Raise a child in Bray or Skerries? (Picking the right primary school)

ellexelle

I have a very specific question. We're moving from the U.S., and my husband's and my daughter is in primary school. She got into a school that seems good in Bray (with a Catholic ethos), and we accepted the spot. AND THEN she got offered a spot in an Educate Together School in Skerries. We're not religious as a family at all. I've heard from some people that Skerries is a much better place to raise a family in, so now I'm feeling less sure about my decision. I'd like to know that my daughter will have just as good a chance of reaching her dreams (whatever they may be) if she goes to school in/grows up in either place. The primary reasons I initially wanted Bray over Skerries are that it seems to be more of an 'arts' focused town, and there are more affordable houses there. Bray is possibly slightly closer to Dublin and prettier. Buuuut...others have said that Skerries is 'nicer', and having her go to an Educate Together School also sounds great. There are so many pros and cons.

grassylawn

I think a phenomenal amount of time is wasted in Catholic primary schools on religion. This is particularly true in second class which is largely spent preparing for first communion. Your kid should be given the option of sitting out religious activities and classes however the school might object to them being given an alternative activity that is any way attractive to the other children. It might also set them apart in a bad way.

Skerries is considered a nice area. Bray is considered a bit rough. I've been to Bray a good bit during the day because it is on the DART, has a beach and some nice places to go for walks. It never struck me as being rough but I remember the shops generally were a bit tacky. However the atmosphere around the beach is nice. It might or might not be worse at night. I think Skerries is on the beach and the DART as well. I would be surprised if houses were cheaper in Skerries.

There is extremely high contention for places in Educate Together schools. We didn't get a spot for our kid when ee applied four years in advance. So if you pass on tbe one you have been offered you might not get another chance. I would pick Skerries personally largely because of the school.

ellexelle

This is definitely my quandry. The closest we've been to either have been Malahide or Dun Laoghaire (but these are simply different towns altogether I know!). Skerries is further from Dublin (but not by much). Does Skerries have an arts 'feel' to it at all? Skerries seems slightly more expensive, but I think part of that is because the ratio of land closer to the beach is greater than it is in Bray (and the more expensive properties are closer to the beach). Mostly, we want to 'fit in' and also to be able to afford the area. (And not to worry about anything like crime. Neither place seems too terribly crime-ridden though.)

shesty

Skerries is 5 mins away from me and yes, I can assure you it is a lovely town.There is a reason houses are more expensive there, and it is not all to do with the beach!!Schools are fine - arts?Not quite clear on what you mean by this, but well there is the Little Theatre in town, the MSPA school of dancing and acting, the Millbank Theatre down the road in Rush who are all very active.Plenty of local artists whose work is displayed in all the local coffee shops also. One of the things I like about Skerries is the abundance of kid's and adults activities; the town has excellent facilities which not all Irish town's have.The community centre has a lot of groups operating in it, tennis courts and hockey and football pitches attached, the GAA facility is good, there is a good rugby club, and then being by the sea, there are the sea scouts, sailing club and the rest.

I am not massively familiar with Bray but I can assure you Skerries is a very nice place to live, if that helps at all - somewhat like a more northern Malahide.

lazygal

OP we have our kids in an ET (not Skerries) and I would pay for their school many times over rather than see what their friends have to put up with even in so called inclusive Catholic schools.

I would pick an ET every time over having to put up with the ****e Catholic schools allow.

MaccaTacca

Bray has better transport links (20km from city centre vs 20km) has great restaurants, pubs and cafe culture. And a more regular DART and bus service.

The whole idea that Bray is 'rough' is laughable. These days its one of the most expensive places in Ireland to live and one of the best places in the greater Dublin area.

People from actual rough areas describe Bray as posh, while people from posh areas e.g. Kiliney and Dalkey call Bray a kip, despite the fact that both are less than 10 minutes on a dart or car journey away.

Bray has a population of almost 35,000 people and in my in opinion has a much more urban feel it to than the northern county Dublin towns, this despite the fact that it is technically in county Wicklow.

Cyrus

Skerries is a lovely town but a lot more remote than bray, bray is effectively a Dublin suburb with a full dart service and closer to town.

It’s a tricky decision depends on where work is etc

Cyrus

MaccaTacca wrote: »

Bray has better transport links (20km from city centre vs 20km) has great restaurants, pubs and cafe culture. And a more regular DART and bus service.

The whole idea that Bray is 'rough' is laughable. These days its one of the most expensive places in Ireland to live and one of the best places in the greater Dublin area.

People from actual rough areas describe Bray as posh, while people from posh areas e.g. Kiliney and Dalkey call Bray a kip, despite the fact that both are less than 10 minutes on a dart or car journey away.

Bray has a population of almost 35,000 people and in my in opinion has a much more urban feel it to than the northern county Dublin towns, this despite the fact that it is technically in county Wicklow.

Everywhere in Dublin is 10 minutes from a ‘rough’ area to be fair, in comparison to dalkey and Killiney bray does have a different vibe but not different to dun laoghaire in the main.

afkasurfjunkie

Maybe look and see which secondary schools they feed into.

Cyrus

afkasurfjunkie wrote: »

Maybe look and see which secondary schools they feed into.

That’s all supposed to be gone by 2024 I think

afkasurfjunkie

Cyrus wrote: »

That’s all supposed to be gone by 2024 I think

I meant OP may prefer one over the other. Sporty/traditional/academic/artsy...

Bray is still pretty rough OP. I suppose it depends on where you plan on living, but the town is rough.
Skerries I don't know as well, but a have family living near there & it seems like a much nicer place to live.
Commute obviously doesn't come into it?

GT89

Depends where in Bray it's a big enough place. Bray would have better amenities it has the DART that runs every 10 mins as well as the 145 and 155 bus routes which are both high frequency bus routes and is nearer the m50 aswell. Also Bray would have a better choice of supermarkets and shops nearby. Skerries only has an hourly train and the 33 bus with the 33x and Fingal Express operating only at peak times.

Skerries is generally a bit more far out and wouldn't have the same choice of shops in the vicinty. Bray has a Tesco, a Supervalu, a small Dunnes and a Lidl whereas Skerries only has a Supervalu that's small enough. Other than that you'd have to drive to Balbriggan or Swords to get to the nearest large supermarket.

It depends what you are after really. Bray is much more of an urban area that is intergrated with Dublin suburbs comparable to say Swords where Skerries is more like a small town on it's own. Greystones might be worth considering too it's little bit like Skerries however it has more public transport connections with the Dart operating every 30 mins to it. However it's worth considering that the Dart station is a fair bit away from some of the residential areas of the town for example the Charlesland area. Other areas to consider would be Maynooth, Leixlip and Celbridge.

Cyrus

GT89 wrote: »

Depends where in Bray it's a big enough place. Bray would have better amenities it has the DART that runs every 10 mins as well as the 145 and 155 bus routes which are both high frequency bus routes and is nearer the m50 aswell. Also Bray would have a better choice of supermarkets and shops nearby. Skerries only has an hourly train and the 33 bus with the 33x and Fingal Express operating only at peak times.

Skerries is generally a bit more far out and wouldn't have the same choice of shops in the vicinty. Bray has a Tesco, a Supervalu, a small Dunnes and a Lidl whereas Skerries only has a Supervalu that's small enough. Other than that you'd have to drive to Balbriggan or Swords to get to the nearest large supermarket.

It depends what you are after really. Bray is much more of an urban area that is intergrated with Dublin suburbs where Skerries is more like a small town. Greystones might be worth considering too it's little bit like Skerries however it has more public transport connections with the Dart operating every 30 mins to it. However it's worth considering that the Dart station is a fair bit away from some of the residential areas of the town for example the Charlesland area. Other areas to consider would be Maynooth, Leixlip and Celbridge.

i was going to suggest greystones as well its a nicer southside skerries

Cakerbaker

I live in Bray. My kids aren’t school going yet but if the school is the one I think you mean (near McDonalds) it has a very good reputation but does stand over its Catholic ethos.

