Four Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin schools with the best 'Pupil Progress' score

The 'Progress 8' score shows how much progress has been made by pupils between the end of Key Stage 2 (from Year 6) and the end of Key Stage 4 (Year 11).

This is compared to pupils across England who got similar results at the end of Key Stage 2 and is based on eight qualifications, including Maths and English.

In Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin, four schools achieved 'above average' or 'well above average' scores, with more than 90 per cent of these pupils (2021 leavers) staying in education or entering employment.

The schools are: The Priory School in Shrewsbury, Newport Girls' High School Academy, Thomas Telford School and Haberdashers' Adams.

Shropshire

The Priory School, which is part of The 3-18 Education Trust, received an above average score of 0.37, meaning pupils achieved up to half a grade higher in each qualification on average, compared to similar pupils across the country.

A total of 164 out of 167 pupils at the end of Key stage 4 are included in calculating this Progress 8 score.

Pupils who have no Key Stage 2 results are not included in the Progress 8 measure.

The Priory School, which is an academy, was the only school to achieve this score in Shropshire – 62 per cent of its pupils achieved a Grade 5 or above in English and Maths GCSEs.

Telford and Wrekin

Newport Girls' High School Academy achieved a well above average score of 0.8, meaning pupils here achieved more than half a grade higher in each qualification on average, compared to similar pupils across the country.

A total of 76 out of 86 pupils at the end of Key stage 4 are included in calculating this Progress 8 score.

The academy, which is based at Wellington Road, saw 99 per cent of its pupils staying in education or entering employment – and 99 per cent achieved a Grade 5 or above in English and Maths GCSEs.

Headteacher, Michael Scott said: “The progress our NGHS Class of 2023 made from Year 6 to Year 11 is outstanding.

"It was borne out of a desire by pupils to recoup any lost learning and strive for the highest standards. Their hard work and that of their teachers has given our students an outstanding set of results."

On pupils' return to school following the Covid lockdown, the school introduced a 'Bounce Back Curriculum' for this year group.

This programme included study catch-up and well-being support to help get students back on track with any lost learning and set them up for strong performance at GCSE.

Mr Scott said many students had lost family members in the pandemic and the school engaged additional pastoral staffing to support with this.

He said staff worked extremely hard to prepare the classes of 2022 and 2023 for success at GCSE and A-level and the results are testament to everyone working together for success.

Thomas Telford School also achieved a well above average score of 0.56, meaning pupils here achieved more than half a grade higher in each qualification on average, compared to similar pupils across the country.

A total of 173 out of 174 pupils at the end of Key stage 4 are included in calculating this Progress 8 score.

The independent school, based at Old Park in Telford, saw 97 per cent of its pupils staying in education or entering employment – and 73 per cent achieved a Grade 5 or above in English and Maths GCSEs.

Haberdashers' Adams received an above average score of 0.4, meaning pupils here achieved up to half a grade higher in each qualification on average, compared to similar pupils across the country.

A total of 97 out of 121 pupils at the end of Key stage 4 are included in calculating this Progress 8 score.

The boys school, which is part of Haberdashers' West Midlands Academies Trust, saw 97 per cent of its pupils staying in education or entering employment – and 98 per cent achieved a Grade 5 or above in English and Maths GCSEs.

Peter Pack, deputy headteacher at Haberdashers' Adams said: “We are absolutely delighted with our Progress 8 score of +0.4.

"This is an accurate reflection of the tremendously hard work of pupils and staff alike over the whole of Years 7 to 11 leading up to the boys’ GCSEs.

"In particular, it reflects well on the excellent way that the whole school responded to the Covid-19 pandemic when these boys were in Year 8 and Year 9, and the way we have collectively managed the post-pandemic recovery.

"We were one of first schools to move our teaching online and to provide a mixture of Zoom lessons and online resourcing, and we are pleased to see that, three years later, it is clear that our students have not just caught up but have exceeded expectations as a result of these initiatives.”