St Joseph's RC Primary School, Halliwell, Bolton

About St Joseph's RC Primary School, Halliwell, Bolton

St Joseph's RC Primary School in Halliwell, Bolton, is a state primary for children aged 3 to 11, currently home to 229 pupils against a capacity of 240. That leaves a small amount of headroom, but the school is clearly in demand: for the 2025/26 intake, it received 59 applications for just 23 places, an oversubscription ratio of 2.57. Only 16 of those applications were first-preference, meaning the school is popular but not the very first choice for every family. The pupil body is notably diverse in terms of disadvantage, with 39% of children eligible for free school meals, well above the national average and a figure that gives the school a distinctly different intake profile from many of its neighbours. As a Roman Catholic school, its admissions criteria will naturally prioritise faith families, but the high FSM rate suggests it serves a genuinely mixed community, not a narrow demographic. The school also offers nursery provision, so families can join from age three.

Academically, St Joseph's performs solidly against local benchmarks. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 tests, 71% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, comfortably above the Bolton local authority average of 66%. That places the school 31st out of 87 primaries in the borough, in the top 40% locally, and 527th out of 2,065 in the North West region. The average scores in reading (105) and maths (104) are both above the national baseline of 100, and a higher-than-expected 35% of pupils achieved a high score in reading. Writing and maths at the higher standard are lower, at 16% and 19% respectively, but the overall picture is of a school that gets the basics right. Its most recent graded Ofsted inspection, in 2019, rated it Good across the board, and a subsequent ungraded inspection in November 2024 confirmed that standards are being maintained. That's a clear improvement from its previous Requires Improvement rating in 2017.

The school's facilities include a chapel, music rooms, an ICT suite and art studios, plus an outdoor playground. Sports on offer are football, swimming, gymnastics and tennis, and there's a decent range of clubs including coding, gardening, choir, drama and science club. For families with children who have additional needs, St Joseph's lists SEND provisions for social, emotional and mental health, speech, language and communication, and autistic spectrum disorder. Parent View responses, based on 15 respondents, are overwhelmingly positive: 93% would recommend the school, and 87% strongly agreed that their child is happy there. The only note of caution comes from the 7% who disagreed that concerns are dealt with properly, and a small minority who felt their child wasn't completely safe. Overall, this is a well-regarded, oversubscribed Catholic primary that serves a genuinely mixed community and delivers above-average results. It's a strong choice for Catholic families in Bolton, particularly those who value a school with a broad range of clubs and a clear focus on personal development.

Key Details

Frequently Asked Questions About St Joseph's RC Primary School, Halliwell, Bolton

Helpful Guides for Parents