Bray itself has some areas that are nicer than others but tbh most of it is normal / lovely. It does seem to have a bit of a rough reputation and while there are one or 2 areas I wouldn’t like to live in, the rest is grand. There are a huge amount of clubs / activities for kids. The beach is within walking distance. You’ve Dublin on one side and countryside on the other. There’s a load of different supermarkets and restaurants/ cafes but the one thing that is lacking is other shops really like clothes etc. There is a new shopping centre being built that will have a cinema too.

Public transport into Dublin is great. Darts and buses are regular and fairly reliable.

I see Greystones has been mentioned. It is a nice town. However traffic from greystones to bray is mental in the mornings so I wouldn’t think living in Greystones and school in Bray would be ideal. Public transport isn’t as good i to Dublin either, darts are less frequent and the dart station in Greystones is a bit of a distance from the newer estates there.

ted1

grassylawn wrote: »

I think a phenomenal amount of time is wasted in Catholic primary schools on religion.

It’s not really. Only a minimal amount of time is giving to religion. I’ve friends whose kids go to ETS and they hate the attitude the oh let’s let kids learn lead the learning , let’s not discipline the kids. Oh let’s treat kids as equals and not parents them and so on


The sea front in Bray is very different than the rest of Bray and fassaroe , and driving to the seaftont I’d a night mare

I live in killiney so close to bray. Fur me I’d pick Skerries. I’ve friends in both, but skerries is more of a village with Sandy beaches.

ted1

shesty wrote: »

Skerries is 5 mins away from me and yes, I can assure you it is a lovely town.There is a reason houses are more expensive there, and it is not all to do with the beach!!Schools are fine - arts?Not quite clear on what you mean by this, but well there is the Little Theatre in town, the MSPA school of dancing and acting, the Millbank Theatre down the road in Rush who are all very active.Plenty of local artists whose work is displayed in all the local coffee shops also. One of the things I like about Skerries is the abundance of kid's and adults activities; the town has excellent facilities which not all Irish town's have.The community centre has a lot of groups operating in it, tennis courts and hockey and football pitches attached, the GAA facility is good, there is a good rugby club, and then being by the sea, there are the sea scouts, sailing club and the rest.

I am not massively familiar with Bray but I can assure you Skerries is a very nice place to live, if that helps at all - somewhat like a more northern Malahide.

I can say that everything you said about skerries bray had too, bray is full of amenities and activities but size wise Skerries is smaller and nicer.

ted1

Cyrus wrote: »

i was going to suggest greystones as well its a nicer southside skerries

Except skerries is in Dublin and Greystones is in Wicklow , so northside being north Wicklow. Charles’sland had lead to an overdevelopment of greystones

I’ve spent enough of my youth trekking over to le track to know it’s remote it has a single line DART that isn’t going to be upgraded soon.

Maybe I m being to hard on Bray. The seafront area is lovely but to live in, it’s just to inaccessible, traffic is crazy.

shesty

ted1 wrote: »

I can say that everything you said about skerries bray had too, bray is full of amenities and activities but size wise Skerries is smaller and nicer.

Given what I know of both of them, I would pick Skerries myself.
I have kids in the education system OP - I mean unless you are totally anti-religion, the Catholic schools are fine.I can't say it is something I get too worked up about but other people do.Educate Togethers can differ from school to school as to how good they are, but I have not heard many complaints about the Skerries one.There are quite a few schools in Skerries.

Cyrus

ted1 wrote: »

Except skerries is in Dublin and Greystones is in Wicklow , so northside being north Wicklow. Charles’sland had lead to an overdevelopment of greystones

I’ve spent enough of my youth trekking over to le track to know it’s remote it has a single line DART that isn’t going to be upgraded soon.

Maybe I m being to hard on Bray. The seafront area is lovely but to live in, it’s just to inaccessible, traffic is crazy.

id agree to an extent, but in terms of feel id have skerries and greystones being similar with grey stones being nicer, both arent the best accessability wise with greystones having a limited dart service and skerries none at all.

i wouldnt live in bray personally. but im sure there are parts that are fine.

