St Finbar's Catholic Primary School

  • Primary
  • Local authority maintained
  • Ages 3 to 11
Ofsted: Good

South Hill Road, Liverpool, L8 9RYOpen in maps (opens in a new tab)

St Finbar's Catholic Primary School is a primary school in Liverpool for ages 3 to 11. It is one of the 186 schools in Liverpool. It ranks 127th of 171 primary schools in Liverpool. Its latest Ofsted rating is Good, from an inspection in November 2021.

Ofsted inspection

Inspected 16 November 2021, report published 16 January 2022

Overall effectiveness
Good
Quality of education
Good
Behaviour and attitudes
Good
Personal development
Good
Leadership and management
Good
Early years provision
Good
Safeguarding
Met

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 16 November 2021

St Finbar's is a happy and welcoming place that pupils enjoy attending. They said that they have lots of friends and that 'no one is left out'. Pupils said that they feel safe because staff are kind and look after them well. Teachers have high expectations for pupils and pupils do their best to live up to these. Pupils work in calm and orderly classrooms, uninterrupted by poor behaviour. They are well mannered and show respect for their teachers and friends. Pupils engage positively in their learning and they achieve well. Pupils said that bullying is rare but, if it does happen, staff will sort it out quickly. Pupils are proud of the work that they do to support others, such as fundraising for local charities. They enjoy the many after-school clubs on offer, such as singing, drawing and Lego club. Pupils also appreciate the opportunity to hold responsibilities, for example, as a school councillor or acting as a 'playground buddy' for younger pupils. Pupils benefit from the many trips that teachers organise to support their learning. For instance, pupils in Year 2 have recently visited a zoo and pupils in Year 5 thoroughly enjoyed their science trip.

What the school should improve

  • Members of the governing body do not have an accurate view about how well pupils are learning the intended curriculum. As a result, they have not provided appropriate challenge to leaders about how well pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, are achieving across the curriculum. Those responsible for governance must ensure that they understand how well pupils are learning so that they can hold leaders to account more effectively.
  • Leaders have not ensured that the curriculums in a small number of subjects are sufficiently well organised. As a result, pupils struggle to make connections and build successfully on earlier learning. Leaders should ensure that pupils' learning in these subjects is organised more carefully so that pupils can make links with their prior knowledge and deepen their learning over time.

Exam results

SATs results (key stage 2), 2024/25

26 pupils took the tests

Expected standard in reading, writing and maths54%

54%, 8 percentage points below the England average of 62%.

Higher standard in reading, writing and maths4%

4%, 4 percentage points below the England average of 8%.

Reading, average scaled score104

104, 2 below the England average of 106.

Maths, average scaled score103

103, 2 below the England average of 105.

Grammar, punctuation and spelling, average scaled score104

104, 1 below the England average of 105.

Pupil numbers and mix

159 pupils on roll, with places for 175

Eligible for free school meals60.4%

60.4%, 33.9 percentage points above the England average of 26.5%.

English as an additional language47.8%

47.8%, 26.2 percentage points above the England average of 21.6%.

Special educational needs support20.8%

20.8%, 6 percentage points above the England average of 14.8%.

Education, health and care plan2.5%

2.5%, 3.5 percentage points below the England average of 6%.

Schools near St Finbar's Catholic Primary School

SchoolDistanceOfstedResults
Matthew Arnold Primary School0.1 milesOfsted: Good59% met the expected standard
St Cleopas' Church of England Primary Academy0.3 milesOfsted: Good63% met the expected standard
The Belvedere Preparatory School0.3 milesNo Ofsted inspectionNot published
St Silas Church of England Primary School0.5 milesOfsted: Outstanding56% met the expected standard
Holy Family Catholic Primary School0.6 milesOfsted: Good62% met the expected standard

School details

School type
Voluntary aided school
Sector
Local authority maintained
Age range
3 to 11
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Roman Catholic
Nursery classes
Yes
Headteacher
Mrs Janet Conley
Address
South Hill Road, Liverpool, L8 9RY
Local authority
Liverpool
URN
104640

School details from Get Information about Schools, 17 September 2026. Ofsted outcomes published to 31 August 2026. Exam results for 2024/25 from the Department for Education. Pupil mix from the school census, 2025/26.