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School profile Verified 2 June 2026

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire 11+

Sir Thomas Rich's School

Oakleaze, Gloucester, GL2 0LF

A Gloucester boys grammar school with co-educational sixth form entry, selective testing, and a strong academic profile.

Boys Academy converter Ages 11-18 Sixth form GL Assessment
UK rank
UK Rank #39
Year 7 places
155
Competition i
High
Ofsted
Good
11+ route
GL Assessment
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On this page

At a glance

Key facts

GCSE rank
UK Rank #39
Admissions
Boys only
Assessment
GL Assessment
Places in Year 7
155
Competition i
High
Catchment
There is no catchment criterion in the 2027 policy. After priority groups, qualifying applicants are allocated by test rank order.
Ofsted
Good

Overview

Sir Thomas Rich's School, known locally as Tommies, is a Gloucester selective boys' grammar with a co-educational sixth form and around 1,250 pupils. Its motto, Garde Ta Foy, is still translated on the school site as Keep The Faith, and the school places a strong emphasis on what it means to be a Richian from a pupil's first visit.

The ethos is built around endeavour, curiosity, creativity and leadership. Sir Thomas Rich's describes a small-school feel inside a high-performing grammar, with pastoral care, self-confidence and resilience given real prominence alongside academic ambition. Its curriculum is broad and rich: English, mathematics, languages, technology, science, computing, humanities, art, music, philosophy and theology, drama, PE, PSHE and citizenship.

The sixth form usually begins with four A levels before students specialise, with EPQ, Further Mathematics and additional language courses available where entry requirements are met. Beyond lessons, pupils have routes into music, drama, charitable fundraising, Duke of Edinburgh, sports or other interests, the house system and the Tommy's Award.

Year 7 has 155 places and entry is through the Gloucestershire Grammar Schools' Entrance Test, using GL Assessment material across verbal, non-verbal, English and mathematics skills. Qualifying applicants are allocated through statutory priority, pupil premium, staff priority and then test rank. Published measures show Ofsted Good, Progress 8 around +0.91, 99.4% grade 5+ in English and maths, and 32.5% AAB or better at A level.

Key points
Assessment route
GL Assessment across a 2-stage process, covering English, Maths, Verbal reasoning and Non-verbal reasoning.
Places and demand
155 places in Year 7 and High
Catchment
There is no catchment criterion in the 2027 policy. After priority groups, qualifying applicants are allocated by test rank order.
Results
99.4% grade 5+ in English and maths and 77.2 Attainment 8
Sixth form
Sixth form available with 32.5% AAB or better and 71% in higher education.

GCSE benchmark

Latest 2024/25 KS4 measures compared with Gloucestershire and England.

School Local authority England
GCSE benchmark comparison Latest GCSE benchmark measures for STRS, Gloucestershire, and England. 0 50 100 Att. 8 5+ E&M EBacc APS EBacc %
Attainment 8
77.2
Grade 5+ English and maths
99.4%
EBacc APS
6.87
EBacc entry
44.9%

Attainment 8 trend

Recent published Attainment 8 scores compared with Gloucestershire and England.

School Local authority England
Attainment 8 trend line Attainment 8 over time for STRS, Gloucestershire, and England. 100 80 60 40 21/22 22/23 23/24 24/25

Destinations

Latest 2024/25 Year 11 destination mix compared with Gloucestershire and England.

Education Apprenticeships Employment Other / unknown
Destinations stacked bar comparison Year 11 destinations for STRS, Gloucestershire, and England across education, apprenticeships, employment, and other or unknown destinations. 0 50 100 School Local auth. England

School details
School type
Academy converter
Admissions
Boys only
Age range
11-18
Headteacher
Mr Matthew Lynch
Pupil roll
1,249 pupils
Sixth form
Yes
Trust
Sir Thomas Rich's School
FSM i
4.8%
EAL i
15.9%
EHCP i
0.9%

Ethnicity

January 2025 school census

Pupil ethnicity

Whole-school roll of 1,249 pupils; 1,239 had a recorded ethnic group.

White 59.3% Asian 29.3% Mixed 5.8% Black 3.6% Other 1.2% Unclassified 0.8%
Recorded group Share Category Pupils
White British White 686
Indian Asian 202
Any other Asian background Asian 74
Any other White background White 49
African Black 43
White and Asian Mixed 38
Chinese Asian 36
Pakistani Asian 36
Any other mixed background Mixed 26
Bangladeshi Asian 17
Any other ethnic group Other 15
Unclassified Unclassified 10
Irish White 6
White and Black Caribbean Mixed 5
White and Black African Mixed 4
Caribbean Black 2

Location and contact

Address

Address
Oakleaze, Gloucester, Gloucestershire
Postcode
GL2 0LF
Area
Gloucestershire
Exam area
Gloucestershire 11+

