What a result!

Liverpool Schools Investment Programme helps city students achieve more

WITH this year’s GCSE results fresh in, students in Liverpool have seen their grades rise compared with previous years.

The number of GCSE students gaining a 4 (the equivalent to a C) or higher has risen to nearly 60 per cent. Figures for Maths results at grade 4 or higher have risen to nearly 65 per cent and the city is now higher than the national average for English results, with 72 per cent of students achieving grade 4 or above.

It’s a testament to the hard work and determination of the young people and their families and the passion and professionalism of their teachers.

Part of this year’s success could also be attributed to the fact that many of the city’s students have benefited from ultra-modern new learning environments thanks to the Liverpool Schools Investment Programme (LSIP).

The Liverpool Schools Investment Programme (LSIP), was created in the wake of the scrapping of the national Building Schools for the Future programme in 2010.

watch our video about the new Archbishop Blanch School

Spearheaded by Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson, the scheme generated more than £180M in council and government funding. In just five years a total of 22 schools have benefited from the project.

It meant that 15 of the city’s schools have been completely re-built, three more have benefited from significant new builds, whilst a further four have received new extensions and other buildings.

One of those to benefit was the new Archbishop Blanch School in Picton. The £16m new building includes new sports facilities, theatre and dance studio, plus a new prayer room with stained glass from the two founding schools. This year the school has celebrated its best ever GCSE results.

Archbishop Blanch headteacher Heather Duggan is one of those who believes the modern environment has had an impact on learning.

Heather said: “It’s a building which inspires young people when they walk through the doors, in terms of achieving, giving them a positive feel. A lot of what you see in our new school and a lot of the impact we have had with the results has been because we have been able to plan in strategies in terms of behaviour management, in terms of teaching and learning, through the design of the building and the interior.

“The concept of the new school design was a very brave decision because I don’t believe another authority that has been able to, in a short space of time, design, build and deliver on so many new schools that the Mayoral scheme has seen.”

Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson recently revisited the new Archbishop Blanch School to see the improvements at first hand.

Mayor Anderson said: “This is an amazing building which is helping to bring real improvements to our children’s education. This was a real win – win situation for us because we are using the site of the old Archbishop Blanch School to develop the £1bn Paddington Village site. In turn, the development of this site will undoubtedly open up opportunities for our young people in years to come. The investment in our school building programme was an investment in our future generations and the future of our city.”

Liverpool Waterfront