St Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park

St Chad’s Catholic Primary School in Witton Park is performing well, achieving a good overall effectiveness rating. The school fosters a calm and welcoming environment where positive relationships thrive between pupils and staff. It offers a broad and ambitious curriculum, particularly excelling in early reading and phonics. While the school has shown strengths in supporting pupils, including those with special educational needs, there are areas of concern, particularly concerning the consistency of curriculum implementation and attendance rates.

Strengths

• Positive relationships between pupils and staff
• Engaging curriculum that supports early reading and phonics
• High expectations for behaviour and attendance
• Strong support for pupils with SEND
• Active citizenship among pupils contributing to the community
• Knowledgeable and caring leadership

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistency in matching learning activities to the curriculum
• Some pupils do not attend school regularly enough
• Lack of explicit teaching of fundamental British values

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 Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park attended 93.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 13.3% 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 Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park 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 Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park had 15.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 38.1% 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, 24.6% of pupils at St Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 0.0% 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 2024–25 St Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park received £8,508 and spent £9,267 for each of its 68 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £19,000 (£281 per pupil).

Across all 35 schools of Bishop Hogarth Catholic Education Trust, income was £7,699 and spending £7,759 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 Bishop Auckland · County Durham local authority: places and applications

St Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park is part of Bishop Hogarth Catholic Education Trust, which runs 35 schools. The nearest others:

• St John's Catholic School & Sixth Form College Bishop Auckland
• St Wilfrid's Catholic Primary School, Bishop Auckland Bishop Auckland
• St Cuthbert's Catholic Primary School, Crook Crook
• Our Lady and St Thomas Catholic Primary School, Willington Crook
• St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Coundon Bishop Auckland
• St Charles' Catholic Primary School, Tudhoe Spennymoor
• St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Newton Aycliffe
• Blessed John Duckett Catholic Primary School, Tow Law Bishop Auckland
• St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Newton Aycliffe Newton Aycliffe
• Holy Family Catholic Primary School Darlington

What is St Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park is Good, from an inspection in November 2023.

When was St Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park last inspected by Ofsted?

St Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park was last inspected in November 2023.

How many pupils does St Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park have?

St Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park has 57 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park cover?

St Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are St Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 67% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park?

St Chad's Catholic Primary School, Witton Park is at The Baltic, Witton Park, Bishop Auckland, County Durham, DL14 0EP.