primary results put Telford’s state schools ahead of 60% of towns in England; secondary results, of 13%
In GCSE English and maths, 32% of pupils in Telford reached grade 5 or above, below both Shropshire’s towns (37%) and towns in England (45%). 57 state-funded schools are located in Telford’s built-up area. Telford grades C for schools, on Department for Education Key Stage 2 and GCSE results: #9 of 19 in Shropshire. Ofsted is shown, not graded.
Telford’s secondary results beat 13% of English towns; its primary results beat 60%. 63% of the city’s 11-year-olds meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, against 62% at the average school in England and 63% across Telford and Wrekin. The spread between primaries is wide: 82% at Newdale Primary School & Nursery, 35% at Donnington Wood CofE Voluntary Controlled Junior School. Every school’s result ↓
One trust runs much of it
31 of Telford’s 57 state schools belong to 12 academy trusts. Learning Community Trust runs 9 of them, including Charlton, Ercall Wood, Hadley Learning Community and New Road: 4,499 of the 8,641 secondary pupils. Who runs them ↓
Windmill beats its intake
Schools with more pupils on free school meals usually get lower results. At Windmill Primary School, 55% of pupils are on free school meals and 73% meet the expected standard; a typical school in England with that intake reaches 53%. Results and intake ↓
Written from the Department for Education and Ofsted data on this page.
School Grade
Telford grades C for schools
Against every town in England with results; Wales publishes none.
Primary: reading, writing and maths at 11 (63% meet the standard)Better than 60% of towns in England
Secondary: Attainment 8 and grade 5+ English and maths (40.6 and 32%)Better than 13% of towns in England
The primary figure lifts Telford; the secondary figure holds it back.
Each of Telford’s 37 primaries: % meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (2023–25)
Each of Telford’s 8 secondaries: Attainment 8 (2025/26)
England’s average schoolTelford and Wrekin’s average school
The primary figure: 38 primaries in the town, 5,950 pupils in results over three years. The secondary figure: 8 secondaries in the town, 1,620 pupils in results. Mainstream state schools only (grammar schools included); special schools, alternative provision, nurseries and 16–19 colleges are listed below but not graded. Each school’s results are compared with every school in England, then weighted by its pupils.
Map
Where Telford’s 57 state schools are
Each school at its address, coloured by its own letter and sized by pupils. Open a school for its own page. The dashed shape is Telford’s built-up area.
PrimarySecondary (named)Special, nursery, 16–19Size: pupilsABCDNo letter
Most schools give places by distance once siblings are in, so the schools nearest a home matter more than any league table. The 8 secondaries are named.
Results and intake
Which schools do better than their intake suggests
Schools with more pupils on free school meals tend to get lower results. The dashed line is the typical school in England for each level of free school meals; the band holds the middle two-thirds. A dot above the band is doing better than schools like it.
Primaries: KS2 reading, writing and maths against free school meals
Secondaries: Attainment 8 against free school meals
The share of pupils on free school meals runs from 8% at St Patrick's Catholic Primary School to 59% at Holmer Lake Primary School. Against schools with the same intake, Windmill Primary School does best: 73% with 55% on free school meals, where a typical school would reach 53%. 20 of 34 primaries and 2 of 8 secondaries are above the line.
Free school meals: pupils eligible now, DfE January 2026 census. The typical-school line is a straight-line fit across every graded school in England. It describes; it doesn’t grade: the School Grade uses results alone.
Getting a place
How school places work in Telford
Telford and Wrekin Council handles applications for every state school in Telford, academies included. You apply to the council where you live, even for a school in another area.
Secondary (starting at 11)Apply by 31 October of Year 6. Offers on 1 March.
Primary (starting in Reception)Apply by 15 January before the September your child starts. Offers on 16 April.
Moving mid-yearApply to the council for an in-year place; it tells you which schools have room.
When a school is full
Every school publishes its admissions rules. Children in care come first, then, at most schools, brothers and sisters of current pupils, then those who live nearest. 11 of Telford’s 49 mainstream schools have a religious character; some of them give priority by church attendance, so check each school’s rules. Infant classes are limited to 30 by law. If you’re refused a place, you can appeal to an independent panel.
Pupils on roll as a share of the school’s official capacity. The black tick is 100%; 16 schools are at or over it.
