I am delighted you are considering Thomas’s College. You will be at the forefront of our innovative and ground-breaking education and the first to use our state-of-the-art classrooms, galleries, studios and superb local sports facilities.
Why Thomas’s College? Because we offer an innovative and radical approach to what matters most - education, happiness and future success. For over 50 years Thomas’s schools have been built on three pillars: breadth of experience, academic excellence and mutual kindness. Thomas’s College shares these foundational principles and provides an outstanding education allowing young people to secure the traditional qualifications they need for world-class outcomes.
However, as a brand-new school, the College provides an education built for the future. Our radical innovations place students at the centre of their own learning and allow families to create their own path through the curriculum. The best teaching methods, new forms of assessment alongside the most respected qualifications, and inventive principles such as our unique three-year Sixth Form, unlock a diversity of excellence that allows every individual to thrive on their own terms.
Outstanding teaching in small classes, remarkable co-curricular opportunity in art, music, drama, sport and much more, and a pastoral system that provides the highest standards of care - these are all a given. On top of that we offer a family atmosphere, full of heart, and the passion and drive of an entrepreneurial start-up environment - one that is backed by the Thomas’s history and heritage. It is a combination that we believe will bring our students benefits, in terms of their success, happiness and values, that will last lifelong.
I hope you will join me and my dedicated staff at Thomas’s College as we launch this outstanding co-ed, day and flexi-boarding School.
Will le Fleming, founding Master
THOMAS’S VALUES
CURRICULUM KEY PRINCIPLES
Our groundbreaking curriculum is at the heart of what makes us different. It is centred on personal choice for students in a genuinely meaningful way.
We offer a huge range of subjects when students start their journey. As students progress towards our unique three-year Sixth Form, they start to make their choices. At 16, they sit either GCSE assessment or our own modern, future-ready Thomas’s Qualifications (TQs - full details are later in this guide). Students, families and the school work together to decide the right mix. The most traditional academic routes will require eight GCSEs and two new, challenging TQs. Those opting for a more entrepreneurial path might include more TQs, which prioritise real-world skills.
The last two years of Sixth Form again see choice right at the forefront, with up to four A levels, an EPQ and more TQs on offer. We don’t ask the individual to conform to a best-fit system: everyone chooses the pathway that’s right for them.
The other aspect to our curriculum that is unique is our innovative approach to self-understanding - learning how to learn. We have all heard the stories of colleagues and friends who only unlocked their own personal creativity and ability after they left school. Many entrepreneurs and creators were famously ‘bad at school’. Our curriculum teaches self-understanding. We passionately believe that all success in life is based on a recognition of how each of us thinks and learns: on unlocking our own aptitudes and strengths. We strive to create the same diversity of excellence within our school that characterises the best and most vibrant workplaces.
The combination of ownership arising from personal choice, and selfunderstanding, means that our curriculum above all champions human creativity. Over decades, automation has transformed the world of labour. Via machine learning and artificial intelligence it is about to have the same effect on ‘process’-based intelligence. Employers are already looking for individual spark and insight and that will only be more true in a changing future. Our curriculum encourages different types of intelligence, sharpness, wit, and the ability to make connections.
The key question to ask of any curriculum is what it seeks to achieve: what is its ambition? Too often this question is unasked and unanswered. We know what our curriculum is for: to allow personal ownership, unlock diversity of talent and achieve the greatest understanding of personal strengths and weaknesses, on which all real-world success is based. We want all our students to feel a sense of investment, recognition, and a clear sense of their own individual progress.
AN INTERCONNECTED APPROACH
Four approaches to learning
Our curriculum has four underlying strands:
• Knowledge
• Skills
• Character
• Self-understanding
Together, these develop an enquiry and growth mindset, with students excited by challenge, and unafraid to fail in order to unlock success. They develop the habits of mind that underpin real-world effectiveness.
Four faculties
Our curriculum is organised into four faculties.
Language and culture
French
Spanish
German
Mandarin Latin Greek
Politics and world
studies
Classical civilisation
Thomas’s faculties of learning
Science
Biology Chemistry Physics
Computer science and ICT
Sport science Maths
Understanding the world
English language
English literature
Geography
History
Philosophy
Economics
Psychology
Create, invent, perform
Art Design
Drama Music
This faculty approach encourages connected and holistic learning and the ability to make connections between different areas of knowledge.
