INSPIRATION may always have been found inside the walls of Liverpool Community College – and now it is definitely bursting out.

And the grand winged Pegasus that has taken up residence on the side of the institution’s arts campus, on Myrtle Street, has even more to it than meets the eye.

The striking new sculpture, titled Inspiration, is the work of Liverpool artist Tony Evans. His recognisable copper and bronze animals can be spotted in galleries around the city – and it is all because of an art course taken at the community college.

Mr Evans took the course in 1999, which then spurred him on to earn the formal qualifications he never gained at school and become a professional artist.

The work was unveiled yesterday in a ceremony outside the venue by Biennial director Lewis Biggs.

“This is a nice loop for me. I didn’t come here as a career move, I came here to do an art course,” Mr Evans said of the occasion.

“It was the staff here who suggested I take qualifications. I’ve a lot to thank this college for.

“I was in my mid-50s when I took my GCSEs.”

Mr Evans went on to obtain a degree in fine art from Wirral Metropolitan College and turn his talent for sculpture into his livelihood.

“This is probably the biggest thing I’ve ever done and certainly the most high profile,” he said. “I wanted the idea to be something that reflected what the college meant for me and could mean for pupils.

“This used to be the old children’s hospital, with a rocking horse in the window. Everyone from my generation knew it, and so there’s also that horse link.”

The marquette that marked the beginning of the process is on display in the front windows of the college alongside other works, including pieces from Mr Evans’s time as a student there.

Inspiration needed initial consultation with structural engineers, but all other work was completed by the sculptor single- handedly in his studio at the Bridewell, in Kensington.