Sacred Heart School
Mayo
Key facts
- Mixed
- Pupils enrolled
- 530 about the same size as the median Irish post-primary school (585 pupils)
- Ethos
- Catholic
- Teaching through Irish
- No subjects taught through Irish
- Roll number
- 64710R the Department of Education reference for this school
School details
Location
About
Sacred Heart School is a Catholic secondary school in Westport, County Mayo, under the trusteeship of CEIST. Enrolment is approximately 530 students. The school was founded in 1925 and has served the town and surrounding area for over a century. From September 2026, the school will become coeducational, admitting boys into all year groups for the first time. A new school building has been granted and design work is ongoing. The Junior Cycle curriculum combines core subjects of English, Irish, Mathematics, Science, History, Geography and non-examination Religious Education with optional subjects of French, Spanish, Home Economics, Business Studies, Music, Visual Art, Graphics and Applied Technology. Wellbeing programmes include Physical Education, SPHE, CSPE, FRIENDS for Life, Digital Literacy and Learning to Learn. The school also offers Transition Year, Senior Cycle and the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme. Extra-curricular activities listed include music, drama, sport, school trips, Green Schools, public speaking and a writers club magazine. The school states it welcomes students of all faiths and none.
Applying to Sacred Heart School
For a September 2027 place, a school's formal admissions process cannot begin before 1 October 2026. The school sets its own opening and closing dates in its annual admission notice.
National term dates 2026/27
Irish schools follow a standardised school year, so these nationwide post-primary school dates apply broadly to Sacred Heart School. Individual schools set their own discretionary closure days, confirm exact dates with the school.
- October Mid-Term Break: Mon 26 Oct – Fri 30 Oct 2026
- Christmas Holidays: Wed 23 Dec 2026 – Tue 5 Jan 2027
- February Mid-Term Break: Mon 15 Feb – Fri 19 Feb 2027 (primary schools: Thu 18 Feb – Fri 19 Feb 2027)
- Easter Holidays: Mon 22 Mar – Sun 4 Apr 2027
Primary schools close for the last two days of the February mid-term week and may use discretionary days to take the full week, so their break can be shorter than post-primary schools'.
Frequently asked questions about Sacred Heart School
How many pupils attend Sacred Heart School?
Sacred Heart School has 530 pupils enrolled. That makes it about the same size as the median Irish post-primary school, which has 585 pupils.
Is Sacred Heart School a DEIS school?
No. Sacred Heart School is not part of DEIS, the Department of Education programme of additional supports for schools serving communities at risk of educational disadvantage. Not holding DEIS status says nothing about how good a school is, only about the profile of the community it serves.
What is the ethos of Sacred Heart School?
Sacred Heart School has a Catholic ethos. It is a mixed post-primary school.