St Joseph's College

St Joseph’s College is an exceptional school where pupils and sixth-form students are safe, confident, respectful and highly successful. The curriculum is ambitious and carefully sequenced, enabling all pupils, including those with SEND, to achieve very highly. Behaviour is exemplary, personal development is a major strength, and pupils benefit from an extensive range of extra-curricular opportunities, strong careers education and a highly effective sixth form. Leadership and governance are strong, with governors providing skilled support and staff feeling well supported. Safeguarding arrangements are effective. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic, and it is a selective academy converter for pupils aged 11 to 18, with a large sixth form. A new headteacher has been appointed since the previous inspection, although she is not new to the school. No areas for improvement were identified in the report. The school’s ethos, high expectations and commitment to nurturing pupils are evident throughout, and pupils are exceptionally well prepared for their next steps.

Strengths

• Exceptional curriculum that is ambitious and meticulously sequenced for all pupils
• Pupils, including those with SEND, achieve exceptionally well
• Teachers check understanding purposefully and address misconceptions skilfully
• Reading is prioritised, including high-quality intervention and dyslexic-friendly resources
• Pupils with SEND access the same ambitious curriculum and are well supported
• Behaviour is exemplary and pupils actively uphold the school’s ethos and values
• Personal development is outstanding, with a vast range of opportunities and strong PSHE
• Careers education is exceptional and well linked to pupils’ lessons
• Sixth-form provision is outstanding, with a high-quality inclusive curriculum and exemplary personal development
• Governance is a real strength, with skilled governors supporting staff workload and well-being
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective
• Pupils feel safe, loved and nurtured in a strong culture of acceptance and inclusion

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 College attended 96.5% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 5.1% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

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, 3.4% of pupils at St Joseph's College were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). One pupil was 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 College had 15.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 30.8% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

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, 2.4% of pupils at St Joseph's College were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 0.6% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

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 secondary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 St Joseph's College received £8,595 and spent £8,120 for each of its 1,132 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £130,000 (£115 per pupil).

Across all 5 schools of The Laetare Catholic Multi Academy Trust, income was £6,923 and spending £6,646 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Stoke-On-Trent · Stoke-on-Trent local authority: places and applications

St Joseph's College is part of The Laetare Catholic Multi Academy Trust, which runs 5 schools. The nearest others:

• Saint Ambrose College Altrincham
• De La Salle School St. Helens
• St Edward's College Liverpool
• St Anselm's College Prenton

What is St Joseph's College's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Joseph's College is Outstanding, from an inspection in May 2025.

When was St Joseph's College last inspected by Ofsted?

St Joseph's College was last inspected in May 2025.

How many pupils does St Joseph's College have?

St Joseph's College has 1,104 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Joseph's College cover?

St Joseph's College for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are St Joseph's College's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 63.6, and 84% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is St Joseph's College?

St Joseph's College is at London Road, Trent Vale, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST4 5NT.