St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Christchurch

St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School in Christchurch continues to perform well, maintaining its 'good' status during this recent inspection. The school fosters a nurturing and respectful environment where pupils feel happy, safe, and valued. The school community exemplifies kindness and responsibility, contributing to a positive atmosphere for learning. Pupils engage actively in their education, demonstrating a strong work ethic and enthusiasm for learning, particularly in reading, which is highly prioritized in their curriculum. Enthusiastic participation in extracurricular activities further supports their character development and confidence.

Strengths

• Strong community values that promote kindness and respect.
• High expectations for pupil behavior and academic progress.
• A broad and ambitious curriculum with a strong focus on reading.
• Effective support for pupils with special educational needs.
• Strong relationships between staff and pupils.

Areas for Improvement

• Assessment in wider curriculum subjects is not precise enough.
• Some pupils have gaps in knowledge due to ineffective assessment.

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, Christchurch attended 92.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 21.1% 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, Christchurch 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, Christchurch had 20.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 9.3% 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, 20.6% of pupils at St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Christchurch were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.5% 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, Christchurch received £7,510 and spent £7,818 for each of its 199 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £31,000 (£155 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 Christchurch · Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole local authority: places and applications

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

The latest Ofsted rating for St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Christchurch is Good, from an inspection in July 2024.

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

St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Christchurch was last inspected in July 2024.

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

St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Christchurch has 199 pupils on roll.

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

St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Christchurch for pupils aged 5 to 11.

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

In 2025, 74% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Christchurch?

St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Christchurch is at Dorset Road, Somerford, Christchurch, Dorset, BH23 3DA.