Paradise Place Educate Together National School was created on 15th April 2024 when St. Mary’s Primary School became the first primary school in Ireland to change patronage from Catholic patronage to equality-based Educate Together patronage.
The original St. Mary’s Primary School was opened in 1855 by the Irish Christian Brothers. In 1874, the school was extended with new classrooms added. The school at St. Mary’s Place was renowned for the high standard and quality of its education. In the 1930s all subjects were taught through Irish and under the direction of Vincent O’Brien, the St. Mary’s School Choir became known as one of the best in the city and, for a while, only boys from St. Mary’s were accepted into the newly-formed Pro-Cathedral Palestrina Choir.
In 1980, the old St. Mary’s School was sold and a new school was built on the present site. Two other schools, St. Joseph’s Dorset Street and St. Michan’s Halston Street were amalgamated with St. Mary’s to become Scoil Plas Mhuire for boys.
In 1990, a girls’ school, Scoil Mhuire ‘s Iosaf, transferred from Kings Inn Street to share the building with the boys’ school. The girls’ school originated in Mountjoy Street as an orphanage run by the Irish Sisters of Charity, dating back to 1866. In the 1930s, it developed into the Josephian Primary School before amalgamating with Kings Inn National School in 1985.
Until 2013, Scoil Plas Mhuire for Boys and Scoil Mhuire ‘s Iosaf for Girls shared the school building before amalgamating to become St. Mary’s Primary School once more in September 2013.
Following a comprehensive consultation with the school community in 2022-2023, the school transferred to Educate Together patronage and became Paradise Place ETNS in 2024.