The Thomas Adams School

Shropshire · SY4 5UB

General information Secondary School · 11-18 years Who goes here 1214 pupils, 17.8% FSM

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 11.8% on SEN support Behaviour 7.4% absence rate Staff 13.1% turnover Financials £7,684 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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The Thomas Adams School

General Information

Address: Lowe Hill, Wem, Shrewsbury, SY4 5UB – View on map
Phone: 01939237000
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mr Mark Cooper
Age range: 11-18 years
Demand for places (Year 7, September 2026): 237 families put it first for 207 places – 11 for every 10 places. 86% of them were offered a place. 6 of the 207 places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 10 · 2024 11 · 2025 11 · 2026 11
Sixth form: Yes
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: None
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

1214 pupils out of 1336 places

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 186
% eligible for free school meals: 17.8%
Pupil mix: 2 in 10 (similar to the Shropshire average)
English as an additional language: 7% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 13.1% a year (Shropshire 14.7%, typical in England 15.5%)
Where they went: about 29% moved to another school, 71% left state schools altogether (retirement, other careers, independent schools, abroad)
Data years: 2022/23 to 2024/25 (average of 3 years, DfE school workforce census)

Teachers who moved school or left state schools in the year after each November, as a share of all the school's teachers. Some turnover is healthy – retirements, promotions, moving house.

Behaviour

Awaiting Data

About this Behaviour status

We've asked this school for real behaviour figures under Freedom of Information and haven't had a response yet.

Across Shropshire: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 58 (3.5 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.7)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 0
Suspensions for bullying: 47 (2.9 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.9)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 12 (0.7 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.8)
Data year: 2024/25 (DfE suspensions and exclusions statistics)

These are figures for all state secondary schools in Shropshire, not this school's own – the government doesn't publish them school by school. A suspension can have up to three reasons. Most sexual harassment between pupils never leads to a suspension, so these figures show only part of the picture.

Attendance

Overall absence: 7.4%
Persistently absent pupils: 20.5%
Data year: 2024/25

About persistent absence

A pupil is counted as "persistently absent" if they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions - roughly one day in every two weeks. Schools and Ofsted both pay close attention to this figure specifically, since it can highlight a pattern the overall absence rate alone might hide.

SEN

No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision

SEN Unit and Resourced Provision

Most mainstream schools don't have a dedicated SEN Unit or Resourced Provision - it isn't a mark against a school that doesn't, just a different kind of setup than one that does.

Pupils on SEN Support: 11.8%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 2.5%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need: 33 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 29 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 28 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 22 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 16 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Social, emotional and mental health: 16 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 6 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 3 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 3 pupils
Physical disability: 1 pupil

These figures show the makeup of the school.

About these SEND figures

These figures give a sense of the makeup of the school - they aren't a judgement on the quality of support provided.

Parent score - no reviews yet –

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Behaviour

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Openness

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Teaching Quality

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School Ethos

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Ability to Deal with Problems

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Headteacher Approval

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SafeguardingSafeguarding (parent rating)How parents rate the school on keeping children safe - how safe their child feels, and how well concerns are listened to and acted on. It's parents' experience, not an inspection result; Ofsted checks safeguarding separately.

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Would recommend –

Educational Attainment

Good 2023 report

About this Ofsted rating

Ofsted changed how it rates schools in the last couple of years, so ratings from different years aren't always on the same scale - that's why we show the year alongside every rating.

Attainment 8 score: 43.4
Compared with the area: in line with the Shropshire average (43.3)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: Below (−4.6 points against an expected 48.0)
Grade 4+ in English and maths: 62% (Shropshire 60%, England 65%) Improving
Data year: 2024/25

View the School Context Comparator – how this school's results compare with schools teaching similar pupils.

GCSE results over time

This schoolShropshire averageEngland→ Broadly steady No clear rise or fall since 2022/23 (changes this small are normal from one year group to the next). In 2024/25 this school was in line with the Shropshire average (43.3).

About the Attainment 8 score

Attainment 8 measures a pupil's average result across 8 GCSE-equivalent qualifications (English and maths count double). It shows how pupils performed, not how much progress they made getting there - a school with a higher score doesn't necessarily add more value, since pupils often arrive with different starting points. Progress 8 is the measure designed to account for that, but it currently can't be calculated for any school for the two most recent academic years, due to a nationwide gap in the data caused by COVID-19 disruption to Key Stage 2 testing.

