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School planning area

Longford–Newtownforbes

18 primary schools and 3,433 pupils in 2025/26, in Counties Longford and Roscommon.

Pupils in 2025/26
3,433
−57 on 2024/25
Since 2015/16
+1.8%
3,372 pupils in 2015/16
Schools
18
No change on 2024/25
Average class size
20.96
Average school size: 190.7

By county

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

Change over
Longford 15 3,138
−0.2%
Roscommon 3 295
+28.8%

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 Longford and Roscommon, schools with no planning area had 7.9% of pupils in 2015/16, 9.6% in 2005/06 and 34.3% in 1975/76. Known data issues

Pupils

3,433

−57 on 2024/25

1975/762025/26

Schools

18

13 in 1975/76

1975/762025/26

Average pupils per school

190.7

155.6 in 1975/76

1975/762025/26

Average class size

20.96

−0.53 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. 375 in 2025/26, −27 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). 112 pupils in 2025/26, 3.3% of the area's pupils, against 5.5% 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

18 schools with figures for both years

5fell by 10% or more
7within 10%
6grew by 10% or more
Down 25% or more · 2Down 10 to 25% · 3Within 10% · 7Up 10 to 25% · 2Up 25% or more · 4

Grown most

Pupils in 2015/16 and 2025/26

  1. 1 Rooskey N SCarrick-on-Shannon, Co. Roscommon 94 → 160 +70.2%
  2. 2 Scoil Naomh MichealLongford, Co. Longford 174 → 224 +28.7%
  3. 3 St Josephs ConventLongford Town, Co. Longford 443 → 527 +19.0%
  4. 4 St. Johns National SchoolLongford, Co. Longford 58 → 67 +15.5%
  5. 5 S N Cnoc an MharcaighLongford, Co. Longford 268 → 289 +7.8%

Fallen most

Pupils in 2015/16 and 2025/26

  1. 1 Gaelscoil an LongfoirtAn Longfort, Co. Longford 187 → 112 −40.1%
  2. 2 Whitehall N STarmonbarry, Co. Roscommon 123 → 93 −24.4%
  3. 3 Saint MelsArdagh Village, Co. Longford 219 → 180 −17.8%
  4. 4 St Marys N.S.Edgeworthstown, Co. Longford 398 → 352 −11.6%
  5. 5 Scoil Mhuire N SNewtownforbes, Co. Longford 347 → 317 −8.6%

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
20.96
Mainstream classes
159
Classes of 30 or more
16
Schools with a class of 30+
6

Teachers

Teachers in the 18 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
159
Up 53 since 2006/07, while pupils rose 33%
Teaching posts in 2025/26
about 254
Estimate: 159 class teachers, 12 principals and deputies, 66 special education and 17 special class teachers
Teachers in 2015/16
204
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 Longford–Newtownforbes planning area, and the special classes in its 18 mainstream schools. Special schools aren't counted in the pupils, class sizes or teachers above.

All special schools
Pupils in special schools
49
In 1 school, up from 27 in 2015/16
Special classes in 2025/26
17
In 5 of 18 schools. 12 in 2020/21
Allocated for 2026/27
19
In 6 schools: 2 new classes, 1 school with its first
Autism classes
16
94% of special classes

Special classes since 2020/21

In the Longford–Newtownforbes planning area's mainstream schools, from the NCSE's yearly lists

  • 2020/21 12
  • 2021/22 13
  • 2022/23 13
  • 2023/24 15
  • 2024/25 17
  • 2025/26 17
  • 2026/27 19

2026/27, dashed: allocated for next year.

Special school Pupils Since 2015/16 Teaching posts SNAs
St Christophers S SLongford · Moderate general learning disability 49
+81.5%
9.6 28

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

Schools

18 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 Josephs ConventLongford Town 18178R Longford 527
+19.0%
28 17.75 23 0
St Marys N.S.Edgeworthstown 20124G Longford 352
−11.6%
15 21.13 25 0
Scoil Mhuire N SNewtownforbes 19987J Longford 317
−8.6%
13 24.38 34 3
S N Naomh TreasaBallinalee 19279F Longford 306
+7.0%
13 21.69 32 3
S N Cnoc an MharcaighLongford 07518E Longford 289
+7.8%
12 24.08 36 4
Stonepark N SStonepark 14386E Longford 239
−1.6%
10 23.90 32 4
Scoil Naomh MichealLongford 00856M Longford 224
+28.7%
12 18.67 25 0
St Emer's National SchoolTemplemichael 19753H Longford 215
0.0%
11 19.55 29 0
Saint MelsArdagh Village 19467G Longford 180
−17.8%
8 22.50 28 0
Rooskey N SCarrick-on-Shannon 04800F Roscommon 160
+70.2%
6 26.67 34 1
Samhthann N SBallinalee 17561L Longford 145
0.0%
6 23.33 26 0
Gaelscoil an LongfoirtAn Longfort 20083S Longford 112
−40.1%
6 17.67 22 0
S N MhuireCloondara 18733T Longford 94
−1.1%
4 23.50 28 0
Whitehall N STarmonbarry 14049J Roscommon 93
−24.4%
4 23.25 30 1
St. Johns National SchoolLongford 12683A Longford 67
+15.5%
4 16.75 19 0
Scoil BhrídeEdgeworthstown 12136R Longford 52
+33.3%
3 17.33 21 0
Cloonfour N SRooskey 13498K Roscommon 42
+250.0%
2 21.00 22 0
St. John's National School,Edgeworthstown 13313S Longford 19
−26.9%
2 9.50 12 0