St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater
Park Avenue, Bridgwater, TA6 7EE
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- THE DUNSTAN CATHOLIC EDUCATIONAL TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Alison Frost
- Diocese
- Diocese of Clifton
- Sponsor
- The Dunstan Catholic Educational Trust
- Constituency
- Bridgwater
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 199
- URN
- 148950
- Local authority
- Somerset
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01278422786
About this school
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater is a Roman Catholic primary academy in Bridgwater. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 199 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater, 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
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
A short monitoring inspection followed on : inspectors found that standards have been maintained.
This inspection took place when the school was registered as St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater (URN 123846).
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 | 24 | 26 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 59% | 71% | 54% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 10% | 4% | 12% |
| Expected standard in reading | 69% | 75% | 65% |
| Expected standard in maths | 69% | 79% | 65% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 69% | 75% | 54% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 108.0 | 104.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 105.0 | 106.0 | 102.0 |
| Reading progress | +0.10 | - | - |
| 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, Bridgwater has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Somerset average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 59% | 54.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 71% | 55.4% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 54% | 57.3% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6.3% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 205 |
| 2023/24 | 206 |
| 2024/25 | 202 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater compares
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater ranked 103rd of 155 primary schools in Somerset for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 28% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 33% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 54% | 6.3% | 13.4% | 199 | — |
| Westover Green Community School and Autism Centre | 59% | 7.9% | 46.9% | 382 | 0.2 miles |
| St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Primary School | 72% | 4.1% | 8.6% | 490 | 0.4 miles |
| Wembdon St George's Church School | 44% | 5.2% | 17.2% | 294 | 0.5 miles |
| Northgate Primary School | 79% | 4.7% | 37.7% | 258 | 0.6 miles |
| Hamp Academy | 49% | 7.3% | 50.5% | 307 | 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.
Inspection history
-
Ungraded inspection report26 February 2025
- 1 October 2019
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 13.37%
- English as an additional language
- 25.2%
- Overall absence
- 6.3%
- Persistent absence
- 17.03%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Westover Green Community School and Autism Centre0.2 miles
Primary · Bridgwater
-
St Mary's Voluntary Controlled Church of England Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Bridgwater
-
Wembdon St George's Church School0.5 miles
Primary · Bridgwater
-
Northgate Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Bridgwater
-
Hamp Academy0.7 miles
Primary · Bridgwater
Other schools in Bridgwater
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater ranks 16th of the 26 ranked primary schools in Bridgwater.
- Ashcott Primary School Primary
- Cannington Church of England Primary School Primary
- Catcott Primary School Primary
- Eastover Primary School Primary
- Enmore Church of England Primary School Primary
- Hamp Academy Primary
- Hamp Nursery and Infants' School Primary
- Kingsmoor Primary School Primary
- Middlezoy Primary School Primary
- Nether Stowey Church of England Primary School Primary
- North Newton Community Primary School Primary
- North Petherton Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater teach?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Bridgwater.
- Who is the headteacher of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater?
- The headteacher of St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater is Mrs Alison Frost, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater, 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, Bridgwater?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater has 199 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater full?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater has capacity for 210 pupils and 199 on roll (95%), 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, Bridgwater a faith school?
- Yes. St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Clifton.
- Does St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater as having no nursery classes.
- Is St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater part of an academy trust?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater is part of THE DUNSTAN CATHOLIC EDUCATIONAL 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, Bridgwater'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 54% 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, Bridgwater compare with other schools in Somerset?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater ranked 103rd of 155 primary schools in Somerset for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 28% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 33% 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, Bridgwater's absence rate?
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater's overall absence rate is 6.3% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bridgwater'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.