School leadership

Headteacher
Mr Matthew Lynch

School contact

School email
admin@strs.org.uk
School phone
01452338400

Admissions contact

Admissions team
Admissions
Admissions email
admissions@strs.org.uk
Admissions phone
01452338400
Open in Map Open school website

Admissions
Year 7 places
155 places (2027 entry)
Applications listed
451 applications (2025 entry)
First preferences
196 first preferences (2025 entry)
Competition i
High
Catchment picture
There is no catchment criterion in the 2027 policy. After priority groups, qualifying applicants are allocated by test rank order.
Pass mark note
There is no pre-defined pass mark. Qualifying standards are set by the Trustees' Admission Committee before results are issued, and allocation then uses the published criteria.

Entry is through the Gloucestershire Grammar Schools' Entrance Test. Sir Thomas Rich's allocates qualifying applicants by statutory priority, pupil premium, staff priority and then test rank order.

There is no catchment criterion in the 2027 policy. After priority groups, qualifying applicants are allocated by test rank order.

Oversubscription and eligibility

  1. 1

    Looked after and previously looked after children

    Boys who meet the qualifying standard and the statutory looked-after/previously-looked-after definition.

  2. 2

    Pupil premium

    Boys registered for pupil premium who meet the qualifying standard.

  3. 3

    Children of staff

    Children of qualifying staff at the school.

  4. 4

    Other qualifying boys in rank order

    Remaining qualifying applicants are allocated by test rank order.

Admissions policy

Sir Thomas Rich's School admissions policy 2027

2027 entry

Information booklet

Gloucestershire Grammar Schools admissions information 2027

2027 entry

Exam and test format

The GL Assessment 11+ entrance test format

The Gloucestershire grammar test for 2027 entry uses GL Assessment materials and covers verbal, non-verbal, English and mathematics skills. Results are age-standardised before ranked allocation.

Assessment route
GL Assessment
Papers and stages
2 papers
Format
Multiple-choice papers
Age standardisation
Published as age-standardised

Shared exam route

Practice for this school's entrance test

STRS uses the shared Gloucestershire route. Use these common practice resources for the route, then check the full consortium guide for the complete set and current test guidance.

View all Gloucestershire practice papers
Practice paper Maths

GL Assessment Maths Practice Paper 1

Practice paper Non-Verbal Reasoning

GL Assessment Non-Verbal Reasoning and Maths Practice Paper 1

Practice paper Verbal Reasoning

GL Assessment Verbal Reasoning Paper 1

Practice paper Maths

GL Assessment Maths Practice Paper 2

Papers and rounds

  1. Paper 1

    English, Verbal reasoning, Maths, Non-verbal reasoning

    Entrance Test paper 1

    One of two 45-50 minute multiple-choice style papers.

  2. Paper 2

    English, Verbal reasoning, Maths, Non-verbal reasoning

    Entrance Test paper 2

    Second 45-50 minute multiple-choice style paper sat on the same day.

What the test includes

English, Maths, Verbal reasoning and Non-verbal reasoning are included in the published format.

Science is not listed in the current published format.

Included

  • English

  • Maths

  • Verbal reasoning

    One of two 45-50 minute multiple-choice style papers.

  • Non-verbal reasoning

    One of two 45-50 minute multiple-choice style papers.

Not listed

  • Science

Application

Key dates

  1. Registration opens

    18 May 2026

    Past

    Opens at 12 noon.

  2. Registration closes

    26 June 2026

    Closes at 12 noon.

  3. Gloucestershire entrance test

    12 September 2026

  4. Results issued

    In time for the 31 October 2026 CAF deadline

  5. CAF deadline

    31 October 2026

  6. National Allocation Day

    1 March 2027

How to apply

  1. 1

    Read the 2027 admissions policy

    Use the school policy for PAN, priority groups and rank-order allocation.

    Read policy
  2. 2

    Register for the Gloucestershire Grammar Schools' Entrance Test

    Registration runs from 12 noon on 18 May 2026 to 12 noon on 26 June 2026.

    View booklet
  3. 3

    Sit the entrance test

    The entrance test takes place on 12 September 2026.

    View test information
  4. 4

    Submit the local authority application

    Name the school on the CAF by 31 October 2026.

    View application guidance

Official admissions documents

Admissions policy

Sir Thomas Rich's School admissions policy 2027

2027 entry

Information booklet

Gloucestershire Grammar Schools admissions information 2027

2027 entry

Results

Attainment snapshot

Progress 8 i
+0.91 Progress 8
Attainment 8 i
77.2 Attainment 8
GCSE results
100% grade 4+ in English and maths
Grade 5+ English and maths i
99.4% grade 5+ in English and maths
EBacc average point score i
6.87 EBacc APS
A-level results
32.5% AAB or better
A-level average points
44.05 points per entry

Where students go next

Higher education progression
71% in higher education
Russell Group progression
44% progressed to Russell Group universities
Apprenticeships
4% in apprenticeships
Employment
14% in sustained employment

Latest official destinations data currently covers 2022/23 study leavers.

