Overview

These are exciting times at The Liverpool Blue Coat School. Having celebrated it’s tri-centenary in 2008, the school is now ready to throw itself into its next 100 years and the new challenges and opportunities that will undoubtedly present themselves. The school will make this journey with a commitment to excellence in teaching and learning. While the school is proud of and treasures its heritage it will also make this journey with a leadership team who will embrace progress, creativity and new initiatives.

The Liverpool Blue Coat School is an over-subscribed, voluntary-aided co-educational 11-18 school with 966 students on roll including 346 in the Sixth Form. The school is fully selective and is the only Grammar School in Liverpool. The school admits 120 students into Year 7 each September and welcomes external students into the Sixth Form from many local schools.

Traditionally the school’s reputation was built around its academic performance and the outstanding results achieved by the students. While all of the students who are selected at year 7 are extremely gifted academically, and the school enjoys excellent parental support, they come from a wide variety of backgrounds and as such have a range of social and emotional needs. The school is increasingly strong in successfully managing these needs and this is an area of strength it is keen to develop further.

Curriculum

The school offers an academic curriculum for all 3 key stages. At GCSE, every student studies Maths, 2 English courses, IT, all 3 Sciences, one MFL plus other courses of their choice. For Key Stage 5, 23 subjects are offered at both AS and A2 level. This produces outstanding results, detailed below, but an increasing focus for the school is for it to add even greater value. This will require innovation, creativity and a willingness to explore and embrace new approaches and strategies while all the time continuing to deliver outstanding academic performance. These changes have begun, with a compressed two year Key Stage 3.

In September 2007, the School was designated as a specialist school in Science and Mathematics. This designation has enabled the school to invest in better technology and equipment for the delivery of many aspects of the curriculum, especially in Science and Maths. Also, it has enabled the school to work with its partners on exciting developments, such as Rocket Days and Forensic Science Days.

Results

The Liverpool Blue Coat School is consistently in the top 100 schools nationally.

2010 results
5+ at A*-C at GCSE - 100%
A*, A and B at GCSE - 95%
A Level pass rate - 99%
A*, A + B at A Level - 81%

National Challenge Trust Partner

One of the strategies of the National Challenge is for schools in these circumstances to become National Challenge Trust Schools with a strong school as a partner. Parklands High School in Speke is a National Challenge Trust School with The Blue Coat School as the strong school partner. Blue Coat cannot be a Trust School as it has its own Foundation.

The Blue Coat School will have an influence over the governance and day to day running of Parklands High School, this will be in sharing good practice of Teaching and Learning and Leadership and Management.

Parklands High School is facing many challenges both from Ofsted and the DSCF and The Blue Coat School welcomes the opportunity to support and help this Liverpool school meet these challenges.

Statement of aims

1. We aim to prepare all students to be good, useful, productive citizens by:

  • maintaining high expectations
  • offering a variety of experiences
  • encouraging students to be lifelong learners
  • providing a supportive pastoral and careers system
  • offering students an interactive experience with the world beyond education

2. We aim to achieve the highest quality teaching and learning by:

  • recognising the needs and talents of every individual
  • encouraging every student to achieve his/her potential
  • developing positive attitudes to learning, to work and to study
  • maximising student achievement through the effective use of teaching and learning facilities
  • continuing to improve the learning and social environment
  • developing information and communication technologies as strategies for learning

3. We aim to ensure effective involvement by all partners in the school’s life by:

  • maximising opportunities for involvement in home-school partnership to support student achievement
  • developing opportunities for governor training
  • ensuring the school meets the needs of its community
  • providing opportunities for continuous professional development for all staff

4. We aim to foster the values of responsible citizenship in a democratic society by:

  • providing opportunities to exercise responsibility and leadership
  • making students aware of, and encouraging them to form views on a range of political, social, moral and spiritual issues
  • encouraging students to understand and tolerate the views of others
  • encouraging mutually supportive relationships amongst all members of the school community