St Joseph's Catholic Junior School

About St Joseph's Catholic Junior School

St Joseph’s Catholic Junior School in Waltham Forest delivers a mixed picture when set against the local authority average for primary schools. The LA average for pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined is 74%, and St Joseph’s falls just short at 69%. That gap is modest, but it places the school 34th out of 52 primaries in the borough, in the bottom third locally. However, the story changes when you look at individual subjects. In maths, 92% of pupils hit the expected standard — well above the LA average — and the average maths score of 107 is strong. Reading also performs well, with 86% reaching the expected level and an average score of 108. So while the combined headline figure lags behind the borough norm, the school is clearly getting solid results in the core disciplines of maths and reading. The challenge appears to be in writing, where only 72% met the expected standard, dragging down the combined measure.

At the higher standard, St Joseph’s sees 14% of pupils achieving greater depth in reading, writing and maths combined. That is a respectable figure, though not exceptional. In maths specifically, 28% reached the higher standard, and in reading it was 33%. The school’s most recent Ofsted inspection, an ungraded visit in May 2023, confirmed it remains Good — a rating it has held since at least 2014, when its last graded inspection took place. Leadership and management were also judged Good. With 125 pupils on roll against a capacity of 180, the school is undersubscribed, which may reflect the competitive local market — three nearby primaries, including Riverley Primary School just 0.3 km away, hold Outstanding ratings. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals is 28%, above the national average, which adds useful context to the attainment data.

Facilities include a sports hall, art studios, music rooms, an ICT suite and a chapel, and the school offers a broad range of sports from athletics and swimming to tennis and cross country. Clubs cover drama, coding, choir, art and film. SEND provision is well-documented, with support for specific learning difficulties including dyslexia, speech, language and communication needs, social and emotional mental health, and autistic spectrum disorder. As a Roman Catholic junior school for ages 7 to 11, it will suit families who want a faith-based setting with a clear academic focus, particularly in maths and reading. The undersubscription means places are generally available, but parents should weigh the combined headline figure against the stronger individual subject results when comparing with higher-ranked local options.

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