Newdale incl. nursery119%
Redhill incl. nursery117%
Grange Park incl. nursery113%
Madeley111%
Ladygrove incl. nursery110%
Millbrook incl. nursery110%
Wrekin View incl. nursery110%
St George's incl. nursery109%
Captain Webb incl. nursery109%
William Reynolds incl. nursery107%
Show all 46 schools
Lawley incl. nursery105%
Priorslee incl. nursery103%
Hadley Learning Community103%
Lightmoor Village102%
Charlton102%
Donnington Wood Infant School Centre incl. nursery101%
Haberdashers' Abraham Darby99%
Dawley incl. nursery97%
Apley Wood97%
John Fletcher of Madeley97%
Meadows incl. nursery97%
Hadley Learning Community incl. nursery96%
St Luke's95%
The Telford Langley95%
St Peter's Bratton95%
Randlay incl. nursery93%
St Patrick's incl. nursery93%
Teagues Bridge92%
Aqueduct91%
Lawley Village incl. nursery91%
Old Park incl. nursery90%
New Road89%
Wrockwardine Wood Infant incl. nursery87%
Sir Alexander Fleming incl. nursery86%
St Mary's86%
Wrockwardine Wood86%
St Matthew's incl. nursery86%
Wombridge84%
Donnington Wood82%
Hollinswood incl. nursery81%
Ercall Wood81%
Lantern incl. nursery81%
Windmill incl. nursery78%
Holmer Lake69%
The Telford Park66%
Thomas Telford Free incl. nursery35%
DfE register of schools (GIAS), January 2026 census. Capacity often excludes a nursery class, so a school with a nursery can show over 100%.
The schools
57 state schools in Telford
Each school’s own letter compares its results with every state school in England of the same phase: Key Stage 2 for primaries, GCSEs for secondaries. Open a school for its results, how its letter is worked out, Ofsted and a map.
Letters of Telford’s schoolsA10B12C16D811 without a letter
Key result: Attainment 8 and grade 5+ English and maths (GCSEs, 2025/26 provisional) for secondaries; the share meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (KS2, DfE’s three-year average) for primaries. Pupils: the January 2026 school census. No letter: an infant or first school (no KS2 tests), a new school, a small cohort DfE suppresses, or a special school, nursery or college. Independent schools aren’t included.
Ofsted
Ofsted report cards
Each school’s latest inspection; report cards replace one-word judgements as schools are re-inspected.
Outstanding 1Good 14Report card 6Requires improvement 5Inadequate 1Ungraded inspection only 27No published grade 3
Ofsted stopped giving one-word judgements in 2024. Until a school is re-inspected, its last overall judgement is its most recent single grade; a school judged years ago may have changed a lot since.
Since November 2025 Ofsted gives each area of a school one of five grades (exceptional, strong standard, expected standard, needs attention, urgent improvement) and says whether safeguarding is met, instead of one overall word. 6 of Telford’s 57 state schools have a report card so far; the others show their last inspection under the old framework. Ofsted is never part of the School Grade.
Academies are state schools run by a trust rather than the council: the trust employs the staff and can set its own curriculum and term dates. Admissions still go through the council.
Run by
Schools
Pupils
Their letters
Learning Community TrustHadley Learning Community, Charlton, New Road, Ercall Wood, Hadley Learning Community, Wrekin View, Queensway, Lantern, Kickstart
9
5,946
B−C+D−C+A−AD−
Four Hills Education TrustMillbrook, William Reynolds, Meadows, Woodlands
4
1,354
A−BCC+
Community Academies TrustThe Telford Langley, Grange Park, Windmill
3
1,940
DC−A−
Thomas Telford Multi Academy TrustMadeley, Redhill, Thomas Telford Free
3
1,860
C+A
Reach2 Academy TrustApley Wood, Lawley Village, Aqueduct
3
1,043
CA−C+
St Chad's Academies TrustSt Peter's Bratton, Dawley
2
617
B−C+
Our Lady Help of Christians Catholic Academy TrustSt Patrick's, St Luke's
2
379
BB−
Haberdashers' West Midlands Academies TrustHaberdashers' Abraham Darby
1
1,084
D
Amethyst Academies TrustThe Telford Park
1
698
D−
Mighty Oaks Academy Trust LtdPriorslee
1
434
B
Diocese of Hereford Multi Academy TrustCoalbrookdale and Ironbridge
1
0
C+
Severn Bridges Multi Academy TrustShort Wood
1
0
C+
Telford and Wrekin CouncilOld Park, St George's, Newdale, Ladygrove, Captain Webb, Lawley, Sir Alexander Fleming, Hollinswood, Randlay, Wombridge, St Matthew's, Teagues Bridge, Wrockwardine Wood, The Bridge, Lightmoor Village, John Fletcher of Madeley, Southall, Haughton, Donnington Wood, Holmer Lake, Donnington Wood Infant School Centre, Wrockwardine Wood Infant, St Mary's, Oakengates Nursery, Madeley Nursery, The Linden Centre
26
7,342
A−AAB−B+B−C−B−A−BC+CB−CDD−C−D
After 16
Where Telford’s teenagers go at 16
In England young people stay in education or training until 18: a sixth form, a college, or an apprenticeship.
