Parents/carers in Merseyside have until 11:59pm on Monday, January 15 to apply for a primary school place for their child for 2024. At LiverpoolWorld we have created this list of all the schools in St Helens and Knowsley currently considered 'outstanding' by Ofsted.
In total there are 13 primary schools across the local authorities' region - including St Helens, Newton-le-Willows, Rainhill, Huyton and Prescot - which currently hold the top rating.
Ofsted provides schools across the country with rankings, ranging from ‘inadequate’ to ‘outstanding’. While many schools across Merseyside are rated as ‘good’, far fewer have been awarded the top mark.
We have poured through local Ofsted reports to find all the St Helens and Knowsley schools which currently have the highest mark.
Here, in alphabetical order, are all the primary schools currently rated outstanding by Ofsted (correct as of 14 January, 2024). Please note, some schools featured in this list have not been inspected for a number of years.
1. Bleak Hill Primary School, St Helens
Published in November 2017, the Ofsted report for Bleak Hill Primary School reads: “The carefully planned and ambitious curriculum is strong. Teachers provide an extensive range of experiences that enable pupils to broaden their understanding in a wide range of contexts. For example, the work pupils produced during the recent art week was of a very high quality. Through the very-well-planned curriculum, leaders have ensured that pupils know how to stay safe, including when out in the community and when online.” Photo: Google Street View
2. Eccleston Lane Ends Primary School, St Helens
Published in February 2015, the Ofsted report for Eccleston Lane Ends Primary School reads: “Leadership and management, including governance, are outstanding. The leadership of teaching and learning is a great strength and has resulted in a long track record of high standards and strong teaching." Photo: Google Earth
3. Garswood Primary and Nursery School, St Helens
Published in September 2017, the Ofsted report for Garswood Primary and Nursery School states: “The quality of teaching is outstanding. Teachers have strong subject knowledge which is highly effective in engaging pupils’ interest. Subject content is creative and promotes high levels of pupil enjoyment." Photo: Google
4. Grange Valley Primary School, St Helens
Published in January 2017, the Ofsted report for Grange Valley Primary School states: “The aspirational and ambitious leadership of the headteacher has taken this school from strength to strength. The headteacher has built good capacity to continue to improve the school by developing strong senior and middle leaders.”