Dublin - private school suggestions?

[MrsAmelia]

Dear All,
We are looking into a move to Dublin for July 2027. We have 3 children (10/8/5 years old, 2 girls & 1 boy) and we will be coming from Rome, Italy (attending a British school). Our children have grown up between London and Rome so we are trying to find a school that offers a lovely feel of community and offers great sports (girls & boys football) and music (vocal programmes).

I am doing as much research as I can online to narrow down the spreadsheet but any insight from locals would be incredibly appreciated. I need to book school visits for this March so trying to create the final list.

I know St Andrew's College professionally, and have heard that Belvedere College is a solid for boys. Any co-ed schools that are top notch academics, but without the "hot house" pressure academically? Really good all-girls?

Thank you very much in advance 🙏

Yes I agree with the above. The present 10 year old February borns will be more likely to start secondary at 13.5. I do know one who’ll be starting at 12.5 and teacher is saying she feels she’s a bit young for the class (though it depends on the child too of course).

The ECCE scheme means in the future the cut off is Dec31st/1st Jan. Not sure when those dates were fixed (I think there was more flexibility when the current 10 year olds started) but right now, and for the last few years at least, all (or the vast majority) of Jan and Feb borns will be starting school well after they turn 5. It might be relevant for your younger children too and what class is appropriate for primary school.

Depending on the birth month, your 10 year old might have to go into 6th class here, ie the last primary primary school year. If you want fee paying, Andrew’s is a great choice and you could send your eldest child to their junior school for that final year and then secondary school, might make it easier to transition into the Irish school system for their secondary school years. The other two can easily go to a local state primary. The aforementioned Booterstown National School is Church of Ireland and is an amazing school, 10 min walk to Andrew’s, small class sizes, great school spirit and they’re big on hockey.

Wesley College would be similar to St Andrews, just better facilities, big on music and arts. Rathdown is another one, mixed CoI.

In Blackrock, Carysfort National school, Catholic, is also fantastic. Much bigger than Booterstown. A lot of the boys go to Blackrock College and the girls to Loreto in Dalkey.

St Michaels, Catholic Boys, I would rate it over Blackrock. Has both primary and secondary. Facilities are top notch and they are currently building a pool as well. Overall the parents are very happy with the school.

For boys Oatlands, a state school, is a great option. Their primary is mixed though. It’ll be one of the rare schools in the immediate Blackrock area with a decent soccer team.

Newpark Comprehensive is another state secondary, COI and big on arts as well. Booterstown National School is a feeder for Newpark.

I wouldn’t let the lack of a school soccer team dictate my school choice. Mt Merrion FC is the local soccer academy. Grenada is another club in the area.

Belvedere is a wonderful school with a Jesuit ethos. It seems to produce really decent young men.

Would not go near Blackrock, its students tend to be brash, cocky and arrogant.

Gonzaga and St Michael’s nice too.

Not a fan of ‘Alex’ but never met a girl from Mt Anville who wasn’t lovely so that’s something to consider!

Surely you need to find which primary schools actually have space and take it from there? Presumably they will have waiting lists too? And set ways of allocation of places?
I know South Dublin is not the same as the rest of the country!

St Columba’s is also highly regarded - my DH and his siblings went there a million years ago.

Agree with every word!

Avoid newpark if your kids aren't self starters. They do not push at all. Far too easy going.

Rathdown in Glenageary is mixed and will take your dc right through from 4 to 18. A good mix of international boarders and local day pupils. There's a good local football set up. It's a lovely area to live in, great dog walking at the seafront and up Killiney Hill.

If you can, come and visit. Most schools will happily facilitate this. There’s also an open day season around the end of September/ October. Be very wary of the ones that don’t welcome visits.

I definitely would not overlook the state schools. Compared to most of the private schools the physical facilities are much better - 3 well equipped science labs compared to one cramped one, multiple pitches, big school halls, etc. Currently school books, stationery and art equipment is provided in state but not in private schools. The curriculum can tend to be wider.

The Dept of Education conducts inspections of all schools which you can read online.

In the last couple of years, there have been cases about sexual misconduct in some of the schools - you can google the news reports, and sadly there are still entrenched cultural issues in one or two schools that would give me pause.

Depending on how seriously you take religion, it may not be a factor that should narrow your choice. Most schools are nominally RC but there is very little enthusiasm for it among students or staff. In some schools religion is a mandatory junior cert subject, but covers 5 religions and actively promotes inclusion and critical thinking. One of the five, is Christianity, not Catholicism in particular. After 11 years in RC schools, communion and confirmation my dd hasn’t absorbed the basic doctrine.

Lots mentioned already, but I’ll add St Benildus (boys) is a very good state school option, with an excellent reputation for academic achievement as well as a wide variety of sports. It absolutely holds its own against the private schools in that area. St Raphaela’s (girls) up the road doesn’t have the same cachet but is also a very solid school.

