School Chooser

St Mary's Primary School, Aughlisnafin

Primary · ages 4-11MixedCatholic maintainedRoman Catholic76 pupilsCastlewellanNewry, 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 needs24%NI 20%
Attendance94.0%NI 94.0%
Pupils from low-income families17%Far fewer than most schools
Pupils on roll76Census October 2025

St Mary's Primary School, Aughlisnafin is a catholic maintained school in Castlewellan for boys and girls aged 4 to 11. It has 76 pupils. About 17 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far fewer than at most schools in Northern Ireland.

5 Aghlisnafin Road, Castlewellan, BT31 9JPAll 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 roll76Census October 2025
Pupils entitled to free school meals17%13 pupils; NI 26%
Pupils with special educational needs24%8 with a statement; NI 20%
Newcomer pupils0%arrived with little English; NI 8%
Boys and girls37 / 39

Attendance

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 94.0% 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.

Attendance94.0%
Northern Ireland 94.0%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Missed without permission0.0%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
Annsborough Integrated Primary SchoolIntegrated1.2 miles31ETI, no open dataCompare
Bunscoil Bheanna BoircheMaintained2.3 miles162ETI, no open dataCompare
Sacred Heart Primary School, NewcastleCatholic maintained2.4 miles125ETI, no open dataCompare
St Malachy's Primary SchoolCatholic maintained2.4 miles387ETI, no open dataCompare
Cumran Primary School, DownpatrickControlled2.5 miles165ETI, no open dataCompare
St Joseph's Primary School, CarnacavilleCatholic maintained2.9 miles190ETI, no open dataCompare
St Francis' Primary School, DrumaroadCatholic maintained3.2 miles85ETI, no open dataCompare
St Patrick's Primary SchoolCatholic maintained3.4 miles25ETI, no open dataCompare

Questions parents ask

Is St Mary's Primary School, Aughlisnafin a good school?

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

How many pupils does St Mary's Primary School, Aughlisnafin have?

76 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
5 Aghlisnafin Road, Castlewellan, BT31 9JP
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
Dundrum
Setting
Rural
DE reference
4033002 · LAESTAB 4033002

Where these figures come from