Subject performance

Maths
99.4% grade 5+ in EBacc maths
English
98.7% grade 5+ in EBacc English
Sciences
99.3% grade 5+ in EBacc sciences
Languages
94.8% grade 5+ in EBacc languages

Performance trends

Recent trend

Overall GCSE performance

This follows the school's published overall GCSE score across the subjects pupils take. Higher is better.

STRS Grammar schools England
Overall GCSE performance across 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24, 2024/25 for STRS, grammar schools, and England. 100 85 70 55 40 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 2024/25
Year This school Grammar schools England
2021/22 80.1 74.2 49.4
2022/23 75.3 71.8 47.0
2023/24 76.9 72.1 46.7
2024/25 77.2 72.3 46.8

Recent trend

Average A-level result

This follows the published average A-level result for the school's sixth form. Higher is better.

STRS Grammar schools England
Average A-level result across 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24, 2024/25 for STRS, grammar schools, and England. 50 pts 45 pts 40 pts 35 pts 30 pts 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 2024/25
Year This school Grammar schools England
2021/22 A- average (46.5 points) 44.0 points 37.5 points
2022/23 B+ average (44.3 points) 40.5 points 33.7 points
2023/24 B+ average (44.3 points) 41.3 points 34.5 points
2024/25 B+ average (44.1 points) 41.8 points 35.0 points

Recent trend

Where pupils go after Year 11

This follows the share of pupils moving into a sustained destination after Year 11, such as education, apprenticeships, or employment.

STRS Grammar schools England
Where pupils go after Year 11 across 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24, 2024/25 for STRS, grammar schools, and England. 100% 75% 50% 25% 0% 2021/22 2022/23 2023/24 2024/25
Year This school Grammar schools England
2021/22 98% 99.1% 94.1%
2022/23 100% 98.9% 93.9%
2023/24 100% 99.0% 93.3%
2024/25 99% 98.7% 91.8%

Latest year breakdown

In education 99%
In apprenticeships 0%
In employment 0%

Inspection
View report
Good

Latest inspection: 7 October 2021

Quality of education
Good
Behaviour and attitudes
Outstanding
Personal development
Good
Leadership and management
Good

Quick summary

  • Overall effectiveness: Sir Thomas Rich's carries a Good overall judgement in the evidence, while the 2025 report extract describes strong standards for achievement, attendance and behaviour, curriculum and teaching, with safeguarding standards met.
  • Quality of education: Pupils were reported to progress significantly well through a well-ordered, ambitious curriculum. Planned checks help deepen knowledge, teachers connect ideas clearly, disadvantaged pupils achieve as well as peers, and students progress successfully to further study, training or apprenticeships.
  • Behaviour and attitudes: Attendance was high and leaders tracked it systematically, adding support where pupils struggled. Behaviour reflected self-regulation, respect and pride: routines were calm, pupils moved punctually from lunch to lessons, and social time included sport, rehearsals and chess.
  • Personal development: The available evidence shows pupils contributing positively to school life through mature conduct, mentoring from older pupils and purposeful social activities. It also notes strong preparation for sixth form, higher education, apprenticeships and other next steps.
  • Leadership and management: Leaders used attendance information intelligently and checked curriculum quality astutely, using what they learned to shape staff professional development. Safeguarding standards were met, with an open culture where responsibilities are understood and concerns are managed.

Similar schools and comparisons

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Shortlist comparisons

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Explore this school in context

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Related pages and guides

Guides and related reading

Related guides are still being added.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

What assessment types does STRS use?

STRS currently uses GL Assessment.

How do I apply to STRS?

1. Read the 2027 admissions policy: Use the school policy for PAN, priority groups and rank-order allocation. 2. Register for the Gloucestershire Grammar Schools' Entrance Test: Registration runs from 12 noon on 18 May 2026 to 12 noon on 26 June 2026. 3. Sit the entrance test: The entrance test takes place on 12 September 2026. 4. Submit the local authority application: Name the school on the CAF by 31 October 2026.

When are the key dates for STRS?

Registration opens: 18 May 2026. Registration closes: 26 June 2026. Gloucestershire entrance test: 12 September 2026. Results issued: In time for the 31 October 2026 CAF deadline. CAF deadline: 31 October 2026. National Allocation Day: 1 March 2027

What does the latest Ofsted picture look like for STRS?

STRS is currently rated Good following the latest published inspection dated 7 October 2021.