Cyrus

ted1 wrote: »

It’s not really. Only a minimal amount of time is giving to religion.

yeah agree with this, my eldest is in a loreto and i dont find the religion intrusive i have to say, some of the stuff i hear from the ET schools gives me pause i have to say, but each to their own.

grassylawn

2.5 hours a week are allocated to religion in Irish primary schools. Double the OECD average. This is additional to prayers and hymns at assembly each morning. Over an eight year period that adds up to a lot of time that could be spent on doing something fun or useful.

Apparently the same amount of time is spent on "faith formation" in ET schools though. Atheists don't get to have primary schools apparently. Imagine the reaction if atheist kids spent half an hour a day being told why religion is BS.

The ET we wanted has a great reputation anyway.

Cyrus

grassylawn wrote: »

2.5 hours a week are allocated to religion in Irish primary schools. Double the OECD average. This is additional to prayers and hymns at assembly each morning. Over an eight year period that adds up to a lot of time that could be spent on doing something fun or useful.

Apparently the same amount of time is spent on "faith formation" in ET schools though. Atheists don't get to have primary schools apparently. Imagine the reaction if atheist kids spent half an hour a day being told why religion is BS.

The ET we wanted has a great reputation anyway.

to be honest the general teachings of religion are fine, be nice to people, dont do bad things etc etc, by the time kids get bigger they can make their own mind up on the rest of it.

Fall_Guy

grassylawn wrote: »

2.5 hours a week are allocated to religion in Irish primary schools. Double the OECD average. This is additional to prayers and hymns at assembly each morning. Over an eight year period that adds up to a lot of time that could be spent on doing something fun or useful.

Apparently the same amount of time is spent on "faith formation" in ET schools though. Atheists don't get to have primary schools apparently. Imagine the reaction if atheist kids spent half an hour a day being told why religion is BS.

The ET we wanted has a great reputation anyway.

2.5 hours is not spent on faith formation in ET schools. 2.5 hours is allotted for the learn together curriculum which covers equality and justice, ethics and the environment, moral and spiritual development, and belief systems. But there is no attempt to form any particular belief, merely a respect for different beliefs, and I believe humanism is given equal weight to the various religions covered in the belief systems strand.

lazygal

There's no comparison between the indoctrination/faith formation throughout the day in catholic and other religious schools and the irritating but less damaging learn together programme. At least my children can say all religions are damaging nonsense in their school. Catholic schools would have them passing by sacred spaces and telling us that Grow In Love doesn't promote child rape because Mary Says Yes is a nice story.

SnowyMuckish

lazygal wrote: »

There's no comparison between the indoctrination/faith formation throughout the day in catholic and other religious schools and the irritating but less damaging learn together programme. At least my children can say all religions are damaging nonsense in their school. Catholic schools would have them passing by sacred spaces and telling us that Grow In Love doesn't promote child rape because Mary Says Yes is a nice story.

This is a disgusting, exceptionally offensive post. Not only does it offend me, an atheist but it offends those who have faith. The original poster was wondering whether to raise her/his child in Bray/Skerries but the ‘anti’ brigade’ hijack everything.

I am an atheist and I teach in a Catholic school, with a very strong ethos, which I wholeheartedly respect. From what I can determine from my years of experience, ‘religion’ has a wide connotation. Our ethos is that of acceptance of differences, at least in our school.....

As to where you live.... your home is where you make it. It could be a ramshackled hut or Kim Kardashian’s Mansion. It doesn’t belong to me or those who question your child’s religious/ lack of religious education. ...... My advice. Go vacation in the areas if you can. Get a sense of traffic, clubs etc but at the end of the day, it’s about how your child adjusts and fits in. It doesn’t matter what school they go to in what area, as long as they adjust and make healthy friends and are happy..

I hope you find what you’re looking for xxx

Moonbeam

Is there any reason for these 2 areas? I would not choose either if I was moving to Ireland.

grassylawn

SnowyMuckish wrote: »

This is a disgusting, exceptionally offensive post. Not only does it offend me, an atheist but it offends those who have faith. The original poster was wondering whether to raise her/his child in Bray/Skerries but the ‘anti’ brigade’ hijack everything.

