St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S
Great Hadham Road, Bishop's Stortford, CM23 2NL
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- ST FRANCIS OF ASSISI CATHOLIC ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Miss Ann Cassidy-Jones
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Westminster
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Hertford and Stortford
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 420
- Pupils on roll
- 436
- URN
- 148491
- Local authority
- Hertfordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01279652576
About this school
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S is a Roman Catholic primary academy in Bishop's Stortford. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 436 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
- Outstanding
- 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 | 50 | 57 | 62 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 82% | 72% | 66% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 24% | 18% | 15% |
| Expected standard in reading | 86% | 86% | 92% |
| Expected standard in maths | 94% | 82% | 92% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 94% | 82% | 89% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 109.0 | 109.0 | 109.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 110.0 | 108.0 | 109.0 |
| Reading progress | +2.20 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +2.20 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +5.10 | - | - |
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 B/S has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Hertfordshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 82% | 59.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 72% | 60.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 66% | 61% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.9% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.8% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 428 |
| 2023/24 | 434 |
| 2024/25 | 429 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S compares
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S ranked 173rd of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 55% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 87% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 66% | 3.8% | 8.3% | 436 | — |
| St Michael's Church of England Primary School | 68% | 6.2% | 15.7% | 226 | 0.3 miles |
| Windhill21 | 70% | 3.6% | 12.1% | 451 | 0.3 miles |
| Hillmead Primary School | 77% | 4.9% | 16.6% | 223 | 0.5 miles |
| Northgate Primary School | 82% | 4.2% | 5.4% | 455 | 0.6 miles |
| Manor Fields Primary School | 80% | 3.6% | 6.4% | 449 | 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)
- 8.27%
- English as an additional language
- 22.4%
- Overall absence
- 3.81%
- Persistent absence
- 5.72%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St Michael's Church of England Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Bishop's Stortford
-
Windhill210.3 miles
Primary · Bishop's Stortford
-
Hillmead Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Bishop's Stortford
-
Northgate Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Bishop's Stortford
-
Manor Fields Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Bishop's Stortford
Other schools in Bishop's Stortford
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S ranks 15th of the 22 ranked primary schools in Bishop's Stortford.
- All Saints Church of England Primary School and Nursery, Bishop's Stortford Primary
- Avanti Meadows Primary School Primary
- Birchanger Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
- Elsenham Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
- Farnham Church of England Primary School Primary
- Hatfield Heath Primary School Primary
- Henham and Ugley Primary and Nursery School Primary
- Hillmead Primary School Primary
- Little Hallingbury Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Primary
- Manor Fields Primary School Primary
- Manuden Primary School Primary
- Northgate Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S teach?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Bishop's Stortford.
- Who is the headteacher of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S?
- The headteacher of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S is Miss Ann Cassidy-Jones, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S, 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 B/S?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S has 436 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S full?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S has capacity for 420 pupils and 436 on roll (104%), 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 B/S a faith school?
- Yes. St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S is designated Roman Catholic, in the Archdiocese of Westminster.
- Does St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S as having nursery classes.
- Who runs St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S is part of ST FRANCIS OF ASSISI 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 B/S'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 66% 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 B/S rank locally?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S ranked 173rd of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 55% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 87% 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 B/S's absence rate?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S's overall absence rate is 3.8% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S'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.