Sir John Talbot's School

Sir John Talbot's School is performing well overall, achieving a 'Good' rating with notable strengths in leadership and personal development, which have been rated as 'Outstanding'. The school demonstrates a strong commitment to inclusion, ensuring that all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, receive appropriate support. Recent improvements in attendance and behaviour have positively impacted the learning environment, although there continue to be challenges in managing suspensions for a small number of students. This inspection marks the first routine evaluation since the pandemic, and the school has effectively adapted to the needs of its pupils during this period.

Strengths

• Inclusive learning environment that supports all pupils
• High expectations for pupil achievement
• Strong personal development opportunities
• Effective support for pupils with SEND
• Ambitious and well-planned curriculum
• Positive relationships with parents and external agencies
• Effective careers education integrated into the curriculum
• Staff feel well supported and valued

Areas for Improvement

• High proportion of suspensions in the past
• Some pupils continue to struggle with behaviour expectations

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Sir John Talbot's School attended 92.0% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 22.5% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 4.9% of pupils at Sir John Talbot's School were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Sir John Talbot's School had 16.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 11.1% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 11.3% of pupils at Sir John Talbot's School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 5.9% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded secondary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 Sir John Talbot's School received £8,000 and spent £7,768 for each of its 883 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £423,000 (£479 per pupil).

Across all 14 schools of Marches Academy Trust, income was £8,021 and spending £7,895 per pupil.

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Whitchurch · Shropshire local authority: places and applications

Sir John Talbot's School is part of Marches Academy Trust, which runs 18 schools. The nearest others:

• Tilstock CofE Primary and Nursery Whitchurch
• Lower Heath CofE Primary School Whitchurch
• Woodlands School Shrewsbury
• Longlands Primary School Market Drayton
• The Grove School Market Drayton
• Cockshutt CofE Primary School and Nursery Ellesmere
• Criftins CofE Primary School and Nursery Ellesmere
• Weston Lullingfields Church of England Primary School and Nursery Shrewsbury
• West Felton Church of England Primary School and Nursery Oswestry
• Grange Primary School Shrewsbury

What is Sir John Talbot's School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Sir John Talbot's School is Good, from an inspection in January 2024.

When was Sir John Talbot's School last inspected by Ofsted?

Sir John Talbot's School was last inspected in January 2024.

How many pupils does Sir John Talbot's School have?

Sir John Talbot's School has 861 pupils on roll.

What age range does Sir John Talbot's School cover?

Sir John Talbot's School for pupils aged 11 to 19.

What are Sir John Talbot's School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 40.2, and 39% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Sir John Talbot's School?

Sir John Talbot's School is at Prees Road, Whitchurch, Shropshire, SY13 2BY.