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School planning area

Athlone

22 primary schools and 4,155 pupils in 2025/26, in Counties Roscommon and Westmeath.

Pupils in 2025/26
4,155
−52 on 2024/25
Since 2015/16
+3.5%
4,013 pupils in 2015/16
Schools
22
No change on 2024/25
Average class size
21.75
Average school size: 188.9

By county

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

Change over
Westmeath 12 2,691
+5.4%
Roscommon 10 1,464
+0.3%

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 Roscommon and Westmeath, schools with no planning area had 5.4% of pupils in 2015/16, 7.9% in 2005/06 and 34.9% in 1975/76. Known data issues

Pupils

4,155

−52 on 2024/25

1975/762025/26

Schools

22

9 in 1975/76

1975/762025/26

Average pupils per school

188.9

66.6 in 1975/76

1975/762025/26

Average class size

21.75

−0.51 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. 481 in 2025/26, +23 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). 235 pupils in 2025/26, 5.7% of the area's pupils, against 8.0% 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

22 schools with figures for both years

5fell by 10% or more
8within 10%
9grew by 10% or more
Down 25% or more · 4Down 10 to 25% · 1Within 10% · 8Up 10 to 25% · 5Up 25% or more · 4

Grown most

Pupils in 2015/16 and 2025/26

  1. 1 Cluain Buinne N SAthlone, Co. Westmeath 117 → 164 +40.2%
  2. 2 SC CiarainAthlone, Co. Westmeath 165 → 227 +37.6%
  3. 3 S N Ard CianainAthlone, Co. Roscommon 58 → 77 +32.8%
  4. 4 St Marys NSAthlone, Co. Westmeath 437 → 573 +31.1%
  5. 5 S N an Gleann DuibhAthlone, Co. Roscommon 120 → 147 +22.5%

Fallen most

Pupils in 2015/16 and 2025/26

  1. 1 Carrick N SAthlone, Co. Roscommon 67 → 41 −38.8%
  2. 2 S N Phoil NaofaAthlone, Co. Westmeath 186 → 125 −32.8%
  3. 3 Scoil na gCeithre MaistriÁth Luain, Co. Westmeath 322 → 235 −27.0%
  4. 4 Athlone N SAthlone, Co. Westmeath 75 → 56 −25.3%
  5. 5 S N Cor na Fola BAthlone, Co. Roscommon 293 → 223 −23.9%

Ranked by percentage change. Only schools with 50 or more pupils in 2015/16 are ranked, leaving out any still filling their classes then, because a few pupils make a big percentage in a small or new school. An amalgamation or a new school nearby can also explain a big rise or fall.

Class sizes

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

Average class size
21.75
Mainstream classes
187
Classes of 30 or more
11
Schools with a class of 30+
7

Teachers

Teachers in the 22 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
187
Up 50 since 2006/07, while pupils rose 22%
Teaching posts in 2025/26
about 298
Estimate: 187 class teachers, 14 principals and deputies, 81 special education and 16 special class teachers
Teachers in 2015/16
250
The Department's last count of every teacher
Since 2024/25
3 / 2
3 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

1 special school in the Athlone planning area, and the special classes in its 22 mainstream schools. Special schools aren't counted in the pupils, class sizes or teachers above.

All special schools
Pupils in special schools
58
In 1 school, up from 38 in 2015/16
Special classes in 2025/26
16
In 9 of 22 schools. 8 in 2020/21
Allocated for 2026/27
21
In 11 schools: 5 new classes, 2 schools with their first
Autism classes
13
81% of special classes

Special classes since 2020/21

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

  • 2020/21 8
  • 2021/22 10
  • 2022/23 11
  • 2023/24 11
  • 2024/25 13
  • 2025/26 16
  • 2026/27 21

2026/27, dashed: allocated for next year.

Special school Pupils Since 2015/16 Teaching posts SNAs
St Hildas SP SCHAthlone · Mild general learning disability 58
+52.6%
11 28

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

Schools

22 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
St Marys NSAthlone 20073P Westmeath 573
+31.1%
31 18.48 23 0
S N an CusanN37td88 18864L Westmeath 413
+3.5%
16 25.06 29 0
S N Cluain na CilleAthlone 18395C Roscommon 399
+19.8%
16 24.94 29 0
Corr na Madadh N SAthlone 17903N Westmeath 306
+11.7%
13 23.54 29 0
Naomh Clar N SAthlone 18505G Westmeath 293
+12.7%
12 23.83 34 2
Scoil na gCeithre MaistriÁth Luain 19948W Westmeath 235
−27.0%
9 25.33 37 2
SC CiarainAthlone 17708P Westmeath 227
+37.6%
9 25.22 32 1
Ballybay National SchoolAthlone 19534S Roscommon 224
−0.4%
9 24.22 30 1
S N Cnoc an SamhraidhAthlone 12754U Roscommon 223
−6.3%
10 20.80 24 0
S N Cor na Fola BAthlone 01607T Roscommon 223
−23.9%
10 22.30 30 1
Cluain Buinne N SAthlone 17102C Westmeath 164
+40.2%
6 27.33 36 3
S N an Gleann DuibhAthlone 18626S Roscommon 147
+22.5%
6 24.50 29 0
S N Phoil NaofaAthlone 18405C Westmeath 125
−32.8%
7 16.14 20 0
St Peters N S SNRAthlone 07722D Westmeath 112
−5.9%
7 14.29 18 0
Ard na gCraith NSWalderstown 18764H Westmeath 110
−6.0%
5 19.80 25 0
S N Ard CianainAthlone 17054R Roscommon 77
+32.8%
4 19.25 30 1
SN Deaghan O CeallaighAthlone 16639R Westmeath 77
−7.2%
5 15.40 19 0
Brideswell N SAthlone 15413J Roscommon 68
+11.5%
3 22.67 27 0
Athlone N SAthlone 16092U Westmeath 56
−25.3%
3 18.67 19 0
Carrick N SAthlone 13839K Roscommon 41
−38.8%
2 18.00 23 0
S N RonainAthlone 12003V Roscommon 34
+3.0%
2 17.00 19 0
Clonown N SAthlone 16427C Roscommon 28
−9.7%
2 14.00 19 0