofton
- Phone
- 0579121033
- [email protected]
- Address
- Moorpark Street, Birr, Co. Offaly, R42 NW22
School
- Ethos
- Catholic
- Patron
- Bishop of Killaloe
- School type
- Ordinary with Special Classes
- School level
- All Through
- DEIS
- DEIS
Language and area
- Irish classification
- No subjects through Irish
- Gaeltacht
- Non-Gaeltacht
- Island
- Not on an island
- Local authority
- Offaly County Council
- Planning area
- Birr
Each detail is the latest one the Department of Education has recorded for this school. If a detail was left blank in 2025/26, we show it from an earlier year, so some details may be older than the pupil numbers. Known data issues
Data by year
43 school years from 1974/75 to 2025/26. Class figures start in 2020/21.
| Year | Total | Girls | Boys | JI | SI | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025/26 | 178 | 0 | 178 | 17 | 21 | 22 | 17 | 27 | 22 | 28 | 24 |
| 2024/25 | 189 | – | 189 | 19 | 23 | 14 | 23 | 20 | 23 | 22 | 24 |
| 2023/24 | 175 | 0 | 175 | 19 | 12 | 23 | 16 | 22 | 21 | 22 | 18 |
| 2022/23 | 178 | – | 178 | 12 | 24 | 19 | 24 | 20 | 22 | 18 | 20 |
| 2021/22 | 188 | – | 188 | 24 | 20 | 23 | 19 | 21 | 17 | 19 | 25 |
| 2020/21 | 186 | – | 186 | 21 | 21 | 20 | 22 | 18 | 21 | 22 | 24 |
| 2019/20 | 193 | – | 193 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2018/19 | 185 | – | 185 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2017/18 | 183 | – | 183 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2016/17 | 192 | 0 | 192 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2015/16 | 219 | 0 | 219 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2014/15 | 211 | 0 | 211 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2013/14 | 218 | 0 | 218 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2012/13 | 231 | 0 | 231 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2011/12 | 238 | 0 | 238 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2010/11 | 238 | 0 | 238 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2009/10 | 236 | 0 | 236 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2008/09 | 236 | 0 | 236 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2007/08 | 227 | 0 | 227 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2006/07 | 213 | 0 | 213 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2005/06 | 204 | 0 | 204 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2004/05 | 196 | 0 | 196 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2003/04 | 211 | 0 | 211 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2002/03 | 210 | 0 | 210 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2001/02 | 217 | 0 | 217 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2000/01 | 222 | 0 | 222 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1999/00 | 224 | – | 224 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1998/99 | 222 | 0 | 222 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1997/98 | 226 | 0 | 226 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1996/97 | 238 | 0 | 238 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1995/96 | 231 | – | 231 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1994/95 | 243 | – | 243 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1993/94 | 250 | – | 250 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1983/84 | 331 | 0 | 331 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1982/83 | 337 | 0 | 337 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1981/82 | 345 | 0 | 345 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1980/81 | 320 | 0 | 320 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1979/80 | 322 | 0 | 322 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1978/79 | 322 | 0 | 322 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1977/78 | 318 | 0 | 318 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1976/77 | 312 | 0 | 312 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1975/76 | 322 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 1974/75 | 322 | 0 | 322 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |