St Joseph's Catholic Primary School

About St Joseph's Catholic Primary School

St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School in Barnet was rated Good by Ofsted in its most recent graded inspection in 2021, a notable improvement from its previous Requires Improvement rating in 2017. The school earned Good marks across every category inspected, including quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision. On the most informative exam metric available, 63% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths at Key Stage 2 in the 2023/24 academic year. That figure sits below the Barnet local authority average of 73%, placing the school 65th out of 80 primary schools in the borough, in the 81st percentile. Just 12% of pupils reached the higher standard in all three subjects, though individual subject scores were more encouraging: 78% achieved the expected standard in reading, 74% in writing and 74% in maths, with average scaled scores of 106 in both reading and maths.

The school’s Progress 8 scores are not available in the data, so it is difficult to say how much value the school adds on top of pupils’ starting points. However, the proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals stands at 26.1%, which is above the national average and suggests a more diverse intake than many local peers. The top-performing schools in Barnet on the same metric include Courtland School, St Andrew’s CofE Primary in Totteridge and Ashmole Primary School, all of which achieved ranking scores above 90. For families prioritising academic outcomes, St Joseph’s sits in the middle of the pack nationally, ranking 6,595th out of 13,686 primary schools, placing it just below the 50th percentile. The nearest school rated Outstanding by Ofsted is The Hyde School, 1.3 kilometres away.

The school is oversubscribed for Reception entry in 2025/26, with 116 applications for 51 places and 37 first-preference offers made, giving an oversubscription ratio of 2.27. It has a nursery provision for children aged three and above, and the facilities include a chapel, forest school, sensory room, art studios, sports hall and ICT suite. Sports on offer include athletics, gymnastics, dance, swimming and rounders, while clubs range from eco club and book club to coding, drama, choir and film club. The school’s SEND provisions cover moderate learning difficulty, speech, language and communication needs, autistic spectrum disorder, social, emotional and mental health needs, multi-sensory impairment and physical disability. With a capacity of 548 and 458 pupils on roll, there is some room for growth. This is a school that suits Catholic families in Barnet who value a faith-based environment and a broad range of enrichment activities, though they should be prepared for competition at the admissions stage.

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