St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole
Sancreed Road, Parkstone, Poole, BH12 4DZ
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- PLYMOUTH CAST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Nicky O'Donoghue
- Diocese
- Diocese of Plymouth
- Sponsor
- Plymouth CAST
- Constituency
- Bournemouth West
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 420
- Pupils on roll
- 370
- URN
- 140767
- Local authority
- Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01202741932
About this school
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole is a Roman Catholic primary academy in Poole. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 370 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
- Requires improvement
- 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 | 61 | 61 | 58 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 61% | 59% | 64% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 16% | 3% | 7% |
| Expected standard in reading | 75% | 64% | 76% |
| Expected standard in maths | 72% | 74% | 71% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 74% | 62% | 59% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 104.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 105.0 | 105.0 | 106.0 |
| Reading progress | +0.50 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.10 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +0.30 | - | - |
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, Poole has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 61% | 56.8% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 59% | 58.1% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 64% | 59% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 382 |
| 2023/24 | 384 |
| 2024/25 | 390 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole compares
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole ranked 28th of 52 primary schools in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 50% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 32% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 64% | 6.4% | 19.7% | 370 | — |
| Heatherlands Primary School | 58% | 5% | 30.3% | 616 | 0.4 miles |
| Manorside Academy | 58% | 5.5% | 34.6% | 413 | 0.6 miles |
| Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School | 66% | 4.5% | 16.1% | 603 | 0.7 miles |
| Talbot Primary School | 64% | 4.9% | 24.6% | 547 | 0.8 miles |
| Livingstone Road Junior School | 52% | 6.8% | 38.5% | 204 | 0.9 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)
- 19.74%
- English as an additional language
- 37.4%
- Overall absence
- 6.42%
- Persistent absence
- 15.98%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Heatherlands Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Poole
-
Manorside Academy0.6 miles
Primary · Poole
-
Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Poole
-
Talbot Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · Poole
-
Livingstone Road Junior School0.9 miles
Primary · Poole
Other schools in Poole
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole ranks 9th of the 18 ranked primary schools in Poole.
- Ad Astra Infant School Primary
- Baden-Powell and St Peter's Church of England Junior School Primary
- Bayside Academy Primary
- Bishop Aldhelm's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Canford Heath Infant School Primary
- Canford Heath Junior School Primary
- Courthill Infant School Primary
- Hamworthy Park Junior School Primary
- Haymoor Junior School Primary
- Heatherlands Primary School Primary
- Hillbourne Primary School Primary
- Lilliput Church of England Infant School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole teach?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Poole.
- Who is the headteacher of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole?
- The headteacher of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole is Mrs Nicky O'Donoghue, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole, 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, Poole?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole has 370 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole full?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole has capacity for 420 pupils and 370 on roll (88%), 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, Poole a faith school?
- Yes. St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Plymouth.
- Does St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole as having no nursery classes.
- Who runs St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole is part of PLYMOUTH CAST. 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 Primary School, Poole's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 61% in 2022/23 and 64% 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, Poole rank locally?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole ranked 28th of 52 primary schools in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 50% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 32% 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, Poole's absence rate?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole's overall absence rate is 6.4% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Poole'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.