Radical Innovation and Traditional Excellence

Some schools offer a limited range of subjects and all schools restrict some of the most interesting disciplines, such as economics, politics and psychology, to Sixth Form students only. Not here.

Everyone studies everything in the Fourth Form (Years 7+8), including a course in PPE (Philosophy, Politics and Economics), and all students have meaningful choice from a wide range of alternatives going into Fifth Form (Year 9), a year earlier than most schools. They own their path through the curriculum: and the rewards are so much greater as a result.

Every student at Thomas’s is taught cognitive psychology as part of their personal development. This supports our four-dimensional approach to education, where self-understanding is as important as the traditional dimensions of knowledge, skills and character. If our young people understand themselves, their strengths and areas of growth, they will become hugely effective and capable across and beyond their studies.

Independent education in London is disfigured by the 11+/13+ system. Families compete in a system that tests a narrow form of intelligence and face strong incentives to subject their children to excessive tutoring. At all levels, this leads to narrowness: of experience, of aptitude, of creativity. We know the world’s best workplaces nurture different forms of intelligence and creativity.

Our commitment is to the same diversity of excellence and intelligence as the best workplaces. We are committed to a holistic selection process that focuses on personality, potential and imagination, not hoop-jumping and ineffective cognitive assessment.

Sixth Form – the top years at school – is the summit of secondary education, but it is too short: two years, much of which is taken up with university application and exams. Our Sixth Form, uniquely, starts earlier and lasts for three years.

The benefits are wide-ranging. All our public examination is concentrated into one phase of school life. Students start Sixth Form in Lower Sixth (Year 11), and complete GCSEs and equivalent exams at the end of the first year.

They then start on A Levels and equivalents. This period of their education is future-focused, treating them as grown-ups and helping them gain the qualifications they need. This protects the Fourth and Fifth Forms (Years 7-10), which focus on learning and growth, not the treadmill of exams.

This is our flagship educational reform and the heart of what makes Thomas’s different. All our students explore a wide range of academic disciplines with a sense of freedom and adventure from Lower Fourth (Year 7) to Upper Fifth (Year 10).

At the start of Lower Sixth (Year 11), they choose which of their subjects they will take to GCSE examinations at the end of the year, and which they will take to Thomas’s Qualifications (TQs) – our own new and innovative assessments encouraging real-world skills and abilities. Many schools are offering educational reform, and the majority of top London schools are exploring alternatives to GCSE. We are the only school, however, providing this reform on your terms, and putting families in charge of the balance between the new and the traditional.

Many of our young people will take GCSEs in the majority of their courses, with TQs giving them the chance to develop the skills they need in our changing world. Some may take more TQs to prepare them for entrepreneurial and creative pathways. Taking TQs is not about closing doors to traditional outcomes. It is about giving young people the confidence and abilities to stride through those doors, ready to make an impact on the world.

TQs have already been recognised by UCAS, the UK university admissions system. We’re confident that the right mix of TQs will enhance the academic profile of every student in our school. TQs are mapped against the future skills our young people need. TQs help us put these skills at the heart of the experience for all students.

Our Thomas’s Qualifications are unique and we believe they represent the future of assessment, encouraging the skills of presentation and creativity students need in an increasingly automated world. Those looking for the most traditional academic excellence, from Oxbridge to the Ivy League, can ensure they complete as many GCSEs and A Levels as they need, with brilliant support from our Sixth Form team, including specialist US university advice.

In addition they will all have exposure to the new ways of thought the TQs represent, making their applications compelling and stand-out. Those looking for a more entrepreneurial and creative path can choose more TQs in the mix, and build up a portfolio of work that will see them far ahead of peers.

First and foremost, our education will always be based around one single priority that has guided us for over 50 years: Be Kind. This is a non-negotiable for us. If every child walks into school with excitement and assurance, knowing that every single member of the community, whether child or adult, has their back, they will be ready to achieve anything.

We’re determined to be the school that notices and values each young person as the individual they are. We have small pastoral groups of around 15 children and we make more time for those groups than other schools. The groups include children of different ages to help them learn from and guide each other.

In too many schools, especially those that began life as boys’ schools, there are systemic imbalances in the number of girls and boys. This can manifest further in a continued focus, for example on boys’ sport over girls’ sport. We believe in true co-education with all students learning to value each other as the individuals they are on equal terms.

A unique programme of personal development prepares students for the future and to help them become the people they mean to be. The programme includes:

• Inspiring talks from peers, staff and outside speakers
• Small group debate and discussion
• Life and society studies, learning how to grow, develop, and make choices
• Equality, diversity and inclusion, continuing to build a fair and equal future
• Outdoor education, keeping the focus on adventure, exploration and play
• Careers and futures, working out how to blaze a trail in a changing world
• Volunteering and community, ensuring all our young people contribute to the world around them
• Reading for pleasure – reading remains perhaps the single most important way to develop empathy and communication skills
• Cognitive psychology, teaching the gift of self-understanding

Breadth of experience was one of the Thomas’s founding principles back in 1971. It remains a core focus of our educational offering across all traditional co-curricular disciplines and many more besides. Our co-curricular pages give a sense of the remarkable opportunities on offer.

We recognise the powerful role that technology plays both for good and for potential harm in our children’s lives. Our approach is phone-free to Sixth Form.

We want children to learn to navigate the digital world and to become critical thinkers regarding the benefits and harms of AI, so we issue them with iPads (and a choice of iPads or Macbooks in Middle and Upper Sixth) to support their learning. These devices are under close control, with no compulsory home use for younger students and parental controls over internet access, to help them manage and gain control of their use of screens. 

In everything we do, we are restless in seeking excellence: ensuring that everything we offer is considered and purposeful, aimed at supporting our goal of creating happy and optimistic young people.