I am an atheist and I teach in a Catholic school, with a very strong ethos, which I wholeheartedly respect. From what I can determine from my years of experience, ‘religion’ has a wide connotation. Our ethos is that of acceptance of differences, at least in our school.....

As to where you live.... your home is where you make it. It could be a ramshackled hut or Kim Kardashian’s Mansion. It doesn’t belong to me or those who question your child’s religious/ lack of religious education. ...... My advice. Go vacation in the areas if you can. Get a sense of traffic, clubs etc but at the end of the day, it’s about how your child adjusts and fits in. It doesn’t matter what school they go to in what area, as long as they adjust and make healthy friends and are happy..

I hope you find what you’re looking for xxx

That's cool that your school is open-minded. Not all are.

Don't see what is offensive with the post. It's reasonable to view religion as something you want your kids to reject. It's reasonable to want schools that accept that viewpoint.

Don't care about catholic kids going to catholic schools. There should be adequate options for non-religious people though.

Religion in schools and religion in ireland is absolutely pertinent to a conversation about whether to use a catholic or an ET school.

American people are more religious as a group than the Irish, but they have much better separation of church and state, including the absence of religion in state schools.

grassylawn

Moonbeam wrote: »

Is there any reason for these 2 areas? I would not choose either if I was moving to Ireland.

I imagine it is because of the difficulty in finding available places in schools.

is_that_so

ellexelle wrote: »

This is definitely my quandry. The closest we've been to either have been Malahide or Dun Laoghaire (but these are simply different towns altogether I know!). Skerries is further from Dublin (but not by much). Does Skerries have an arts 'feel' to it at all? Skerries seems slightly more expensive, but I think part of that is because the ratio of land closer to the beach is greater than it is in Bray (and the more expensive properties are closer to the beach). Mostly, we want to 'fit in' and also to be able to afford the area. (And not to worry about anything like crime. Neither place seems too terribly crime-ridden though.)

I have family in Bray and would echo what others have said about it , its connections and a few rough spots. I'd have a preference for Skerries. It does have some transport connections but it has more of a small seaside town feel to it and it has 1/3 of the population of Bray.

strandroad

grassylawn wrote: »

. This is additional to prayers and hymns at assembly each morning.

Do they still do it in schools? That's mental.
But then my friend pulled his child from a Catholic ethos school because of all the teachings about sin and sinners he was exposed to, even though he was supposed to be exempt he was still in the same room.

OP I have friends in both Bray and Skerries and they are both good places to live, Skerries is more quaint and Bray is more lively with the different vibes and choice it brings.
The main difference I see is that of you live in Bray you effectively live in Dublin, and if you live in Skerries you live in Skerries.

ted1

grassylawn wrote: »

American people are more religious as a group than the Irish, but they have much better separation of church and state, including the absence of religion in state schools.

That’s a very sweeping statement and not very true. I think you are living in a bubble

shesty

Mod Note:
Let's not go down the for/against religion route please. The OP is querying the towns where the schools are located, rather than the religious ethos of the schools in question.
Thanks.

Bray is rough? lol. I think if you go into any place and go to a council estate, you may think it's rough (no offence). Unfortunately, anywhere in Ireland today, you can end up in a spot of bother if you want to or if you're unlucky. That's just the way it is.

Killiney is right beside Ballybrack - to think that Killiney is free from the working class is laughable and not real life. Same with Shankill, Blackrock and pretty much any other area. Much like Bray, it has some working class areas but it's predominantly middle class. Ireland doesn't have an upper class in my opinion, maybe a few roads but that's it so that's where I'm coming from. Cabinteely is right beside Ballybrack (and Ballyogan, you're literally talking minutes drive) too basically, a stones throw and in all areas mentioned, there is social housing so don't fall for the hype ! Do your research.