Also worth knowing is that the entry system to schools is tricky since it was badly reformed. Feeder schools is definitely something worth considering. You’ll find the list of preferential considerations on each schools website.

We’re in the Belfast, so no first hand evidence of Dublin schools but I do know quite a few very wealthy, old money families who have sent DC to St. Columba’s - it seemed to be a real trend for a while. Without fail each child experienced problems with drinking & drugs whilst boarding which led to multiple suspensions. Don’t get me wrong, they all did very well academically and went on to good universities but I think the acceptance of antisocial behaviour would put me off!

My DC went to the local parish national school and then Wesley. It's a good school and I sent them there because it was a convenient location and because I used to go there. However, both of mine were soccer players and also very sporty generally and Wesley is a rugby and hockey school. Their general attitude is that if you are chosen to play for the school it is a huge honour and the child MUST make themselves available to train and play matches. Both of mine were told they were on the team, they didn't try out or volunteer and then they were pressured to make training when it clashed with the soccer training. I had to speak to both coaches and say in the strongest terms that soccer was more important to my DC and, while I was prepared to let them play for the school if that's what the DC wanted, I would absolutely withdraw them from rugby/hockey if it caused them stress. (DS stopped playing rugby anyway as he kept getting injured, he was on concussion watch a lot because he kept landing on his head.)

If you're looking for football clubs then both of mine were very happy at St Joseph's in Sallynoggin. DD moved there from another club where the girls' team was an afterthought, they kept having their training pitch taken by an older boys' team who needed extra training time. The girls' teams were also a minority at Joeys but were never treated as an inconvenience and shoved aside for the boys' teams. There are lots of clubs though so have a look around, a good guide for the girls is if they manage to keep enough girls to have an active team at the older age groups. Clubs that aren't enthusiastic about the girls' teams tend to lose all the female players once they hit teens.

I'm a Mount Anville girl so this amuses me - I met plenty who weren't lovely!
That said, if I lived close to it now, I would seriously consider sending DD there. I think it is still quite a sporty school.

For boys, I'd be looking at St Michaels as well, rather than Blackrock (though I have lots of relatives who went through Blackrock and have turned out ok.)

If you move to South County Dublin and you will have a choice of excellent schools public (state) or private.

Soccer is not a big private school thing, rugby and hockey are much bigger in private school. Blackrock College (and Willow Park primary) is probably considered the number 1 boys and Mount Anville is the girls version but there are also Church of Ireland Schools which very sporty. Alexandra in Milltown is all girls. Kings Hospital is co ed.

Lots of great state schools and private schools around Dundrum neck of the woods. Might be worth checking out as a location.

BUT....which will have places available for 3 children? Nobody is advising on this?
Im not in Dublin or even Leinster. Where I am applications for places are late autumn for the following September.

I second the recommendation of Benildus.

Good point @MrsAmelia if you have a child for first year age 13 ish this will affect you as primary and secondary are typically oversubscribed in many areas.

Lol, as a reformed former Mountie I thought the same. I don't see that Clonkeen college has been mentioned, I've always been a fan and know some lovely young men who have been through. And Sion Hill is a very rounded experience for girls although maybe not as sporty as you want.

Lots of good information here - something else to think about is matching the school with your child - I’ve heard more than a few men (who were sporty, but not into rugby) describe how very rugby focused schools like blackrock were difficult. And think about the culture of a school and what your hopes for your child would be there - particularly if it’s an all boys school. Also - think about what’s the end goal for your kids - good leaving certificate exam and access to university course of your choice, being happy and content, networking effectively?

Some state schools will be very focused on academics and some private schools won’t necessarily be.

St Andrews would be perfect - primary to secondary, an international outlook and near lovely suburbs like Blackrock, Monkstown or Sandymount, also close to the sea.

I too met Mounties who weren’t lovely @SomersetBrie😂

Families move all the time. Also note that quite a few kids leave their local Blackrock/Donnybrook/Sandymount state primaries after 3rd class to go into Willow, Andrews or Mt Anville, for example. Their youngest will be going into 1st class, not infants. The two older kids will definitely be fine. Our very small school has had a number of larger families (3 or 4 kids) move back to Ireland over the years and the school has always managed to accommodate them. But yes, the applications are done in Oct the year before but no harm getting in touch with the schools now and inquiring about their availability.

In short, if you want a co-ed COI secondary, you have Andrews, Wesley, Sandford, Columbas, High School and Rathdown for fee paying and Newpark for public (or Mount Temple in Clontarf on the Northside of the city). Honestly, you can't go wrong with any of these schools. All will have have strong school hockey teams, some will have very strong rugby coaching, there will be soccer too and really good availability of arts and music.

Definitely avoid Newpark. Not the school it once was. We moved DC after TY , one due to bullying and the other as most of their friends were leaving.

Don't forget Kings Hospital.

Kids leave for the Institute from all sorts of schools. Some leave because they can't do the combination of LC subjects they want in their schools, or they really, really want to get into medicine, etc.