The Thomas’s Core
Alongside the faculties, every student studies the Thomas’s Core. This includes the study of English, Maths and psychology for everyone up to 16.
The Thomas’s Core is built around the life skills that matter: not as an extra to what we offer, but at the heart of what we offer.
• English
• Maths
• Psychology and cognition
• Games, sport and dance
• Life skills
• Careers and future
• Outdoor education
• Volunteering
• Independent projects
FOURTH FORM: LOWER
FOURTH (YEAR 7) & UPPER FOURTH (YEAR 8)
Explore, investigate and broaden Pupils experience the Thomas’s Core and a taste of all subjects across the four faculties. Over two years they work towards the unique Thomas’s Diploma: a skills-based qualification that will see them soar in Year 9 and beyond.
The Diploma comprises two elements: the Academic Certificate and the Service and Activity Certificate.
The Academic Certificate requires each pupil to complete four Thomas’s Qualifications during the Upper Fourth, one in each faculty of learning. Details of the TQs are later in this guide. Pupils make their own choices as to which subjects they use for each TQ.
At the end of the Upper Fourth, pupils then face challenging and creative examinations in English, Maths, Science, Language and Culture and Understanding the World. These formal assessments provide a useful guide as to their progress and equip them brilliantly for the examinations and qualifications that lie ahead.
Together, the five examinations and four TQs make up the Academic Certificate. Students will be awarded a Distinction, Merit or Pass based on their overall performance.
Alongside the Academic Certificate, all pupils are given guidance and support to complete the Service and Activity Certificate. This sets minimum levels of co-curricular and volunteering activity. Pupils have 1:1 meetings to feed back on their progress and receive advice as to how to use their time effectively, meaningfully and with a genuine and authentic sense of help and support for others. The Service and Activity Certificate is not graded but completion is essential to achieve the full Diploma award.
During the Upper Fourth, students’ work towards their Academic and Service and Activity Certificates will be brought together into a Diploma Exhibition. Families will be invited to hear their children talk about and share what they’ve been doing, and to tour the exhibition to get a sense of the whole cohort’s endeavours.
FIFTH FORM:
LOWER FIFTH
(YEAR 9) & UPPER FIFTH (YEAR 10)
Take ownership, path-find, deepen
At the start of the Fifth Form students exercise meaningful choice. They continue to study the Thomas’s Core, including English and Maths. In addition they choose two subjects from each faculty and have two further ‘wildcard choices’.
Fifth Form Curriculum
Language and culture Science Understanding the world
Two from:
French / Spanish German / Mandarin Latin Greek
Politics and world Studies
Classical Civilisation
Two from: Biology Chemistry Physics Computer Science and ICT Sport Science
Two from: English literature Geography History Philosophy Economics and business
Create, invent, perform
Thomas’s Core
Two from: Art Design Drama Music English Maths Games and sport Life skills Careers and future Volunteering Project-based work
Plus any additional two subjects from any faculty above. All 12 subjects (including English and Maths) are studied in the Lower Fifth, reducing to ten in the Upper Fifth.
Of those ten, a maximum of eight are taken to GCSE, with Thomas’s Qualifications (TQs) taken in any subject not studied to GCSE.
This means all students have a solid grounding in English, Maths, science, languages, humanities and the arts, in the particular areas that interest them. The wildcard subjects enable them to give the whole programme their own personal spin and flavour. Many students may choose to use wildcards to allow them to study three or even four sciences. Others will make sure there is sufficient practical activity and creativity in their weekly timetable to suit their own style of intelligence. Others may prioritise language acquisition.
During the Lower Fifth, students take all twelve subjects, and continue to make interesting connections between them. In the Upper Fifth they choose to narrow to ten of their twelve subjects. They are beginning to identify the pathway that leads to their personal futures.
Study continues throughout the Upper Fifth. During the entirety of the Fifth Form, teachers are ensuring students have the knowledge, skills, habits and self-understanding to secure outstanding GCSE results. However, teachers do not make reference to examination technique or questions. Those are left to Sixth Form study.
