What did Education Scotland judge St Matthew's Academy's quality indicator to be?

Education Scotland judged St Matthew's Academy's quality indicator as Very good (5 of 6) at its inspection in January 2019, on Education Scotland's own scale.

How many pupils attend St Matthew's Academy?

St Matthew's Academy has 1,328 pupils on roll.

Where is St Matthew's Academy located?

St Matthew's Academy is located in SALTCOATS, KA21 5NT, North Ayrshire.

How do I apply to St Matthew's Academy?

In Scotland you enrol your child at the catchment school for your home address, and each council sets its own enrolment dates. If St Matthew's Academy is not your catchment school, you can make a placing request to North Ayrshire Council to ask for a place there. By law, a placing request for a child starting P1 or S1 that reaches the council by 15 March must be answered by 30 April; check the council's admissions pages for its own dates.

Does St Matthew's Academy have a religious character?

Yes — St Matthew's Academy has a religious character of Roman Catholic. Faith criteria may apply to admissions; check the school's oversubscription policy for details.

How are S1 places decided at St Matthew's Academy?

When St Matthew's Academy has more applications than places for 2026-27, they are offered in a published order of priority: 1. Resident in the catchment area — You have the right to ask for your child to go to a school other than your catchment school. A child due to start school in August should be registered in the catchment primary school during registration week in November. Primary pupils transferring to secondary have the choice of their catchment non-denominational secondary school or St Matthew's Academy, the denominational secondary school for North Ayrshire.

What is the largest ethnic background at St Matthew's Academy?

According to the Scottish Government Pupil Census 2025-26, 89.6% of pupils at St Matthew's Academy are recorded as White British. The full ethnic breakdown across all groups is available on the Pupils tab.

St Matthew's Academy: Catchment 2026

School AtlasNorth Ayrshire

North Ayrshire

School AtlasNorth Ayrshire

North Ayrshire

How places are decided at St Matthew's Academy

When there are more applications than places for 2026-27 (S1), places are offered in this order of priority. Meeting a higher criterion beats meeting a lower one.

1Resident in the catchment area — You have the right to ask for your child to go to a school other than your catchment school. A child due to start school in August should be registered in the catchment primary school during registration week in November. Primary pupils transferring to secondary have the choice of their catchment non-denominational secondary school or St Matthew's Academy, the denominational secondary school for North Ayrshire.

Young people aged 16 and over make their own placing request. Pupils attending a primary school by placing request may need to submit another placing request to attend their cluster secondary school.

Published by the admission authority. Meeting a criterion never guarantees a place — it sets the order places are offered in. Full detail, other entry points and previous years are on the Admissions tab.

St Matthew's Academy: key facts

What did Education Scotland judge St Matthew's Academy's quality indicator to be?: Education Scotland judged St Matthew's Academy's quality indicator as Very good (5 of 6) at its inspection in January 2019, on Education Scotland's own scale.
How many pupils attend St Matthew's Academy?: St Matthew's Academy has 1,328 pupils on roll.
Where is St Matthew's Academy located?: St Matthew's Academy is located in SALTCOATS, KA21 5NT, North Ayrshire.
How do I apply to St Matthew's Academy?: In Scotland you enrol your child at the catchment school for your home address, and each council sets its own enrolment dates. If St Matthew's Academy is not your catchment school, you can make a placing request to North Ayrshire Council to ask for a place there. By law, a placing request for a child starting P1 or S1 that reaches the council by 15 March must be answered by 30 April; check the council's admissions pages for its own dates.
Does St Matthew's Academy have a religious character?: Yes — St Matthew's Academy has a religious character of Roman Catholic. Faith criteria may apply to admissions; check the school's oversubscription policy for details.
How are S1 places decided at St Matthew's Academy?: When St Matthew's Academy has more applications than places for 2026-27, they are offered in a published order of priority: 1. Resident in the catchment area — You have the right to ask for your child to go to a school other than your catchment school. A child due to start school in August should be registered in the catchment primary school during registration week in November. Primary pupils transferring to secondary have the choice of their catchment non-denominational secondary school or St Matthew's Academy, the denominational secondary school for North Ayrshire.
What is the largest ethnic background at St Matthew's Academy?: According to the Scottish Government Pupil Census 2025-26, 89.6% of pupils at St Matthew's Academy are recorded as White British. The full ethnic breakdown across all groups is available on the Pupils tab.

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How places are decided at St Matthew's Academy

When there are more applications than places for 2026-27 (S1), places are offered in this order of priority. Meeting a higher criterion beats meeting a lower one.

1Resident in the catchment area — You have the right to ask for your child to go to a school other than your catchment school. A child due to start school in August should be registered in the catchment primary school during registration week in November. Primary pupils transferring to secondary have the choice of their catchment non-denominational secondary school or St Matthew's Academy, the denominational secondary school for North Ayrshire.

Young people aged 16 and over make their own placing request. Pupils attending a primary school by placing request may need to submit another placing request to attend their cluster secondary school.

St Matthew's Academy: key facts

What did Education Scotland judge St Matthew's Academy's quality indicator to be?: Education Scotland judged St Matthew's Academy's quality indicator as Very good (5 of 6) at its inspection in January 2019, on Education Scotland's own scale.
How many pupils attend St Matthew's Academy?: St Matthew's Academy has 1,328 pupils on roll.
Where is St Matthew's Academy located?: St Matthew's Academy is located in SALTCOATS, KA21 5NT, North Ayrshire.
How do I apply to St Matthew's Academy?: In Scotland you enrol your child at the catchment school for your home address, and each council sets its own enrolment dates. If St Matthew's Academy is not your catchment school, you can make a placing request to North Ayrshire Council to ask for a place there. By law, a placing request for a child starting P1 or S1 that reaches the council by 15 March must be answered by 30 April; check the council's admissions pages for its own dates.
Does St Matthew's Academy have a religious character?: Yes — St Matthew's Academy has a religious character of Roman Catholic. Faith criteria may apply to admissions; check the school's oversubscription policy for details.
How are S1 places decided at St Matthew's Academy?: When St Matthew's Academy has more applications than places for 2026-27, they are offered in a published order of priority: 1. Resident in the catchment area — You have the right to ask for your child to go to a school other than your catchment school. A child due to start school in August should be registered in the catchment primary school during registration week in November. Primary pupils transferring to secondary have the choice of their catchment non-denominational secondary school or St Matthew's Academy, the denominational secondary school for North Ayrshire.
What is the largest ethnic background at St Matthew's Academy?: According to the Scottish Government Pupil Census 2025-26, 89.6% of pupils at St Matthew's Academy are recorded as White British. The full ethnic breakdown across all groups is available on the Pupils tab.

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St Matthew's Academy

How places are decided at St Matthew's Academy

St Matthew's Academy: key facts

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How places are decided at St Matthew's Academy

St Matthew's Academy: key facts

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