Wavertree Church of England School

About Wavertree Church of England School

Wavertree Church of England School sits well below the Liverpool local authority average for Key Stage 2 outcomes. In the 2023/24 academic year, only 40% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with a LA average of 59% for primary schools. That gap of 19 percentage points places the school 91st out of 115 primary schools in Liverpool, putting it in the bottom half of the local league table. The school’s ranking score of 40 on this metric is notably lower than top-performing local peers such as Sudley Primary School and Bishop Martin Church of England Primary School, Woolton, both of which scored 86. Wavertree’s individual subject scores tell a similar story: 48% reached the expected standard in reading, 52% in maths, and 48% in writing. The proportion reaching the higher standard in any subject was very low — just 8% in reading, 8% in maths, and 4% in writing. These figures suggest that, while the school is rated Good by Ofsted, its academic outcomes are significantly behind the typical primary in Liverpool.

The school’s most recent graded Ofsted inspection in 2017 rated it Good overall, with Good marks for leadership and management, early years provision, and behaviour and attitudes. An ungraded inspection in December 2022 confirmed that the school remains Good. The inspection report noted that early years provision was Good, and leadership and management were also rated Good. However, the school’s Progress 8 scores for reading, writing and maths are all missing from the data, making it difficult to assess how much value the school adds relative to pupils’ starting points. The school has a high proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals — 57.1% — which is well above the national average and may partly explain the lower attainment figures. The school serves a mixed community in Liverpool and its Church of England character is reflected in the presence of a chapel on site. The headteacher is Clare Parkinson, who leads a relatively small school of 157 pupils against a capacity of 240, meaning there is room for growth.

Wavertree Church of England School offers a range of facilities including a sports hall, gymnasium, ICT suite, library, music rooms, playing fields and an outdoor playground. Sports on offer include football, swimming, tennis and dance, while clubs include book club, eco club, gardening, science club and drama. The school has a nursery provision for children aged two and above. For pupils with additional needs, the school lists SEND provisions for specific learning difficulties including dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech, language and communication needs, and autistic spectrum disorder. Admissions for the 2025/26 academic year show the school is oversubscribed: 28 applications for 21 places, with 11 first-preference offers made from 11 first-preference applications, giving an oversubscription ratio of 1.33. This suggests that while the school’s academic results are below the LA average, it remains a popular choice among local families, likely due to its small size, faith character, and range of facilities.

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