The focus on volunteering and activity continues throughout via the Thomas’s Core.
Our Sixth Form curriculum continues the principles of choice and the balance between traditional academic excellence, in the form of A Levels, and creative new qualifications and understanding.
Unlike most schools, which ask students to demonstrate university-level thought and understanding alongside the curriculum, we integrate the skills and ways of thought students will need for high-level degree apprenticeships, the best college and university courses, and the entrepreneurial world of work.
See our Sixth Form prospectus for full details.
WHAT ARE THOMAS’S QUALIFICATIONS (TQS)?
Thomas’s Qualifications (TQs) are being designed and developed to meet the emerging needs of academically able, socially aware and globally minded students. They are unique to Thomas’s.
While we will look to gain external recognition and ratification for TQs, so that they can be included, for example, on UCAS forms, most students will gain their recognised qualifications via a mix of GCSEs, A Levels and AS Levels. What students gain from TQs, alongside their traditional qualifications, is future-ready learning: exactly the additional skills and evidence of creative thought that the most competitive university and other outcomes require. TQs enable Thomas’s College students to practise while at school the type of assessment and challenge they will face in tertiary education and the workplace, allowing them to get ahead in the transition from school study to real-world learning.
There are four types of TQ assessment. Students choose which type of assessment suits them best in any particular course, in discussion with teachers and tutors.
TQ1: extended writing
TQ1 is an extended piece of writing across a minimum of two separate disciplines. Students will work with teachers to develop an argument of their own that links and connects different things they have learned. As part of this they will be taught how to research and summarise and how to use AI to support not replace learning. The end result is a fully sourced and researched essay (3,000 words at GCSE level and 5,000 words at A Level). The TQ1: extended writing teaches you how to find things out and share your ideas. Examples of TQ1: extended writing could include:
• How does the Latin language shape communication and science today?
• Will robots ever be able to write poems?
• How did sea navigation change the world?
• How has the science of painting shaped the art of painting?
• Is it ever ethically sustainable to engineer embryos to save lives?
• How do global differences in attitudes to LGBTQ+ people impact lives?
TQ2: creative artefact
TQ2 is the creation of an artefact and portfolio to explore a creative idea. Students will make something. It could be 2D or 3D art, a technology or design project, a film, a music video, a piece of music, a poem, a play, a piece of choreography. They will also produce a portfolio, showing how they researched their area of interest, how they developed their idea, what they sought to communicate and how people responded. The TQ2: creative artefact teaches you how to make things with purpose that express meaning.
TQ3: informative exhibit
TQ3 is the creation of an informative exhibit and portfolio to explain a complex subject. Students will create an exhibit explaining a topic. Their exhibit, which might be a physical poster or interactive digital page, will concisely introduce the topic, explain what is interesting about it, cover the key points of understanding, and explore questions and further study. They will also produce a portfolio explaining their research and their choices. The TQ3: informative exhibit teaches you to form and communicate deep understanding. Example topics could include:
• Dark energy
• Human morality
• The anarchy experiment in 20th century Spain
• The invention of cinema
TQ4: public presentation
TQ4 is the creation and delivery of a public presentation and portfolio to inform and argue a case. Students will research, write and deliver a talk to their peers. They will also produce a portfolio explaining their research and their choices. They will analyse what worked well and how to improve and create a plan to help develop their oracy.
The TQ4: public presentation teaches you how to present yourself and your ideas in the world.
CO-CURRICULAR LIFE
At Thomas’s College we recognise that all forms of optional activity, whether that is in sport, music, drama, art, the outdoors, or the widest range of clubs and societies, are vital to your experience in.
Sport and games, volunteering and experiences outdoors are part of our Thomas’s Core. Everyone has the chance to be active, to spend time outside, and to help out others - all on their own terms. Choice is central and we work with all students to find the Core pathway that suits them. Outdoor learning is a major component and many students enrol in the DofE programme, which is internationally recognised for the benefits it brings. Others combine their own interests and activities in different ways so that they are living fulfilled lives.
