The Thomas Adams School

The Thomas Adams School is performing well overall, achieving a 'Good' rating in all inspected areas, including the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and sixth-form provision. This is the first inspection of the school since it was established as an academy in March 2020, and it has demonstrated a strong commitment to nurturing individual talents and fostering positive relationships among staff and students. The school community is vibrant, and parents express high levels of satisfaction with the education and support provided to their children. However, there is a recognition of the need for consistency in implementing high expectations among all staff.

Strengths

• Strong positive relationships between staff and pupils
• Broad and ambitious curriculum
• Effective support for reading among struggling pupils
• Extensive range of extracurricular activities
• High levels of parental satisfaction
• Well-organized careers program
• Strong support for sixth-form students

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistent use of questioning by teachers to check understanding
• Need for better task adaptation for pupils with SEND and EAL
• Variability in the implementation of high expectations across the school

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 The Thomas Adams School attended 92.6% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 20.5% 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, 12.3% of pupils at The Thomas Adams 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 The Thomas Adams School had 18.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 11.3% 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, 11.8% of pupils at The Thomas Adams School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 2.5% 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 The Thomas Adams School received £8,072 and spent £8,111 for each of its 1,207 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £81,000 (£67 per pupil).

Across all 14 schools of The 3-18 Education Trust, income was £7,598 and spending £7,604 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 Shrewsbury · Shropshire local authority: places and applications

The Thomas Adams School is part of The 3-18 Education Trust, which runs 14 schools. The nearest others:

• Clive CofE Primary School Shrewsbury
• Whixall CofE Primary School Nr Whitchurch
• Prees CofE Primary School Whitchurch
• Hodnet Primary School Market Drayton
• Lakelands Academy Ellesmere
• Coleham Primary School Shrewsbury
• Bowbrook Primary School Shrewsbury
• The Priory School Shrewsbury
• St Martins School (3-16 Learning Community) Oswestry
• William Brookes School Much Wenlock

What is The Thomas Adams School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for The Thomas Adams School is Good, from an inspection in November 2023.

When was The Thomas Adams School last inspected by Ofsted?

The Thomas Adams School was last inspected in November 2023.

How many pupils does The Thomas Adams School have?

The Thomas Adams School has 1,214 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Thomas Adams School cover?

The Thomas Adams School for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are The Thomas Adams School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 43.3, and 38% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is The Thomas Adams School?

The Thomas Adams School is at Lowe Hill, Wem, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, SY4 5UB.