St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy, Halifax
St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy is a primary school for pupils aged 4 to 11 in Halifax, part of Blessed Peter Snow Catholic Academy Trust. It has a Roman Catholic religious character. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the highest of the 42 schools in Halifax with published results, and 1st of 14,452 across England. It was 68% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- Above England average
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 80 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Calderdale (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy in detail
St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy in its own words
In its own words: "At St. Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy, we are proud to be a warm, inclusive community where every child is valued, nurtured, and encouraged to reach their full potential. Guided by our motto United We Excel , we blend academic excellence with creativity, kindness and care for our world."
Coming up: an open day on Saturday 21 November 2026. Check the school's website before you go, as dates can change.
All school open days in Calderdale
Vision and values (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2025, 100% of Year 6 pupils at St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy reached the expected standard in reading and 100% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 75% and 75% in Calderdale and 77% and 75% across England.
Results rose from 76% in reading and 88% in maths in 2024.
With small year groups, a few pupils can move these figures by several points.
Getting a place at St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy
For September 2026 entry, 15 families put St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy as their first choice and 38 named it as one of their preferences, for 18 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy are Beech Hill School (0.6 miles, Good, 83% reading, 81% maths); Trinity Academy Akroydon (0.6 miles, Good, 66% reading, 70% maths); St Augustine's CofE School (0.9 miles, 48% reading, 36% maths); and Salterlee Primary School (0.9 miles, Good, 67% reading, 67% maths).
St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy's 2025 results were higher than all 4 of them.
Beech Hill SchoolTrinity Academy AkroydonSt Augustine's CofE SchoolSalterlee Primary School
The trust
St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy is one of 14 schools run by Blessed Peter Snow Catholic Academy Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's primary schools, 59% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths in 2024/25.
What parents say
18 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy (as of September 2025): 72% would recommend the school, 83% say their child is happy there and 38% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (83%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (38%).
Who goes there
In 2026, 26 pupils (19%) received SEN support and 4 (2.9%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is speech, language and communication needs.
Staffing
St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy had 4 teachers in 2026, one for every 36 pupils: fewer teachers per pupil than a typical primary school, at about one for every 20.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Halifax Rail Station, about 860 metres away (roughly a 11-minute walk).
20 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Beacon Hill Road Godley Rd (opposite), 140 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 526 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and shoplifting. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Calderdale (102), as is usual near a town centre.
Suspensions and exclusions
St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy recorded no suspensions or permanent exclusions in 2024/25.
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE multi-academy trust performance data; Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; DfE school workforce census; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoOverall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Early Years
St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy has had no graded Ofsted inspection since it took its current form in October 2021. Before that, as St Joseph's Catholic Primary School (URN 107544), it was rated Good in June 2017.
Ofsted's report, in its own words
What is it like to attend this school?
Pupils are happy at this warm and welcoming school. There is a strong family feel, with pupils genuinely caring for each other. Pupils are respectful as they move around school. Pupils, including the very youngest are polite to each other, staff and visitors. Adults and pupils have positive, respectful relationships. Pupils are safe.
The school has high expectations for learning and behaviour. The school can clearly explain why outcomes and progress in 2023 fell below the expected standard. The actions taken by the school, including the appointment of a new leadership team, have led to higher quality learning for pupils.
What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?
The curriculum is ambitious and matches the breadth of the national curriculum. The school has logically ordered the important knowledge that pupils need to learn so that it builds progressively from the early years. In reading and maths, staff development has been prioritised. In these subjects, staff demonstrate secure subject knowledge. They explain new content to pupils clearly. However, in a few subjects, the school's agreed teaching approaches are not consistently implemented. This means that some pupils don't learn as well as they could.
Pupils' learning is now well aligned with the curriculum. Adaptations in lessons are successful, particularly for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The needs of pupils with SEND are clearly identified. They are confident to participate in lessons. There is a clear focus on developing pupils' vocabulary. Pupils talk confidently about their learning. However, the recording of some pupils' written work contains inconsistent letter formation and lacks pride. This is not routinely picked up by staff.
From Ofsted's October 2024 ungraded inspection report: the opening paragraphs of each section, quoted word for word. Read the full report Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
At a Glance
22.6%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
18 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has improved from 76% to 100% (2024 to 2025). Maths has improved from 88% to 100% (2024 to 2025). Writing has improved from 80% to 95% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
26.3
Avg class size
23.0
KS2
4
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Social & online
Keep up with St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy
Before and after school care
St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy is on the Department for Education's free breakfast clubs programme (list updated July 2026), which pays for a free breakfast club for pupils before school. Source: Free breakfast clubs: schools on the programme, Department for Education Free breakfast clubs in Calderdale
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy is in Calderdale; for families living there:
Apply to Calderdale for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 41
- Fatal
- 2
- Serious
- 6
- Children hurt
- 0
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 41 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 2 fatal, 6 serious and 33 slight.
No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt.
10 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Calderdale is 12 (the median across 114 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy
Will you get a place at St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy:
- The straight-line distance from your home to St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Calderdale, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy for 2022 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Calderdale got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
68%
Available places
142 pupils
210 places
68 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Halifax
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Halifax
Across Calderdale council
Places available
2,848
Applications
1,863
Got 1st preference
96.6%
Got preferred school
99.4%
All primary applications across Calderdale council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
26
SEN Support
4
EHC Plans
21.9%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
137
Total Pupils
65
Boys
72
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
4
Teachers
34.3:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£53,796
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,842
Per pupil
£933k
Total funding
£32k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
4.3%
Overall absence
7.8%
Persistent absence
128
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Questions parents ask about St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy
What are SATs results like at St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy?
Of the pupils at St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 100% reached the expected standard in reading and 100% did so in maths.
What is St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy's Ofsted rating?
St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy has had no graded Ofsted inspection since it took its current form in October 2021. Before that, as St Joseph's Catholic Primary School (URN 107544), it was rated Good in June 2017.
What is the catchment area for St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy?
No fixed boundary. When St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy is oversubscribed, Calderdale allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy?
St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy was not full in 2025: it ran at 68% of its 210 places.
How big are the classes at St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy?
Classes at St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy average 26.3 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy?
St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy has around 137 pupils on roll. 23% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy?
4.3% of sessions were missed at St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy in 2024/25. 7.8% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy?
Apply through Calderdale's coordinated admissions process, naming St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy on your application. Applications for Reception places starting in September 2027 close on Friday 15 January 2027, and offers are made on Friday 16 April 2027.
Does St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy have a breakfast club or after-school club?
St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy is on the Department for Education's free breakfast clubs programme (list updated July 2026), which pays for a free breakfast club for pupils before school.
How many road collisions happen near St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 41 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 2 fatal, 6 serious and 33 slight. No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt. 10 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Calderdale is 12 (the median across 114 schools, same distance and years).
Where is St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy?
St Joseph's Catholic Primary Academy is at Portland Road, Halifax, West Yorkshire, HX3 6LA.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)