Wexford Struggles With Large Primary Classes Despite National Progress

Wexford has one of the highest rates of oversized primary school classes in the country with 12.9% of pupils in classrooms of 30 or more. This is well above the national average of 8.2% according to new figures from the Department of Education.

The data also shows that four Wexford schools have more than half of their pupils in oversized classes. While the national average class size has dropped to 22.2 pupils per class—the lowest in over 25 years—some counties like Wexford and Leitrim continue to lag behind. Nationally class sizes have been falling steadily due to a combination of declining enrolment and a rise in the number of classroom teachers. The total number of mainstream pupils has dropped by over 18,000 in the past year with more than one in five children now in classes of fewer than 20 pupils. Despite the overall improvement disparities remain depending on location with some counties still facing significant challenges in reducing overcrowded classrooms. Speaking on Morning Mix Carlow Education Together School Principal Simon Lewis says class sizes over 30 make it nearly impossible for teachers to give each child the attention they need. “Imagine a doctor with 30 patients in the room all at once. That’s what it’s like. The more children in the class the less time each one gets” he said. He believes the situation is particularly bad in counties like Wexford and Leitrim due to a high number of small schools combined with what he calls a “brutal” staffing formula. Under current Department of Education rules schools are allocated one teacher for every 25 students. But if enrolment drops even slightly a school can lose a teacher – forcing the remaining children to be redistributed into larger classes. Lewis says this system punishes small schools and often leads to oversized classes when just a few pupils leave. “You have principals ringing around local preschools trying to find four-year-olds to keep their numbers up. If they don’t make the cut they lose a teacher and suddenly class sizes jump above 30.” The issue goes beyond teacher numbers. Lewis also highlighted how classrooms today are far more complex than in the past. “There’s more diversity now and more children with additional needs. Schools are better environments than they were 30 years ago but they’re also more demanding.” He added that most modern countries aim for class sizes around 19 or 20 students – and often provide classroom assistants. In Ireland however most classrooms still rely on a single teacher with no additional support. The result he says is that children who need extra attention may not get it and others can become “completely lost in the system”. While reducing class sizes is part of the solution Lewis believes the staffing formula must also be reformed. He’s calling on the Department of Education to protect teacher numbers in smaller schools and introduce classroom assistants to help ease the burden. “There’s a lot that needs to be done” he said. “But reforming the staffing model and investing in supports would be a strong start.” Listen back here [audio mp3="https://www.southeastradio.ie/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Simon-Classroom-Sizes-RAW.mp3"][/audio]