St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy
Park Lane, Bradford, BD5 0RB
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- BLESSED CHRISTOPHER WHARTON CATHOLIC ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Sarah Tolson
- Diocese
- Diocese of Leeds (rc)
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Blessed Christopher Wharton Catholic Academy Trust
- Constituency
- Bradford West
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 350
- Pupils on roll
- 342
- URN
- 148101
- Local authority
- Bradford
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01274727970
About this school
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy is a Roman Catholic primary academy in Bradford. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 342 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy, and its latest judgement is set out 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 28 June 2023, 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 | 44 | 43 | 43 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 55% | 51% | 47% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 7% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 73% | 67% | 65% |
| Expected standard in maths | 73% | 70% | 67% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 61% | 60% | 53% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 104.0 | 103.0 | 103.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 103.0 | 103.0 | 102.0 |
| Reading progress | +0.70 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +2.20 | - | - |
| 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, 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 | Bradford average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 55% | 56.6% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 51% | 58.2% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 47% | 59.9% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.8% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.9% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.8% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 346 |
| 2023/24 | 343 |
| 2024/25 | 332 |
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 132nd of 159 primary schools in Bradford for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 18% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 66% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 47% | 4.8% | 33.6% | 342 | — |
| Dixons Music Primary | 63% | 5.3% | 17% | 420 | 0.2 miles |
| All Saints CofE Primary School | 70% | 5.9% | 44% | 628 | 0.3 miles |
| Newby Primary School | 66% | 6.4% | 32.4% | 442 | 0.3 miles |
| St Stephen's CofE Primary School | 52% | 6.4% | 45.7% | 460 | 0.4 miles |
| Rainbow Primary Leadership Academy | 66% | 4.5% | 28.6% | 329 | 0.4 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)
- 33.55%
- English as an additional language
- 53.9%
- Overall absence
- 4.79%
- Persistent absence
- 12.01%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Dixons Music Primary0.2 miles
Primary · Bradford
-
All Saints CofE Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Bradford
-
Newby Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Bradford
-
St Stephen's CofE Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Bradford
-
Rainbow Primary Leadership Academy0.4 miles
Primary · Bradford
Other schools in Bradford
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy ranks 92nd of the 110 ranked primary schools in Bradford.
- All Saints CofE Primary School Primary
- Atlas Community Primary School Primary
- Bankfoot Primary School Primary
- Barkerend Primary Leadership Academy Primary
- Beckfoot Allerton Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Beckfoot Heaton Primary Primary
- Birkenshaw Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
- Blakehill Primary School Primary
- Bowling Park Primary School Primary
- Brackenhill Primary School Primary
- Byron Primary School Primary
- Carlton Mills Primary
Common questions
- What ages 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 Bradford.
- 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 Mrs Sarah Tolson, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy been 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 many pupils are at St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy has 342 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 350 pupils and 342 on roll (98%), so it is close to full. 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 Leeds (rc).
- 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.
- Is St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy part of an academy trust?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy is part of BLESSED CHRISTOPHER WHARTON CATHOLIC 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 55% in 2022/23 and 47% 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 compare with other schools in Bradford?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, A Voluntary Academy ranked 132nd of 159 primary schools in Bradford for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 18% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 66% 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 4.8% 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 10 July 2026.