11th of 20 secondary schools in Shropshire for Attainment 8

#9Mary Webb School and Science College43.5
#10The Community College, Bishop's Castle43.4
#11The Thomas Adams School43.4
#12Lakelands Academy43.1
#13The Marches School43.1

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

Rank School Score

#1The Priory School52.7
#2The Corbet School47.2
#3Sir John Talbot's School46.8
#4Church Stretton School46.0
#5The Lacon Childe School45.8
#6Oldbury Wells School44.9
#7Meole Brace School44.6
#8Bridgnorth Endowed School44.4
#9Mary Webb School and Science College43.5
#10The Community College, Bishop's Castle43.4
#11The Thomas Adams School43.4
#12Lakelands Academy43.1
#13The Marches School43.1
#14Ludlow Church of England School41.9
#15William Brookes School41.4
#16Idsall School41.0
#17Belvidere School39.8
#18The Grove School39.5
#19St Martins School (3-16 Learning Community)36.4
#20Shrewsbury Academy33.2

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 91.0%
Went into further education: 77.0%
Data year: 2024/25

About leaver destinations

This shows where a school's Year 11 leavers were recorded the following year - in a "sustained" destination means in education, an apprenticeship, or employment for at least 6 months, not just enrolled briefly. It's a different picture from exam results alone, and can highlight schools that support pupils well beyond just their GCSE grades.

GCSE Subjects Offered

Maths (General)
English Language
English Literature
Science Double Award
History
French Language
Art & Design
Geography
Food Technology
Biology
Physics (General)
D & T
Chemistry (General)
Business Studies
Psychology (General)
Computer Science
Religious Studies
Music Studies (General)
Speech & Drama
Spanish
Chinese
Polish
Photography
Community Development

About this subject list

This isn't the school's own description of its curriculum - it's real DfE exam entry data, showing which GCSE subjects this school's pupils were actually entered for in 2024/25. A subject not appearing here may still be taught but had no pupils entered that year, so treat this as a helpful guide rather than a complete guarantee - it's worth confirming directly with the school for the year your child would actually study.

View full Ofsted inspection report

12th of 16 secondary schools in Shropshire for Ofsted rating

#10The Marches SchoolGood
#11The Priory SchoolGood
#12The Thomas Adams SchoolGood
#13Shrewsbury AcademyRequires improvement
#14The Grove SchoolRequires improvement

Click to see the full ranking

Ofsted Rating ranking

Based on real Ofsted ratings (via official DfE data) for schools on the same four-word grading scale.

Rank School Score

#1Bridgnorth Endowed SchoolGood
#2Church Stretton SchoolGood
#3Mary Webb School and Science CollegeGood
#4Meole Brace SchoolGood
#5Oldbury Wells SchoolGood
#6Sir John Talbot's SchoolGood
#7St Martins School (3-16 Learning Community)Good
#8The Community College, Bishop's CastleGood
#9The Corbet SchoolGood
#10The Marches SchoolGood
#11The Priory SchoolGood
#12The Thomas Adams SchoolGood
#13Shrewsbury AcademyRequires improvement
#14The Grove SchoolRequires improvement
#15The Lacon Childe SchoolRequires improvement
#16William Brookes SchoolRequires improvement

Financials

Spending per pupil: £7,684 (2024-25)

About this spending figure

A higher or lower position here isn't a sign of a better or worse school - schools have different needs and circumstances - but it can help reassure you that a school has sufficient funding behind your child's education.

7th of 20 secondary schools in Shropshire for spending per pupil

#5William Brookes School£7,940
#6The Corbet School£7,844
#7The Thomas Adams School£7,684
#8The Grove School£7,394
#9The Priory School£7,390

Click to see the full ranking

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Based on official DfE financial return data (Consistent Financial Reporting / Academies Accounts Return) - not a ranking of school quality.

Rank School Score

#1The Lacon Childe School£8,309
#2The Community College, Bishop's Castle£8,208
#3Lakelands Academy£8,110
#4Shrewsbury Academy£8,056
#5William Brookes School£7,940
#6The Corbet School£7,844
#7The Thomas Adams School£7,684
#8The Grove School£7,394
#9The Priory School£7,390
#10Ludlow Church of England School£7,266
#11Mary Webb School and Science College£7,260
#12Oldbury Wells School£7,232
#13Meole Brace School£7,144
#14Church Stretton School£7,141
#15Sir John Talbot's School£7,110
#16Bridgnorth Endowed School£7,096
#17Belvidere School£6,867
#18Idsall School£6,832
#19The Marches School£6,638
#20St Martins School (3-16 Learning Community)£6,456

View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)

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General Information

Who goes here

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Behaviour

Across Shropshire: suspensions by reason

Attendance

SEN

Most common needs - SEN Support

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Educational Attainment

Attainment 8 ranking

Leaver Destinations ?

GCSE Subjects Offered ?

Ofsted Rating ranking

Financials

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Leaver Destinations

GCSE Subjects Offered