St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield
Whinfield Way, Highfield, Rowlands Gill, NE39 2JE
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Headteacher
- Ms Joanna Bircham
- Diocese
- Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle
- Constituency
- Blaydon and Consett
- Setting
- Larger rural: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 105
- Pupils on roll
- 81
- URN
- 108391
- Local authority
- Gateshead
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01207545972
About this school
St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield is a Roman Catholic voluntary aided primary school in Rowlands Gill. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 81 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 14 September 2023, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 17 | 11 | 15 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 24% | 45% | 80% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 7% |
| Expected standard in reading | 82% | 82% | 93% |
| Expected standard in maths | 35% | 45% | 87% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 59% | 64% | 73% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 104.0 | 109.0 | 108.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 98.0 | 104.0 | 105.0 |
| Reading progress | 0.00 | - | - |
| Writing progress | 0.00 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -5.10 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Gateshead average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 24% | 61.6% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 45% | 61.1% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 80% | 63.8% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 101 |
| 2023/24 | 93 |
| 2024/25 | 82 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield compares
St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield ranked 14th of 62 primary schools in Gateshead for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 87% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 97% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 80% | 3.2% | 26.8% | 81 | — |
| Highfield Community Primary School | 57% | 5.4% | 56.2% | 112 | 0.0 miles |
| Rowlands Gill Community Primary School | 52% | 3.3% | 20.5% | 204 | 0.8 miles |
| High Spen Primary School | 71% | 5.2% | 27.2% | 172 | 1.2 miles |
| Burnopfield Primary School | 78% | 4.3% | 19.9% | 351 | 1.4 miles |
| Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School, Byermoor | 74% | 3.9% | 10.2% | 187 | 2.1 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 26.83%
- English as an additional language
- 9.8%
- Overall absence
- 3.2%
- Persistent absence
- 5.19%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Highfield Community Primary School0.0 miles
Primary · Rowlands Gill
-
Rowlands Gill Community Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · Rowlands Gill
-
High Spen Primary School1.2 miles
Primary · Rowlands Gill
-
Burnopfield Primary School1.4 miles
Primary · Newcastle-upon-Tyne
-
Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School, Byermoor2.1 miles
Primary · Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Other schools in Rowlands Gill
- High Spen Primary School Primary
- Highfield Community Primary School Primary
- Rowlands Gill Community Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield teach?
- St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Rowlands Gill.
- Who is the headteacher of St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield?
- The headteacher of St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield is Ms Joanna Bircham, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield?
- St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield has 81 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield full?
- St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield has capacity for 105 pupils and 81 on roll (77%), so it has space against its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield a faith school?
- Yes. St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle.
- Does St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield as having no nursery classes.
- How have St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 24% in 2022/23 and 80% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield compare with other schools in Gateshead?
- St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield ranked 14th of 62 primary schools in Gateshead for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 87% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 97% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield's absence rate?
- St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield's overall absence rate is 3.2% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School, Highfield's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 29 June 2026.