I would say look at the cost of houses etc but don't think that's a good example considering how mental the prices are all over right now. But if this were the 1980's and you said Bray is rough - I'd probably agree with you because that's what I would have heard but not these days, it's a completely different world. But like any town, if you go looking for trouble, you can find it (I'm sure).

To answer your question re: Bray or Skerries, I'd pick Bray as it's far more accessible to Dublin, has the best golf courses close by (Powerscourt) has a range of schools from public to private to suit all budgets, many amenities both in Bray, Greystones and South Dublin, the dart line which is crucial and access to the N11. If you can find a nice house in a nice part of Bray (pricey), you'll actually find you have far more amenities on your doorstep compared to most houses in South Dublin in the 600K-900K bracket. Also, Bray is massive (relatively speaking) so don't forget that. Greystones gets a lot of hype too but to be honest, it's basically a concrete jungle these days that's practically isolated; some lovely houses there but only for the lucky few! Most new builds and houses are just your standard semi D's on top of each other like 90% of Dublin suburbs I'm afraid except you're near the sea, dart and mountains...the choice is yours!

catrionanic

I live in Malahide but have family in Bray and used to live in South Dublin, so I've spent quite a bit of time in both Bray and Skerries.

For me, I would prefer to raise my children I Skerries. It is smaller and quieter, the beach is better, and has a nicer feel/pace to it. It is also more affluent and you can tell that from walking around. Bray is really quite a large town now, and one thing that drives me insane about Bray is the traffic. It is ridiculous! My family there try not to drive anywhere on the weekends as it is like a car park. Parking is similarly difficult- I recently spent 45 mins driving around trying to find somewhere to park within a short walk of the seafront. My cousin got stuck for 2 hours recently when he was only about a kilometre away from his home.

You can't go wrong with north County Dublin either. It is a brilliant place to raise kids. So many beautiful beaches, lovely countryside, lots of small towns and villages with lovely pubs and restaurants and boutique shops. The schools are usually less oversubscribed too.

duplicate

https://boards.ie/discussion/comment/117629141#Comment_117629141

Skerries has a population of what, 10,000 people? vs Bray of what, 40,000 people? When you say more affluent, what do you mean? Considering average house prices (not that it means a whole lot) are similar yet stats for assaults and burglaries are higher in Skerries than Bray (per head) & rose 30% last year in Skerries , I'm curious how you came to this conclusion...

TefalBrain

I don't live in either Bray or Skerries but i know both fairly well. If it was me i'd be picking Bray as it's just a nicer vibe about it and a lovely mix of people from all class backgrounds. Neither area is what i'd call rough or anywhere near it.

Supercell

For me Bray for the reasons other have mentioned, also a big factor personally would be having access to the Wicklow Mountains on your doorstep especially if you have kids.

I live a few miles from Bray, up the road in Loughlinstown and i'd say we go for walks and picnics with the kids somewhere there at least once a month year round, more in the summer. Our kids will be going to the Irish secondary school, when they reach that age, in Bray which has a brand new building and grounds just completed recently.

The main negative for me about Bray is the traffic, as others have mentioned can be a nightmare, but if you are living in it and dont need to drive then maybe thats not such a big issue. If we were to move from here we would be looking in Bray ourselves. Another thing to think of is if your kids are going to be attending third level eventually how are they going to get into UCD or Trinity etc if they want to go there?, transport from Skerries may not be so easy (or cheap).

Suckit

I have lived in both Bray and Skerries. Bray for 8 years, Skerries for 5. (11 near bray all included and 7 around Skerries)

I would pick Skerries over Bray. Bray is nice, but it's fairly built up and has a lot of traffic. Skerries is quieter, but still a busy town.

Skerries has imho a much more community feel. Bray at night can be unpleasant, especially in the summer and towards the end of the summer.

Skerries can get fairly busy during the summer weekends, but not overcrowded unless you are heading down to the harbour, but that is easily predicted when you are there a while. The town has everything, and is on the Rail and Bus lines.

Bray also has everything. I can visualise Bray getting worse, not better, and vice versa for Skerries. I like both places but Bray is definitely heading in the wrong direction.