St Joseph's Catholic Primary School

About St Joseph's Catholic Primary School

St Joseph's Catholic Primary School in Birmingham sits in the bottom half of primary schools in the local authority, with a KS2 ranking score of 48 that places it 228th out of 292 schools of its type. That score is notably below the Birmingham LA average of 63, and the school's 48% of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths is a full 15 percentage points behind the LA average of 63%. The picture is similar in the West Midlands region, where it ranks in the bottom 17% of primaries, and nationally it sits in the bottom 19%. These headline metrics suggest a school serving a community with significant challenges — 74.2% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, more than three times the national average — and the academic outcomes reflect that context rather than any lack of effort from staff.

The most recent Ofsted inspection in May 2024 confirmed the school remains Good, a clear improvement from its previous graded inspection in 2012 when it was rated Requires Improvement. Leadership and management were judged Good, as was overall effectiveness. The KS2 results for 2023/24 show a mixed picture: 66% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading and 59% in maths, but writing and the combined RWM measure both sat at 48%. At the higher standard, just 3% achieved in writing and the combined measure, though 28% hit the higher bar in maths and 21% in reading. Average scaled scores of 103 in both reading and maths are exactly in line with the national average of 100, suggesting that while many pupils are meeting basic expectations, very few are exceeding them.

The school is oversubscribed for 2025/26, with 54 applications for 24 places and 23 of those coming as first preferences, indicating strong local demand despite the middling results. Facilities include an ICT suite, library, sensory room, chapel, playing fields and a gymnasium, and the school offers a broad range of sports and clubs from chess and coding to netball and swimming. SEND provision covers specific learning difficulties, moderate learning difficulty, social and emotional mental health needs, speech and language communication needs, and autistic spectrum disorder. This is a small, faith-based primary (186 pupils against a capacity of 210) that will suit families who value a Catholic ethos and a supportive environment for children with additional needs, but parents prioritising top-tier academic outcomes may want to look at the outstanding-rated Cromwell Junior and Infant School just 0.2 km away.

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