Matthew Arnold Primary School
Dingle Lane, Liverpool, L8 9UB
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Foundation school
- Ages
- 2 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- South Liverpool Education Trust
- Headteacher
- Mrs Louise Evans
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- SEN provision
- SLCN - Speech, language and Communication
- Constituency
- Liverpool Riverside
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 200
- Pupils on roll
- 276
- URN
- 104557
- Local authority
- Liverpool
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01515390300
About this school
Matthew Arnold Primary School is a foundation primary school in Liverpool. It teaches children aged 2 to 11 and has 276 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Matthew Arnold Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
A short monitoring inspection followed on : inspectors found some aspects are not as strong as at the previous inspection.
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 30 | 28 | 29 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 47% | 43% | 59% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 3% | 4% | 3% |
| Expected standard in reading | 60% | 68% | 72% |
| Expected standard in maths | 83% | 79% | 69% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 63% | 64% | 66% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 104.0 | 104.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 103.0 | 106.0 |
| Reading progress | -1.80 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -1.60 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +2.40 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Matthew Arnold Primary School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Liverpool average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 47% | 52.8% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 43% | 55.4% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 59% | 55.1% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.2% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6.5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 280 |
| 2023/24 | 282 |
| 2024/25 | 282 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Matthew Arnold Primary School compares
Matthew Arnold Primary School ranked 56th of 107 primary schools in Liverpool for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 38% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 30% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 59% | 6.5% | 60.8% | 276 | — |
| St Finbar's Catholic Primary School | 54% | 6.8% | 68% | 159 | 0.1 miles |
| St Cleopas' Church of England Primary Academy | 63% | 6.3% | 57.4% | 264 | 0.4 miles |
| St Michael-in-the-Hamlet Community Primary School | 53% | 4.7% | 23% | 443 | 0.5 miles |
| St Charles' Catholic Academy | — | — | — | 196 | 0.6 miles |
| St Silas Church of England Primary School | 56% | 5.9% | 58.6% | 358 | 0.6 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
Inspection history
-
Ungraded inspection report14 May 2025
- 4 February 2020
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 60.78%
- English as an additional language
- 15.6%
- Overall absence
- 6.51%
- Persistent absence
- 19.34%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St Finbar's Catholic Primary School0.1 miles
Primary · Liverpool
-
St Cleopas' Church of England Primary Academy0.4 miles
Primary · Liverpool
-
St Michael-in-the-Hamlet Community Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Liverpool
-
St Charles' Catholic Academy0.6 miles
Primary · Liverpool
-
St Silas Church of England Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Liverpool
Other schools in Liverpool
Matthew Arnold Primary School ranks 95th of the 176 ranked primary schools in Liverpool.
- Aintree Davenhill Primary School Primary
- All Saints' Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School Primary
- Anfield Road Primary School Primary
- Arnot St Mary CofE Primary School Primary
- Banks Road Primary School Primary
- Barlows Primary School Primary
- Bedford Primary School Primary
- Belle Vale Community Primary School Primary
- Bishop Martin Church of England Primary School, Woolton Primary
- Blacklow Brow School Primary
- Blackmoor Park Infants' School Primary
- Blackmoor Park Junior School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Matthew Arnold Primary School teach?
- Matthew Arnold Primary School teaches children aged 2 to 11. It is a primary school in Liverpool.
- Who is the headteacher of Matthew Arnold Primary School?
- The headteacher of Matthew Arnold Primary School is Mrs Louise Evans, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Matthew Arnold Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Matthew Arnold Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at Matthew Arnold Primary School?
- Matthew Arnold Primary School has 276 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 2 to 11.
- Is Matthew Arnold Primary School full?
- Matthew Arnold Primary School has capacity for 200 pupils and 276 on roll (138%), so it is at or above its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Matthew Arnold Primary School a faith school?
- No. Matthew Arnold Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Matthew Arnold Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Matthew Arnold Primary School as having nursery classes.
- Is Matthew Arnold Primary School part of an academy trust?
- Matthew Arnold Primary School is part of South Liverpool Education Trust. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does Matthew Arnold Primary School have?
- The schools register lists Matthew Arnold Primary School's special educational needs provision as: SLCN - Speech, language and Communication. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have Matthew Arnold Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 47% in 2022/23 and 59% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Matthew Arnold Primary School compare with other schools in Liverpool?
- Matthew Arnold Primary School ranked 56th of 107 primary schools in Liverpool for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 38% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 30% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Matthew Arnold Primary School's absence rate?
- Matthew Arnold Primary School's overall absence rate is 6.5% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Matthew Arnold Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Matthew Arnold Primary School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 29 June 2026.