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St Joseph's Catholic Junior School, Birtley

Primary · Chester le Street · DH3 2PN

Data updated

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Outstanding

SchoolFacts estimate: Ofsted awarded no overall grade at this inspection

We show the lowest of the four areas Ofsted did judge, listed below. Why some schools have no overall grade →

Quality of education: OutstandingBehaviour & attitudes: OutstandingPersonal development: OutstandingLeadership & management: OutstandingSafeguarding effective: Yes

Inspected 24 June 2025

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

105 pupils · 88% of 120 capacity (January 2026 census)

School type
Academy converter
Age range
7–11
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Roman Catholic
Free school meals
25.7% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
22.7% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
16.5% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
4.1% of pupils (2024/2025)
Website
https://stjosephcatholicschoolsbirtley.org/
URN
148844

In figures

At its inspection on 24 June 2025 Ofsted awarded no overall grade; the lowest of the four areas it judged was Outstanding. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 3% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Key stage 2 results (2024/2025)

17 pupils at the end of key stage 2 in 2024/2025

Reaching the expected standard in reading, writing & maths
76%
England 62%
Reaching the higher standard
18%
England 8%
Average scaled score (reading)
109
England 106
Average scaled score (maths)
108
England 105

Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · what “suppressed” means

Schools with a similar intake

Meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, 2024/2025

This school76%
Median of its 12 closest peers59.5%
Gateshead average66.8%
England62%

On meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, this school is ahead of the schools that teach a comparable intake.

They are matched on intake, not location, so most are not local: see nearby schools for those you could apply to.

SchoolOfstedResult
St Paul of the Cross Catholic Primary SchoolWarrington · 110 miles awayExpected standard60%
Shenley Primary SchoolRadlett · 228 miles awayGood31%
Knuzden St Oswald's Church of England Primary AcademyBlackburn · 87 miles awayNeeds attention36%
Victoria Road Primary SchoolNorthwich · 119 miles awayGood77%
Kintbury St Mary's C.E. Primary SchoolHungerford · 242 miles awayGood26%
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, GilesgateDurham · 8 miles awayNo current grade100%
Watchlytes Primary SchoolWelwyn Garden City · 222 miles awayExpected standard76%
Woodlands Park Primary SchoolMaidenhead · 237 miles awayNeeds attention20%
Brampton Abbotts CofE Primary SchoolRoss-on-Wye · 209 miles awayGood61%
Uppingham Church of England Primary SchoolOakham · 163 miles awayGood70%
Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic PrimaryWincanton · 267 miles awayRequires improvement59%
St Mary's Church of England VA Primary School, Welham GreenHatfield · 225 miles awayRequires improvement50%

It is not a ranking. Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · how the matching works

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

White British 71% (Gateshead 78%, England 60%) · Any other White background 8% (Gateshead 4%, England 7%) · Asian Indian 5% (Gateshead 2%, England 4%) · Black African 4% (Gateshead 5%, England 5%) · Mixed White and Asian 3% (Gateshead 1%, England 2%) · Mixed White and Black African 3% (Gateshead 1%, England 1%) · Any other Mixed background 2% (Gateshead 1%, England 3%) · White Gypsy/Roma 2% (Gateshead 0%, England 0%) · Any other ethnic group 1% (Gateshead 4%, England 3%) · Asian Chinese 1% (Gateshead 1%, England 1%) · Asian Pakistani 1% (Gateshead 1%, England 5%)

Source: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026 census · how to read these figures

Attendance (2025/26 autumn and spring terms)

Sessions missed (overall absence)
3%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
2.8%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

8.25 suspensions per 100 pupils and 0 permanent exclusions · England, primary schools: 2.47 suspensions and 0.03 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · Gateshead: 1.27 suspensions and 0.00 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils

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Source: DfE pupil absence data, autumn and spring terms, and DfE suspensions and permanent exclusions, school-level file · how absence is measured · how to read exclusions

Staffing

Pupils per qualified teacher
21.4
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Vacancies (November 2025)

0% of teaching posts vacant, 0% filled temporarily · England, primary academies: 0.3% vacant, 0.32% temporary

Teacher sickness absence (reported in the November 2024 census)

33.3% of teachers took sickness absence, 3 days each on average · England, all state-funded schools: 61.8%, 8.1 days

Teacher pay (November 2025)

Mean salary of full-time qualified teachers £46,426; 0% on the leadership pay range · England, primary schools: £50,856, 17.3%

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Source: DfE School Workforce Census · how these figures are counted

Spending per pupil (2024-25)

This school£6,845
Typical primary school£7,202

Where the money went (2024-25)

Share of spending, with the median for primary schools in brackets: Staff 72% (77%) · premises 8% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 8% (8%) · supplies and services 12% (9%) · educational supplies 4% (4%) · bought-in professional services 1% (2%) · catering 5% (5%)

Reserves (2024-25)

Revenue reserve £185,000; in-year balance +£122,000

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Higher spending is not a measure of quality. Source: academy finance return, 2024-25, DfE · how spending is compared

Inspection history since 2015

Source: Ofsted management information · ungraded visits and the two inspection systems

The area around the school

Child poverty (IDACI)
5/10around the middle for England
Overall deprivation (IMD)
4/10more deprived than most of England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher27.6%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications22.8%18.1%
In managerial or professional work32.2%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways23.4%18.1%
Residents in very good health44.5%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier57%62.3%
Social housing31.2%17.1%
Privately rented11.8%20.5%
Detached houses26.5%22.9%
Flats20.5%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms24.2%21.1%
Households with no car or van30.7%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01008174 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£143,500155 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£93,000–£215,000the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Detached (19)£325,000
Semi-detached (42)£213,500
Terraced (81)£120,000
Flat (13)£59,000

Homes around this school are among the cheapest tenth of school neighbourhoods in England, comparing the median within 1 km across every state school.

Source: HM Land Registry sales within 1 km since January 2024 · how sales are counted. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Postcodes located with OS Code-Point Open: contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026; contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026; contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Roads around the school

Child pedestrian casualties
2an urban school averages 2.0
Collisions at school-run times
3an urban school averages 5.7
All reported collisions
11an urban school averages 30.5
Of those, serious or fatal
2an urban school averages 6.1

A high count usually reflects traffic, not an unsafe school. Source: DfT road casualty statistics (STATS19), collisions within 500 m, 2021–2025 · what is counted

Nearby schools