Sunnymede primary was founded in 1964, and was the last remaining independent school in the coastal town of Southport when its doors closed at the end of term in 2010 after celebrating its 50th anniversary. Due to the combination of falling numbers of pupils joining the school, increasing costs and the sheer amount of red tape and paperwork from the overbearing interference of the governments education policies. Day pupils aged from 3-11 paid £5100 per term, and the school could cater for 141 pupils at full capacity.

The much loved headmaster was Mr Simon Pattinson who lived in the out-house next to the school on a permanent basis, and had kept the school running after five decades of family ownership. Simon’s father Alan and his wife Katy began Sunnymede’s educational odyssey in 1960. They arrived from Cambridge with high ambitions of developing every facet of the school possible. Within a decade they had moved from Grosvenor Road to its present site. With a number of local independent schools operating locally at the time, competition was strong, but the business flourished, and the number of pupils on the roll grew rapidly.

Until the boundary changes of the early 70s the school was part of the lancashire county education board, but then ended up in merseyside to the dismay of some of the childrens parents, leading to the start of its initial demise. The further reason for this sad demise is due on one hand to a failing roll over in it’s last 12 to 18 months of operation, and on the other to an increase in expenditure created by the various regulations and legislations imposed by the government. After celebrating the school's 50th birthday, just six months before it's eventual closure, Simon Pattinson wrote: “This family school has literally been my life’s work, and it is to the testament of pupils, past and present, our wonderful teachers and the constant support from many parents and friends that have allowed us to reach this fabulous milestone.”