St Joseph's Catholic Academy
Mill Lane, Hebburn, NE31 2ET
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- BISHOP CHADWICK CATHOLIC EDUCATION TRUST
- Executive Headteacher
- Mr James Crowe
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Diocese
- Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle
- Sponsor
- Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust
- Constituency
- Jarrow and Gateshead East
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,490
- Pupils on roll
- 1,377
- URN
- 139878
- Local authority
- South Tyneside
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01914282700
About this school
St Joseph's Catholic Academy is a Roman Catholic secondary academy in Hebburn. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,377 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. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person 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
- Sixth form
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 212 | 223 | 207 |
| Attainment 8 score | 47.1 | 44.3 | 45.5 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.05 -0.24 to +0.14 | -0.29 -0.48 to -0.10 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 39% | 41.3% | 41.1% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 66% | 69.5% | 67.1% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 50% | 48% | 44.9% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.1 | 3.9 | 4.1 |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How St Joseph's Catholic Academy has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | South Tyneside average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 47.1 | 37.8 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 44.3 | 33.2 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 45.5 | 37.4 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8.8% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8.7% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 9.3% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,300 |
| 2023/24 | 1,367 |
| 2024/25 | 1,357 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Joseph's Catholic Academy compares
St Joseph's Catholic Academy ranked 3rd of 8 secondary schools in South Tyneside for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 59% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 10% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 45.5 | 9.3% | 23.4% | 1,377 | — |
| Hebburn Comprehensive School | 44.2 | 10.8% | 49.3% | 857 | 0.7 miles |
| Heworth Grange School | 36.4 | 13.8% | 53% | 910 | 1.4 miles |
| Jarrow School | 42.6 | 11.3% | 45.7% | 844 | 1.6 miles |
| Walker Riverside Academy | 35.5 | 12.1% | 68.1% | 1,101 | 1.7 miles |
| XP Gateshead | — | 8.9% | 38.9% | 245 | 2.0 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)
- 23.41%
- English as an additional language
- 2.9%
- Overall absence
- 9.29%
- Persistent absence
- 25.39%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Hebburn Comprehensive School0.7 miles
Secondary · Hebburn
-
Heworth Grange School1.4 miles
Secondary · Gateshead
-
Jarrow School1.6 miles
Secondary · Jarrow
-
Walker Riverside Academy1.7 miles
Secondary · Newcastle-upon-Tyne
-
XP Gateshead2.0 miles
Secondary · Felling
Other schools in Hebburn
- Hebburn Comprehensive School Secondary
- The Sue Hedley Nursery School Nursery
- Hebburn Lakes Primary School Primary
- St Aloysius Catholic Infant School, Hebburn Primary
- St Aloysius Catholic Junior School Academy Primary
- St James' Catholic Primary School, Hebburn Primary
- St Oswald's CofE Aided Primary School Primary
- Toner Avenue Primary School Primary
- Groundwork South and North Tyneside Other types
- Keelman's Way School Special schools
Common questions
- What year groups does St Joseph's Catholic Academy teach?
- St Joseph's Catholic Academy teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Hebburn.
- Who is the executive headteacher of St Joseph's Catholic Academy?
- The executive headteacher of St Joseph's Catholic Academy is Mr James Crowe, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St Joseph's Catholic Academy last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Joseph's Catholic Academy, 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 Academy?
- St Joseph's Catholic Academy has 1,377 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is St Joseph's Catholic Academy full?
- St Joseph's Catholic Academy has capacity for 1,490 pupils and 1,377 on roll (92%), 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 Academy a faith school?
- Yes. St Joseph's Catholic Academy is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle.
- Is St Joseph's Catholic Academy a selective school?
- No. St Joseph's Catholic Academy is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Who runs St Joseph's Catholic Academy?
- St Joseph's Catholic Academy is part of BISHOP CHADWICK CATHOLIC EDUCATION TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have St Joseph's Catholic Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 47.1 in 2022/23 and 45.5 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 Academy rank locally?
- St Joseph's Catholic Academy ranked 3rd of 8 secondary schools in South Tyneside for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 59% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 10% 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 Academy's absence rate?
- St Joseph's Catholic Academy's overall absence rate is 9.3% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Joseph's Catholic Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Joseph's Catholic Academy'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 1 July 2026.