History of The Belvedere School
About Us
The Belvedere School, Liverpool, opened in 1880 at 17 Belvidere Road as Liverpool High School, in response to requests from local parents to the then Girls’ Public Day School Company (now the Girls’ Day School Trust).
Over time, we expanded by absorbing adjoining houses, and by adding newer, modern buildings. The school changed its name in 1911 to The Belvedere School, in order to stand out from other high schools in the area, and to provide better rhymes for school songs. From the 1940s through to the 70s, The Belvedere School was an academically selective independent girls’ direct grant school. When this status was superseded in the 1970s, a large part of the school’s intake began to come from the government’s Assisted Places Scheme, which was phased out after 1997.
From 2000 to 2007, the school ran an Open Access Scheme, making the excellent education we offer accessible to students from a range of social backgrounds regardless of their ability to pay, but based on their academic potential. The Belvedere School transferred to academy status and became The Belvedere Academy in September 2007. The Belvedere Academy was the GDST’s first academy and was also the first independent school in the UK to become an academy.
The Belvedere Academy continues the tradition of high aspirations, an inclusive approach and excellent achievement which are the hallmarks of The Belvedere School.
The Foundation@belvedere opens - our own internal alternative provision based on the HEARTs Liverpool framework.
Student Support moves to the top floor of the newly renovated House 11.
25 of our places in Year 7 are allocated to the 25 applicants who live closest to the school helping to further develop our relationship with our local community.
Work begins on renovating House 11 and building 6 additional classes in the “Secret Garden” area of the school as the academy’s pupil allocation number reaches 180. This means moving Food Technology out of the basement into the main school and excavating the land at the back of House 11 so that House 11 basement becomes the ground floor.
We co-create what it is to be a pupil or member of staff at Belvedere with current and former pupils, staff, families and governors. This is now known as, “Being Belvedere”. Alongside this, we reframe our values and introduce, "Be Brave, Be Bold, Be Belvedere.”
During the Covid Pandemic, we remained open for vulnerable pupils and move immediately to online learning for all. We welcomed some small exam classes back into school in July 2020 once we were allowed to; we embraced “bubbles” in September 2020 and were one of the first Liverpool schools to host an army-run testing centre. Being part of the GDST meant that our online teaching offer was exceptional: branded “Guided Home Learning,” pupils were enabled to keep up with their studies as well as their personal development and connecting with each other and their teachers.
Work begins on The Forget Me Not building and the new netball court as the academy’s pupil allocation number reaches 155 in Year 7.
Ofsted Inspection: Outstanding.
Ofsted Inspection: Outstanding.
