St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF
Trinity Square, South Woodham Ferrers, Chelmsford, CM3 5JX
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 2 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Headteacher
- Miss Tracey North
- Diocese
- Diocese of Brentwood
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Maldon
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 180
- URN
- 115201
- Local authority
- Essex
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01245321828
About this school
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF is a Roman Catholic voluntary aided primary school in Chelmsford. It teaches children aged 2 to 11 and has 180 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 28 | 29 | 31 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 64% | 62% | 77% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 14% | 10% | 23% |
| Expected standard in reading | 75% | 83% | 81% |
| Expected standard in maths | 79% | 79% | 84% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 79% | 83% | 84% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 105.0 | 105.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 106.0 | 107.0 | 108.0 |
| Reading progress | -1.10 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -1.30 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +0.20 | - | - |
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 Catholic Primary School, SWF has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Essex average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 64% | 58.9% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 62% | 59.5% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 77% | 60.7% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.1% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.1% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 180 |
| 2023/24 | 173 |
| 2024/25 | 170 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF compares
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF ranked 69th of 388 primary schools in Essex for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 82% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 59% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 77% | 5.1% | 7.7% | 180 | — |
| Trinity St Mary's CofE Voluntary Aided Primary School, South Woodham Ferrers | 31% | 5.2% | 17.8% | 132 | 0.1 miles |
| Elmwood Primary School | 55% | 5% | 11.3% | 414 | 0.2 miles |
| Collingwood Primary School | 63% | 4.8% | 17.6% | 208 | 0.3 miles |
| Woodville Primary School | 67% | 4.6% | 8.1% | 412 | 0.6 miles |
| Riverside Primary School | 60% | 5.5% | 16.1% | 422 | 1.2 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)
- 7.65%
- English as an additional language
- 2.9%
- Overall absence
- 5.05%
- Persistent absence
- 11.18%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Trinity St Mary's CofE Voluntary Aided Primary School, South Woodham Ferrers0.1 miles
Primary · Chelmsford
-
Elmwood Primary School0.2 miles
Primary · Chelmsford
-
Collingwood Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Chelmsford
-
Woodville Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Chelmsford
-
Riverside Primary School1.2 miles
Primary · Hullbridge
Other schools in Chelmsford
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF ranks 10th of the 46 ranked primary schools in Chelmsford.
- Baddow Hall Infant School Primary
- Baddow Hall Junior School Primary
- Barnes Farm Primary School Primary
- Beehive Lane Community Primary School Primary
- Boreham Primary School Primary
- Broomfield Primary School Primary
- Chancellor Park Primary School, Chelmsford Primary
- Christchurch Church of England Primary School Primary
- Cold Norton Primary School Primary
- Collingwood Primary School Primary
- East Hanningfield Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Elmwood Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF teach?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF teaches children aged 2 to 11. It is a primary school in Chelmsford.
- Who is the headteacher of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF?
- The headteacher of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF is Miss Tracey North, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF has 180 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 2 to 11.
- Is St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF full?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF has capacity for 210 pupils and 180 on roll (86%), 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 Catholic Primary School, SWF a faith school?
- Yes. St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Brentwood.
- Does St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF as having nursery classes.
- How have St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 64% in 2022/23 and 77% 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 Catholic Primary School, SWF rank locally?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF ranked 69th of 388 primary schools in Essex for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 82% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 59% 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 Catholic Primary School, SWF's absence rate?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF's overall absence rate is 5.1% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF'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 30 June 2026.