Thank you for taking the time to visit our website. I am delighted to welcome you to our wonderful school and hope these pages give you an insight into daily life at St Andrew’s CE (VA) Primary and answer any questions you may have. We are a friendly, nurturing school situated in an incredible location in the heart of Plymouth, near the sea and the famous Plymouth Hoe. 

St Andrew’s is a Church of England, local authority-maintained school supported by the Diocese of Exeter. Our origins stretch back to the 1860s, and we continue to have strong links with The Minster Church of St Andrew in the city centre. Whilst we offer our children and families a distinctively Christian school experience with strong Christian values at the heart of all we do, we are genuinely inclusive and welcome children and families from all faiths or none.

We are a relatively small school with seven classes from Foundation to Year 6, and relationships between pupils, families and staff are strong, connecting us like a school family. We are proud of our well-maintained school buildings and grounds; the classrooms are light and airy, providing a superb environment for learning; and we work hard to update and improve our facilities (our most recent project being the fabulous new EYFS outdoor play area). Some describe us as ‘an oasis in the heart of the city’ and on a sunny day in the spring it certainly feels that way!

Children are at the heart of all that we do. We have a motivated, well-established staff who are committed to providing the very best care and education for every child, supported by our governors and the wider school community. We strive to provide children with a solid foundation, equipping them with the values, skills and knowledge they need to be safe and live successful, healthy lives in this ever-changing world. We want all children to flourish and seek to develop their confidence, interests and talents in a range of ways; through performance opportunities; extra-curricular clubs; specialist teachers and visitors; inter-school competitions and local events. Our pupils make good progress from their starting points and academic standards are high, with results often above national averages.

We are an outward looking, busy school, always seeking to enhance the curriculum with trips and events in our local area. Recent collaborations include Year 2 creating a Banksy inspired mural with students from the Plymouth Arts University and a Year 4 Young Marketeers gardening project linking us to the pannier market in the city centre. We are lucky to have easy access to numerous city locations such as The Box, Theatre Royal, Plymouth Central Library and the historic Barbican or beautiful Mount Edgecumbe. Our pupils are also fortunate to experience the world of work through the Millfields Trust Widening Horizons project.  

We are very proud of our school and are more than happy to welcome visitors and share our practice. 

Miss Lewis

Headteacher