School Chooser

St Colmcille's Primary School

Primary · ages 4-11MixedCatholic maintainedRoman Catholic402 pupilsDownpatrickNewry, Mourne and Down
School Chooser ScoreNot scoredNorthern Ireland doesn't publish inspection grades or progress figures, so we can't give its schools a score. Pupil numbers, free school meals, special needs and attendance are below.
Pupils with special needs44%NI 20%
Attendance90.8%NI 94.0%
Pupils from low-income families54%Far more than most schools
Pupils on roll402Census October 2025

St Colmcille's Primary School is a catholic maintained school in Downpatrick for boys and girls aged 4 to 11. It has 402 pupils. About 54 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in Northern Ireland.

68A Glebetown Drive, Downpatrick, BT30 6PZAll details

Inspection

Schools in Northern Ireland are inspected by the Education and Training Inspectorate. Since 2024 its reports end with a written summary and next steps instead of a grade, and there is no published list of outcomes.

Results

Northern Ireland publishes no results for individual primary schools, so there are none to show. Enrolment, free school meals, special needs and attendance are below.

Getting a place

There is no entrance test. When more children apply than there are places, the school's published rules decide, usually brothers and sisters first, then parish or feeder links, then whoever lives closest.

As a Catholic school it may put baptised Catholic children first.

Apply through the Education Authority's online admissions system in January.

Who goes here

Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.

Pupils on roll402Census October 2025
Pupils entitled to free school meals54%218 pupils; NI 26%
Pupils with special educational needs44%127 with a statement; NI 20%
Newcomer pupils5%arrived with little English; NI 8%
Catholic pupils90%as recorded in the school census; NI 45%
Boys and girls207 / 195

Attendance

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 90.8% of the time. Across similar schools in Northern Ireland it was 94.0%. Northern Ireland doesn't publish figures on pupils who miss a lot of school, or on suspensions, for individual schools.

Attendance90.8%
Northern Ireland 94.0%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Missed without permission1.5%of school time; NI 2.5%

Nearby schools

The closest primary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Our Lady & St Patrick Primary SchoolCatholic maintained0.7 miles352ETI, no open dataCompare
Downpatrick Primary SchoolControlled1.0 miles213ETI, no open dataCompare
St Brigid's Primary SchoolCatholic maintained1.3 miles267ETI, no open dataCompare
St Patrick's Primary School, LegamaddyCatholic maintained2.1 miles163ETI, no open dataCompare
St Patrick's Primary School, SaulCatholic maintained2.9 miles185ETI, no open dataCompare
St Joseph's Primary School, TyrellaCatholic maintained4.4 miles34ETI, no open dataCompare
St Macartan's Primary SchoolCatholic maintained4.7 miles163ETI, no open dataCompare
Holy Family Primary SchoolCatholic maintained4.9 miles176ETI, no open dataCompare

Questions parents ask

Is St Colmcille's Primary School a good school?

We don't have enough published data to score St Colmcille's Primary School yet. Northern Ireland doesn't publish inspection grades.

How many pupils does St Colmcille's Primary School have?

402 pupils aged 4 to 11 were on the roll in October 2025.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
68A Glebetown Drive, Downpatrick, BT30 6PZ
Type of school
Catholic maintained school (Catholic Maintained school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 4-11
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Roman Catholic
Local authority
Newry, Mourne and Down
Ward
Cathedral
Setting
Urban
DE reference
4036182 · LAESTAB 4036182

Where these figures come from