St Joseph's Catholic Academy

St Joseph's Catholic Academy has made significant improvements since its last inspection, achieving a 'Good' rating across all areas evaluated. The school offers an ambitious curriculum that benefits all students, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), and fosters a positive and supportive environment that promotes personal development and well-being. The robust Catholic ethos underpins the school's culture, contributing to a well-structured and settled atmosphere where bullying is minimal and students feel safe. Furthermore, the sixth-form provision is notable for effectively preparing students for future pathways in education and employment.

Strengths

• Dedicated lessons that support individual development for all students.
• Strong Catholic ethos that enhances school culture.
• Well-designed curriculum that deepens knowledge and cultural capital.
• Good subject knowledge among teachers, especially in vocational subjects.
• Effective support for pupils with SEND.
• Robust personal development program including meaningful career guidance.
• Good behaviour management with minimal disruption in lessons.

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistent use of assessment by some teachers to address knowledge gaps.
• Lack of a robust system to evaluate the effectiveness of the PSHE program.

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 Academy attended 90.7% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 25.4% 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, 6.0% of pupils at St Joseph's Catholic Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 10 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 Academy had 16.3 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 9.9% 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, 16.3% of pupils at St Joseph's Catholic Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 2.0% 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 Catholic Academy received £7,752 and spent £7,645 for each of its 1,358 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £175,000 (-£129 per pupil).

Across all 30 schools of Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust, income was £7,338 and spending £7,295 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 Hebburn · South Tyneside local authority: places and applications

St Joseph's Catholic Academy is part of Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust, which runs 31 schools. The nearest others:

• St James' Catholic Primary School, Hebburn Hebburn
• St Matthew's Catholic Primary School, Jarrow Jarrow
• St Aloysius Catholic Infant School, Hebburn Hebburn
• St Aloysius Catholic Junior School Academy Hebburn
• St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Jarrow Jarrow
• St Bede's Catholic Primary School, Jarrow Jarrow
• St Mary's Catholic Primary School Jarrow
• SS Peter and Paul Catholic Primary School, South Shields South Shields
• St John Bosco Catholic Primary School, Town End Farm, Sunderland Sunderland
• St Oswald's Catholic Primary School, South Shields South Shields

What is St Joseph's Catholic Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Joseph's Catholic Academy is Good, from an inspection in November 2022.

When was St Joseph's Catholic Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

St Joseph's Catholic Academy was last inspected in November 2022.

How many pupils does St Joseph's Catholic Academy have?

St Joseph's Catholic Academy has 1,377 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Joseph's Catholic Academy cover?

St Joseph's Catholic Academy for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are St Joseph's Catholic Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 45.2, and 37% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is St Joseph's Catholic Academy?

St Joseph's Catholic Academy is at Mill Lane, Hebburn, Tyne and Wear, NE31 2ET.