St Joseph's Catholic Primary School
Garburn Place, Durham, Newton Aycliffe, DL5 7DE
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 2 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- BISHOP HOGARTH CATHOLIC EDUCATION TRUST
- Headteacher
- Headteacher Kirsty Evans
- Diocese
- Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Bishop Hogarth Catholic Education Trust
- Constituency
- Newton Aycliffe and Spennymoor
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 175
- Pupils on roll
- 150
- URN
- 143515
- Local authority
- County Durham
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01325300337
About this school
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School is a Roman Catholic primary academy in Newton Aycliffe. It teaches children aged 2 to 11 and has 150 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
- 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 | 17 | 14 | 19 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 82% | 57% | 84% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 82% | 57% | 84% |
| Expected standard in maths | 88% | 86% | 89% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 88% | 64% | 84% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 105.0 | 102.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 103.0 | 103.0 | 105.0 |
| Reading progress | -1.00 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.20 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -1.70 | - | - |
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 has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | County Durham average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 82% | 58% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 57% | 58.4% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 84% | 60% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.9% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 98 |
| 2023/24 | 100 |
| 2024/25 | 121 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Joseph's Catholic Primary School compares
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School ranked 17th of 185 primary schools in County Durham for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 93% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 38% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 84% | 6% | 39% | 150 | — |
| Stephenson Way Academy and Nursery School | 29% | 8.4% | 69.7% | 285 | 0.1 miles |
| Woodham Burn Community Primary School and Nursery | 58% | 7.1% | 50.2% | 222 | 0.2 miles |
| St Francis Horndale CofE Primary School | 25% | 7.3% | 75.6% | 147 | 0.3 miles |
| Byerley Park Primary School | 73% | 3.9% | 30% | 207 | 0.5 miles |
| Sugar Hill Primary School | 52% | 6.2% | 31.5% | 448 | 0.7 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)
- 38.95%
- English as an additional language
- 27.3%
- Overall absence
- 6%
- Persistent absence
- 20.41%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Stephenson Way Academy and Nursery School0.1 miles
Primary · Newton Aycliffe
-
Woodham Burn Community Primary School and Nursery0.2 miles
Primary · Newton Aycliffe
-
St Francis Horndale CofE Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Newton Aycliffe
-
Byerley Park Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Newton Aycliffe
-
Sugar Hill Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Newton Aycliffe
Other schools in Newton Aycliffe
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School ranks 1st of the 9 ranked primary schools in Newton Aycliffe.
- Aycliffe Village Primary and Nursery School Primary
- Byerley Park Primary School Primary
- Heighington Church of England Primary School Primary
- St Francis Horndale CofE Primary School Primary
- St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Newton Aycliffe Primary
- Stephenson Way Academy and Nursery School Primary
- Sugar Hill Primary School Primary
- Vane Road Primary School Primary
- Woodham Burn Community Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Greenfield Academy Secondary
- UTC South Durham Secondary
- Woodham Academy Secondary
Common questions
- What year groups does St Joseph's Catholic Primary School teach?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School teaches children aged 2 to 11. It is a primary school in Newton Aycliffe.
- Who is the headteacher of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School?
- The headteacher of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School is Headteacher Kirsty Evans, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St Joseph's Catholic Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, 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?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School has 150 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 2 to 11.
- Is St Joseph's Catholic Primary School full?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School has capacity for 175 pupils and 150 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 a faith school?
- Yes. St Joseph's Catholic Primary School is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle.
- Does St Joseph's Catholic Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records St Joseph's Catholic Primary School as having nursery classes.
- Who runs St Joseph's Catholic Primary School?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School is part of BISHOP HOGARTH 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 Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 82% in 2022/23 and 84% 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 rank locally?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School ranked 17th of 185 primary schools in County Durham for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 93% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 38% 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's absence rate?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School's overall absence rate is 6% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Joseph's Catholic Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Joseph's Catholic Primary School'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 10 July 2026.