St Joseph's Catholic Junior School, Port Talbot

St Joseph's Catholic Junior School is an English-medium school in Wales. Welsh schools are inspected by Estyn rather than Ofsted, and its latest report is published on Estyn's website.

It had 156 pupils in the 2025/26 school census.

24% of pupils are eligible for free school meals (three-year average).

Of its pupils, 8% have additional learning needs (32% in 2020/21); 16% are learning English as an additional language; and 32% are from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds.

Year groups range from 26 pupils (Year 3) to 49 (Year 5).

Its delegated budget for 2026-27 works out at £5,190 per pupil, against £3,892 in 2021-22. It carried forward £49k of reserves at the end of 2024-25.

Estyn's report on its November 2025 inspection summarises St Joseph's Catholic Junior School like this:

"St Joseph’s Catholic Junior School is a warm, welcoming and inclusive school, where each pupil is known and valued. The Head, staff and governors have a clear vision which focuses on the social and emotional well-being of staff and pupils. As a result of this, nearly all pupils are empathetic and compassionate, showing kindness and care to each other. Pupils’ behave well and have positive attitudes to learning. There is a strong culture of teamwork in the school and staff work effectively, with a shared commitment to meeting the needs of all pupils, including those pupils effected by poverty or with additional learning needs (ALN). Leaders and staff ensure that there is effective support for pupils with ALN, and that all pupils have equal access to the curriculum. When they start in St Joseph’s, most pupils have skills which are appropriate to their age."

"During their time in school, many pupils make good progress in their mathematical knowledge and understanding, which they are beginning to apply in other parts of the curriculum. Most pupils develop strong digital skills and use these effectively for a range of purposes. However, many learning activities are too directed and do not allow pupils to develop independence in their learning. A focus on their speaking and listening skills means that most pupils communicate well with each other and have a good vocabulary. They are able to collaborate, share ideas and agree conclusions effectively when working in a group. Most pupils are keen to talk about their learning and are polite, friendly and confident when speaking. This includes engaging very positively with the Welsh language."

"Nearly all pupils develop their skills in speaking Welsh well and use Welsh throughout each day, both within and outside the classroom. Most pupils read well and with expression and many older pupils use inference and deduction to support their wider learning. Recent changes to the teaching of writing are starting to enable pupils to write competently at length for different purposes across the curriculum. Most teachers use a suitable range of teaching and assessment strategies and the curriculum is beginning to build appropriately on previous knowledge, skills and experiences. However, leaders do not evaluate the quality of teaching nor its impact on pupils’ progress sufficiently."

Estyn made 2 recommendations: (1) Sharpen self-evaluation processes so that leaders ensure that the quality of teaching and learning experiences have a positive and consistent impact on pupil progress; (2) Strengthen the opportunities for pupils to make choices about how and what they learn and apply their skills independently.

The nearest other state primary schools to St Joseph's Catholic Junior School are Sandfields Primary School (0.3 miles), St Joseph's Catholic Infant School (0.5 miles), Awel Y Môr Primary School (0.7 miles) and St Therese's Catholic Primary School (0.8 miles).

The nearest railway station is Port Talbot Parkway Rail Station, about 0.9 miles away in a straight line.

8 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is St Joseph`s RC Junior School (outside), 90 metres away.