St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh

St Joseph's Catholic Primary School in Leigh is performing at expected standards with areas of strength in safeguarding, early years education, and pupil engagement. The school has effective leadership that prioritizes the well-being and learning of its students, evidenced by the positive culture around safeguarding. Most pupils are achieving well and leave the school ready for their next educational steps, although there is a notable gap in writing achievement in some cohorts. The school's environment is noted for its nurturing relationships and supportive atmosphere, which fosters a sense of belonging among students.

Strengths

• Strong safeguarding culture ensuring pupil safety and well-being
• Staff effectively support early years development, leading to positive learning outcomes
• Pupils demonstrate respect and politeness, contributing to a calm learning environment
• Leaders have made significant improvements to the curriculum based on careful evaluations
• Pupils engage well in learning and take pride in their school community

Areas for Improvement

• Writing achievement for some cohorts shows a gap that needs to be addressed

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh attended 94.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 12.6% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 0.0% of pupils at St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh had 22.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 18.8% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 25.0% of pupils at St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.9% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh received £7,311 and spent £6,820 for each of its 204 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £179,000 (£876 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Leigh · Wigan local authority: places and applications

What is St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh is Expected standard, from an inspection in May 2026.

When was St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh last inspected by Ofsted?

St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh was last inspected in May 2026.

How many pupils does St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh have?

St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh has 204 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh cover?

St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 45% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh?

St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Leigh is at Mather Lane, Leigh, WN7 2PW.