St John the Evangelist Catholic Primary School

About St John the Evangelist Catholic Primary School

St John the Evangelist Catholic Primary School is a state-funded Roman Catholic primary in Bradford, serving 194 pupils aged 4 to 11 under headteacher Ben Lavin. Within Bradford local authority, it ranks 68th out of 153 primary schools on the key stage 2 expected standard measure, placing it just below the midpoint of its peers. The top-performing schools in the same LA include All Saints' CofE Primary School, Harden Primary School, and Copthorne Primary School, all of which score higher on the same ranking metric. The school’s most recent Ofsted inspection, an ungraded visit in February 2025, confirmed that standards are maintained, and it retains its overall Good rating — a grade it has held consistently across its previous graded inspections. For families prioritising a Catholic faith setting within Bradford, St John’s offers a clear local option, though it sits in a competitive landscape where several nearby primaries achieve stronger academic rankings.

In the 2023/24 key stage 2 assessments, 63 per cent of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined — slightly above the Bradford LA average of 59 per cent. However, only 10 per cent achieved the higher standard in all three subjects. Reading and writing each saw 80 per cent of pupils meet expectations, while maths lagged slightly at 77 per cent. Average scaled scores were 104 in reading and 103 in maths, both in line with national norms. The school’s national ranking places it in the bottom half of all primaries, at the 51st percentile. Progress measures for reading, writing and maths are not available in the data, so it is difficult to assess how much value the school adds relative to pupils’ starting points. The Ofsted breakdown from the 2012 graded inspection rated leadership and management, overall effectiveness and early years provision all as Good, with no outstanding judgements recorded.

The school is oversubscribed: for 2025/26 entry, it received 47 applications for 26 places, with 24 first-preference offers made — a ratio of 1.81 applicants per place. Facilities include playing fields, a library, a forest school, art studios, a chapel and an outdoor playground. Sports offered are swimming, athletics, gymnastics and cross country, while clubs include choir, gardening and art club. SEND provisions cover specific learning difficulties, moderate learning difficulty, social emotional and mental health needs, speech language and communication needs, and autistic spectrum disorder. Parent View responses from 19 families between September 2024 and September 2025 show strong satisfaction with happiness and safety — 89 per cent agree or strongly agree their child is happy, and 89 per cent feel their child is safe. However, only 47 per cent would recommend the school to another parent, and views on behaviour and concern-handling are more divided. This school suits families seeking a Catholic primary with a broad range of outdoor and creative activities, who are comfortable with its mid-table academic profile and mixed parent feedback.

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