School planning area

Ashbourne

Name: Primary school enrolment in the Ashbourne planning area
Creator: Department of Education

11 primary schools and 2,645 pupils in 2025/26, in Counties Dublin and Meath.

Pupils in 2025/26: 2,645; +41 on 2024/25
Since 2015/16: +5.4%; 2,510 pupils in 2015/16
Schools: 11; No change on 2024/25
Average class size: 23.94; Average school size: 240.5

By county

This planning area crosses county lines. Select a county to see its part of the area.

Change over


Meath	8	2,269	+8.2%
Dublin	3	376	−8.7%

Trends in Ashbourne

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 Counties Dublin and Meath, schools with no planning area had 1.2% of pupils in 2015/16, 4.5% in 2005/06 and 34.7% in 1975/76. Known data issues

Pupils

2,645

+41 on 2024/25

1975/762025/26

Schools

7 in 1975/76

1975/762025/26

Average pupils per school

240.5

84.1 in 1975/76

1975/762025/26

Average class size

23.94

+0.16 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. 335 in 2025/26, +24 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 (1 school today). 227 pupils in 2025/26, 8.6% of the area's pupils, against 10.1% 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

10 schools with figures for both years

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

4fell by 10% or more

4within 10%

2grew by 10% or more

Down 25% or more · 1Down 10 to 25% · 3Within 10% · 4Up 10 to 25% · 2Up 25% or more · 0

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 341 pupils. It isn’t in the figures above.

Ashbourne Community National SchoolAshbourne · figures start 2019/20 341

Class sizes

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

Average class size: 23.94
Mainstream classes: 107
Classes of 30 or more: 15
Schools with a class of 30+: 4

Teachers

Teachers in the 11 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: 107; Up 42 since 2006/07, while pupils rose 50%
Teaching posts in 2025/26: about 173; Estimate: 107 class teachers, 10 principals and deputies, 42 special education and 14 special class teachers
Teachers in 2015/16: 136; The Department's last count of every teacher
Since 2024/25: 2 / 2; 2 schools gained a class teacher, 2 lost one

Class teachers since 2006/07

One for each mainstream class, every school year

Special schools and special classes

0 special schools in the Ashbourne planning area, and the special classes in the 11 mainstream schools. Special schools aren't counted in the pupils, class sizes or teachers above.

All special schools

Pupils in special schools: 0; No special school here
Special classes in 2025/26: 14; In 6 of 11 schools. 4 in 2020/21
Allocated for 2026/27: 14; In 6 schools
Autism classes: 14; 100% of special classes

Special classes since 2020/21

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

2020/21 4
2021/22 8
2022/23 8
2023/24 8
2024/25 10
2025/26 14
2026/27 14

2026/27, dashed: allocated for next year.

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

Schools

11 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
Scoil Nais DeaglainAshbourne	19486K	Meath	621	−9.5%	25	24.84	27	0
Scoil MhuireAshbourne	19768U	Meath	479	−4.4%	18	26.61	33	9
Ashbourne Community National SchoolAshbourne	20546J	Meath	341	–	14	22.64	29	0
Kilbride National SchoolClonee	16825O	Meath	310	−5.2%	13	22.92	26	0
Gaelscoil na CilleAshbourne	19779C	Meath	227	−10.3%	9	25.22	31	4
S N MhuireGarristown	17559B	Dublin	191	−19.4%	8	22.50	28	0
S N Padraig NaofaGarristown	17629T	Meath	137	+14.2%	6	20.83	30	1
Cill CoscainThe Ward	17595F	Dublin	107	−1.8%	4	23.75	31	1
S N Mhuire NaofaTara	17964K	Meath	81	−36.7%	4	20.25	24	0
S N Muire an Sean BaileOldtown	17263D	Dublin	78	+18.2%	3	22.00	26	0
S N Naomh CianainAshbourne	17029S	Meath	73	−12.0%	3	24.33	28	0