3 of Telford’s 8 state secondaries have sixth forms: Haberdashers' Abraham Darby, Madeley and The Telford Park. Telford College, a further-education college, is in the city.
Secondaries with a sixth form
3 of 8
state schools in Telford
Colleges within 12 miles
1
nearest: Telford College
Grammar schools in Telford and Wrekin
2
selective state secondaries
Special needs
Special schools and alternative provision in Telford
Telford has 4 special schools (Haughton, Queensway, Southall and The Bridge: 806 pupils) and 2 alternative provision schools, for pupils who can’t attend mainstream school for a time. A special-school place isn’t applied for like a mainstream one: for a child with an education, health and care plan (EHCP), Telford and Wrekin Council names the school in the plan, after asking the family’s preference. These schools have no letter, because their results don’t compare with mainstream schools’. Their cards ↑
Telford and Wrekin Council’s SEND Local Offer lists support beyond these schools.
Towns its size
34th of 43 English towns and cities of 110,000 to 212,000
Ranked by School Grade, best first: the towns and cities either side of Telford, and the top and bottom of the group.
Edgmond has the best-graded schools nearby (A). Small places often use the schools within 3 km, so neighbours can share schools.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
•
Expected standard at Key Stage 2. The share of 11-year-olds who reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths together, in tests and teacher assessment at the end of primary school. We use DfE’s three-year average (2023–2025) to steady small schools.
•
Higher standard. The share working at greater depth in all three. In Telford: 8% (England’s average school: 8%).
•
Attainment 8. A pupil’s GCSE grades across eight subjects, with English and maths counted twice, added up. 50 is roughly a grade 5 in every subject.
•
Grade 5+ in English and maths. A strong pass in both. Grade 4 is a standard pass.
•
Provisional. 2025/26 GCSE figures are DfE’s first release; revised figures follow in February, usually within a point.
•
Progress 8. Not shown: there is none for 2025/26, because these pupils sat no KS2 tests in 2020 (Covid).
•
Free school meals. Pupils eligible for free school meals now, from the January census: the usual measure of how many pupils come from low-income homes.
•
Independent schools. Not included: they publish no results comparable with state schools’.
Questions about schools in Telford
Are schools in Telford good?
Telford’s state schools earn a C against schools across England: primary results beat 60% of towns in England; secondary results beat 13% of towns in England, on Department for Education Key Stage 2 and GCSE results. School places are handled by Telford and Wrekin council.
What is the best secondary school in Telford?
On 2025/26 GCSE results, Hadley Learning Community - Secondary Phase: Attainment 8 of 47 and 44% with grade 5+ in English and maths, against 47.3 at the average school in England. Results are one measure; distance decides most places.
What is the best primary school in Telford?
On Key Stage 2 results over 2023–25, Newdale Primary School & Nursery: 82% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, against 62% at the average school in England.
Do Telford secondary schools have sixth forms?
3 of 8 do.
How do I apply for a school place in Telford?
Through Telford and Wrekin Council, for every state school including academies. Secondary applications close on 31 October (offers 1 March); primary on 15 January (offers 16 April).
How many schools in Telford are full?
16 of 46 mainstream schools have at least as many pupils as places, on DfE’s January 2026 census. A full school still admits by its rules, usually distance after siblings.
How many state schools are in Telford?
57 open state-funded schools are located in Telford’s built-up area: 41 primary, 8 secondary and 8 other (special schools, alternative provision, nurseries and 16–19). Independent schools aren’t included.
Sources: DfE Get Information about Schools (16 October 2026), Key Stage 2 performance tables (2023–2025, three-year average) and Key Stage 4 (2025/26, provisional); Ofsted state-funded school inspections as at 30 September 2026 · DfE Get Information about Schools (16 October 2026), further-education and sixth-form colleges · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only. All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
