St. Josephs N.S.
St. Josephs N.S. is a primary school in Galway. 53 pupils, Catholic ethos, 1 special class, DEIS Rural.
The facts
| Type | Primary school |
|---|---|
| Gender | Mixed |
| Ethos | Catholic |
| Patron | Bishop of Clonfert |
| Fees | Free |
| Enrolment | 53 (35 boys, 18 girls) 2025/26 |
| Language of instruction | English Medium School |
| DEIS | Yes — Rural |
| Roll number | 15958F |
| Eircode | H62Y540 |
| Address | WOODFORD, LOUGHREA, COUNTY GALWAY |
Getting in
Not oversubscribed last year. The notice carries no previous-year breakdown, which is only required of a school that had more applicants than places.
| Places in the coming year | 20 |
|---|---|
| Applications open | 02 October 2025 |
| Applications close | 25 April 2026 |
notice gives places only, no previous-year breakdown.
Read the school's Annual Admission Notice ↗ (2026/27)
Ireland has no catchment areas. A place depends on the school's own oversubscription criteria — siblings, feeder school, parish, distance, date of application — not on where you live. Read the admissions policy for those.
What DEIS means here
DEIS Rural. This is the rural strand: extra literacy and numeracy support, School Completion Programme access and enhanced capitation. It does not carry reduced class sizes.
Added to DEIS in the 2022 expansion, so its supports are relatively recent.
Worth knowing: several things people associate with DEIS are now available in every school. Schoolbooks are free at primary and post-primary regardless of DEIS status, and since 2025 all primary schools are eligible for the hot school meals programme. What remains specific to DEIS is the staffing — reduced class sizes in Urban Band 1, the Home School Community Liaison coordinator, School Completion Programme access and enhanced capitation.
Band as published in the Department's DEIS list, last revised 2022-10-12.
Special classes
1 special class sanctioned for 26/27:
- 1 × Autism/Autistic Spectrum Disorders
Source: National Council for Special Education. Children in a special class travel under a separate transport scheme with its own rules.
The area around this school
School planning area: Woodford. This is how the Department plans where to build capacity. It is not a catchment.
Local house prices: the median residential sale price in Eircode district H62 (Loughrea) was €335,000 in 2025. That is up 71.8% since 2020. CSO figures for the whole district, not the streets beside the school.
Area profile: the Pobal HP Deprivation Index rates Woodford at -2.8 (Marginally Below Average), where 0 is the national average. 29% of adults there hold a third-level qualification.
Contact
| Principal | Niall Kelly |
|---|---|
| Phone | 0909749525 |
| info@stjosephswoodford.com | |
| Local authority | Galway County Council |
Other schools in Woodford
- Mercy College Secondary school, Galway
- S N An Droma Primary school, Galway
- S N Baile Na Cille Primary school, Galway
- S N Breandan Naofa Primary school, Galway
- S N Pairc Na Slinne Primary school, Galway
- St Feichins N School Primary school, Galway
How we know
DoE Schools GIS 2026 (CC BY 4.0) — checked 2026-08-27.