Inspection Summary Report - Mount Lourdes Grammar School

Mount Lourdes Grammar School

DE Ref No 242-0041

Inspection Summary Report - November 2025

The school’s vision, which is centred on nurturing and fostering the holistic development of each pupil, is exemplified in every aspect of school life.
Relationships throughout the school are characterised by mutual respect, kindness, and a strong sense of care, reflecting the tradition of the Sisters of Mercy on which the school was founded.
The school development planning process is informed by robust self-evaluation and strengthened through meaningful consultation with all stakeholders.
Pupils conduct themselves with maturity and courtesy; their behaviour is exemplary. They enjoy working collaboratively and undertake enthusiastically an extensive range of leadership roles outside the classroom.
Planning, teaching and assessment for successful learning across the school is mostly effective; the consistent use of contemporary pedagogy such as retrieval practice, is supporting pupils well to consolidate and progress their learning. There is scope to provide pupils with more opportunities to take appropriate risks in their learning, experience greater challenge and develop further their digital skills.
Internal assessment arrangements have been reviewed appropriately to make the assessment series more manageable for everyone and should include individualising the target setting process to monitor, and report more effectively on, pupil progress.
The school is committed to staff professional learning which is highly valued by teachers and classroom assistants and is improving classroom practice.
Over the past two years, the curriculum at key stage 4 has been improved to offer a wider choice of pathways and subjects; further development is required at this level to meet all pupils’ needs, interests and career aspirations.
A highly proactive and holistic approach to pupil and staff health and well-being lies at the heart of the school’s ethos, fostering resilience, confidence, and a culture where pupils thrive and feel safe.
The well co-ordinated and responsive support for any pupil at risk of underachievement is impacting positively on pupil learning experiences and outcomes.
The collaborative and sensitive support for pupils with special educational needs is improving their self-esteem and enabling them to engage more fully with their learning and to achieve.
The outcomes in public examinations are a key strength of the school and enable pupils to progress to the next stage of their education, employment and training.
Highly effective collaboration has grown a strong community of learning which enriches the pupils’ experiences, promotes their well‑being, and prepares them well for life.
The core Sisters of Mercy values of service, compassion and social justice underpin the school’s promotion of active citizenship through their support of those less privileged locally and globally.
At the time of the inspection, the evidence provided by the school demonstrates that the arrangements for child and adult protection align with the current statutory guidance.

Next steps

The staff of Mount Lourdes Grammar School are realising effectively the school’s vision of nurturing and fostering the holistic development of each pupil. The legacy of the founding Sisters of Mercy continues to permeate all aspects of the life and work of the school, enriching the pupils’ experiences, promoting their well-being, and preparing them well for life. As identified through the school’s self-evaluation process, the next steps for Mount Lourdes Grammar School include the following area for action: to plan for learning that challenges pupils more consistently, develops further their thinking skills and personal capabilities, and builds their digital competence.

The District Inspector will monitor the school’s progress in addressing the area for action, as part of ETI’s normal monitoring processes.

Inspectors also identified aspects of highly effective practice from which others may learn. The aspects of practice which should be shared more widely are:

the school’s approaches to overcoming barriers to learning and enabling pupils to thrive and achieve; and
the school’s impactful partnership with local industry which enhances significantly the pupils’ understanding of environmental sustainability, economic awareness, and aspects of social responsibility.