Thomas Gray Primary School

About Thomas Gray Primary School

Thomas Gray Primary School in Sefton has turned a corner academically, with its most recent Ofsted inspection in 2022 awarding a Good rating across all five categories, including overall effectiveness, quality of education, and behaviour and attitudes. This marks a significant improvement from the school’s previous inspection in 2019, when it was rated Requires Improvement overall, with leadership and management also judged to be Requires Improvement. The early years provision, which was previously graded as Requires Improvement, has now risen to Good. The school serves a notably high-needs community, with 70.5% of its 297 pupils eligible for free school meals, well above the national average. Despite these challenges, the school has demonstrated clear progress in its academic and pastoral provision, and the Ofsted report highlights that pupils now benefit from a more consistent and ambitious curriculum.

When it comes to exam outcomes, the most informative metric for a primary school is Key Stage 2 performance. While Thomas Gray’s individual KS2 results are not provided in the available data, the local authority average for Sefton primary schools stands at 59, which gives a useful benchmark for parents. The school’s Ofsted report notes that pupils achieve well in reading, writing, and mathematics, with leaders ensuring that gaps in learning are addressed effectively. The school is not among Sefton’s top-performing peers on ranking scores, which are led by St Thomas Church of England Primary School, Lydiate (93), St Robert Bellarmine Catholic Primary School (83), and Shoreside Primary School (81). However, Thomas Gray’s improvement trajectory and its Good rating place it in a solid position within the local authority, where only six out of 74 primary schools have achieved an Outstanding rating.

For families considering Thomas Gray, the school offers a wide range of facilities including a gymnasium, forest school, art studios, and a chapel, alongside clubs such as art, gardening, chess, and film club. Sports provision includes cross country, football, dance, and cricket. The school has a dedicated SEN unit and supports pupils with moderate learning difficulties, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech and language communication issues, hearing impairment, physical disability, and autistic spectrum disorder. Admission for the 2025/26 year is oversubscribed, with 60 applications for 27 places and 35 first-preference applications, giving an oversubscription ratio of 2.22. This suggests strong local demand, and parents should be aware that securing a place may require a first-preference application. The nearest Outstanding-rated school is Rimrose Hope CofE Primary School, 1.3 km away, which may be an alternative for families prioritising that rating.

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