St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Academy

About St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Academy

St Joseph's Roman Catholic Voluntary Academy is a small primary school in Calderdale with a current roll of 104 pupils against a capacity of 157, meaning it is operating at roughly two-thirds of its potential size. The school serves a notably disadvantaged community: 72.2% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, a figure far above the national average and likely among the highest in the local authority. Despite this, demand for places is healthy. For the 2025/26 intake, the school received 18 applications for 15 places, with 14 of those coming as first preferences, giving an oversubscription ratio of 1.2. This suggests that local families actively choose St Joseph's, even with its small size and high deprivation levels. The school is a Roman Catholic voluntary academy, taking children from age 3 through to 11, and offers nursery provision. Its headteacher is Carole Carlile.

Academically, St Joseph's performs strongly given its intake profile. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 results, 73% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, well above the Calderdale local authority average of 59%. Reading was a particular strength, with every pupil reaching the expected standard and 55% achieving a higher score. Maths also performed well, with 91% at expected and an average scaled score of 105. The school ranks 18th out of 73 primary schools in Calderdale, placing it in the top 25% nationally. Its most recent Ofsted inspection in April 2024 awarded a Good rating across all categories, including behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership. This marks a significant improvement from the previous inspection in 2019, when the school was rated Requires Improvement, with early years provision and leadership both graded as requiring improvement at that time.

The school offers a solid range of facilities including playing fields, a sports hall, art studios, a forest school area, and a chapel. Sports provision covers football, athletics, dance, cricket, netball and swimming, while clubs include eco club, chess, choir, gardening, science club and coding. For children with additional needs, the school lists support for specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, speech and language needs, and autistic spectrum disorder. With its small size, strong academic outcomes relative to its context, and clear improvement trajectory, St Joseph's is a good fit for families in Calderdale seeking a faith-based primary that is inclusive and community-focused, particularly those who value a school that works hard to support children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

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