St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy
Babworth Road, Retford, DN22 7BP
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- ST FRANCIS CATHOLIC MULTI ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mr Richard Hilton
- Diocese
- Diocese of Hallam
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Bassetlaw
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 224
- URN
- 142158
- Local authority
- Nottinghamshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01777702850
About this school
St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy is a Roman Catholic primary academy in Retford. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 224 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
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 23 February 2024, 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 | 29 | 31 | 30 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 59% | 61% | 70% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 10% | 0% | 13% |
| Expected standard in reading | 72% | 77% | 80% |
| Expected standard in maths | 72% | 74% | 73% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 55% | 68% | 73% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 104.0 | 105.0 | 109.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 103.0 | 105.0 |
| Reading progress | -1.90 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.60 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +0.80 | - | - |
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, a Voluntary 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 | Nottinghamshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 59% | 58.5% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 61% | 59.2% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 70% | 61.8% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.7% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.1% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 212 |
| 2023/24 | 224 |
| 2024/25 | 220 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy compares
St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy ranked 83rd of 226 primary schools in Nottinghamshire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 66% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 56% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 70% | 5.1% | 19.6% | 224 | — |
| Hallcroft Infant and Nursery School | — | 4.4% | 32.3% | 90 | 0.6 miles |
| St Swithun's Church of England Primary Academy | 17% | 7.6% | 55.4% | 92 | 0.7 miles |
| Ordsall Primary School | 58% | 6.5% | 34.3% | 576 | 0.8 miles |
| Carr Hill Primary and Nursery School | 21% | 6.7% | 44.2% | 308 | 1.0 miles |
| Thrumpton Primary Academy | 61% | 6.3% | 36.2% | 223 | 1.0 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)
- 19.59%
- English as an additional language
- 18.6%
- Overall absence
- 5.14%
- Persistent absence
- 14.94%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Hallcroft Infant and Nursery School0.6 miles
Primary · Retford
-
St Swithun's Church of England Primary Academy0.7 miles
Primary · Retford
-
Ordsall Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · Retford
-
Carr Hill Primary and Nursery School1.0 miles
Primary · Retford
-
Thrumpton Primary Academy1.0 miles
Primary · Retford
Other schools in Retford
St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy ranks 5th of the 16 ranked primary schools in Retford.
- Bracken Lane Primary Academy Primary
- Carr Hill Primary and Nursery School Primary
- Clarborough Primary School Primary
- Elkesley Primary and Nursery School Primary
- Gamston St Peter's CofE Primary School Primary
- Hallcroft Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Leverton Church of England Academy Primary
- North Wheatley Church of England Primary School Primary
- Ordsall Primary School Primary
- Rampton Primary School Primary
- Ranby CofE Primary School Primary
- Ranskill Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy teach?
- St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Retford.
- Who is the headteacher of St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy?
- The headteacher of St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy is Mr Richard Hilton, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary 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 Primary School, a Voluntary Academy?
- St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy has 224 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy full?
- St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy has capacity for 210 pupils and 224 on roll (107%), so it is at or above 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, a Voluntary Academy a faith school?
- Yes. St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Hallam.
- Does St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy as having nursery classes.
- Who runs St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy?
- St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy is part of ST FRANCIS CATHOLIC MULTI ACADEMY 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 Primary School, a Voluntary Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 59% in 2022/23 and 70% 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, a Voluntary Academy rank locally?
- St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy ranked 83rd of 226 primary schools in Nottinghamshire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 66% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 56% 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, a Voluntary Academy's absence rate?
- St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy'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, a Voluntary Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St. Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary 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 2 July 2026.