Clubs and societies enrich daily life of our whole school, whether that is through the house system or for the whole school. Here the benefit of joining and helping to set up a new school is most clear. We are wholly geared towards working with you to found societies that may flourish for a year or two, or may last decades! Whatever your passion, we’ll help you find or lead a group to explore it.
Our provision in the arts is broad. We have a dedicated design centre, a spectacular working art gallery and studios, and performance spaces for drama and music across the campus, including our performance and recital halls and main studio.
For sport, we have a fully equipped onsite gym and dance studio and multi-use sports area, as well as grass court games. A short hop in one of our dedicated minibuses allows us to offer a dazzling range of activity, with facilities on our doorstep including football, rugby, hockey, cricket, tennis, swimming, athletics, horse-riding, archery, golf, squash and cycling.
Whether you are the mainstay of the first team or just want to have fun with friends and stay active, you will find the activity that is right for you.
THE CAMPUS
We are working with IID Architects, Bidwells and Quinn to deliver the campus renovation.
IID bring extensive experience in the education sector. Work is well underway on the refurbishment of the main listed building and Red House. The main building will be home to the boarding house on the top floor, with gym, dance studio and music practice rooms on the lower ground floor. A stunning library and recital hall on the ground floor are at the heart of the school, alongside the dining room and Learning Enrichment department. The rest of the main building is home to beautiful classrooms, whose design is underpinned by biophilic principles - bringing a sense of nature and tranquillity to learning, from the colour palette to the views of the wooded campus. The other star feature of the main building is our Gallery, a double height space for artists to make and show their work.
The Red House is a Victorian Arts & Crafts building situated at the centre of the campus and will be our Sixth Form Centre. The Cyril Taylor Library will house 9 science spaces as well as a basement drama studio and performance and assembly hall. At the edge of the campus, Longley House will be home to our Design & Technology Department.
SPORT
The Sports provision is a key building block of the College’s offering. We are investing in excellent local and comprehensive sports facilities to augment our provision on site.
Thomas’s College Sport Options
On the Campus from 2025 onwards, we will offer:
• Covered multi-use games area including sports such as five-a-side football, basketball and netball
• Dance/ Movement Studio
• Gym & Fitness centre
Off-Site from 2025 onwards at our Thomas’s sports ground and in partnership with other local facilities we will offer a range from:
• Rugby
• Hockey
• Netball
• Cricket
• Grass tennis court Football
• Rowing Tennis
• Basketball
• Swimming (Pools in the park)
• Cross country running
• Horse riding
• Athletics Archery
• Golf
• Squash
• Cycling
• Canoeing
A TYPICAL DAY AT THOMAS’S COLLEGE
Students arrive from Richmond station on the Thomas’s electric shuttle bus. The Fourth Form arrive at 8.30am with time for homework and extension activity. The main school day is planned to start at 8.50am with registration, which leads on to tutor and assembly time as part of our Core Programme. Taught lessons are planned from 9.30am to 4.30pm.
Clubs happen all the time. We have an extended morning break and long lunch, both giving time for club meetings, and some clubs happen before and after school. School stays open for day pupils until 5.45pm, giving plenty of time for activities or to get some independent study done.
WEEKLY BOARDING
Our boys’ and girls’ boarding is situated in beautiful and historic rooms on the top floor or the main building. Boarding at Thomas’s College is designed for students from Lower Fifth (Year 9) upwards.
We offer flexi and weekly boarding from Monday to Friday, allowing students the chance to live and learn independently while retaining a connection to family and social life outside school at weekends and in the holidays. We have around 50 boarders, so everyone feels part of a close-knit group - a family away from home. At the end of the usual School day, many students head to activities or the library, spend more time in the Sixth Form centre, or make use of the brilliant boarding common room for chat and relaxation.
The facilities of the campus are available to boarders: the gym and sports areas, space for music and art, cinema shows in the Recital Hall, deckchairs in the gardens - it is a beautiful and fun place to spend time. Supper is served ‘family style’ and is an opportunity for the boarding community to eat together with their pastoral staff. Activities and events take place most weeks with celebrations for birthdays and achievements.
Our location means that even more facilities are available on the doorstep, from cycling, exercise and activities in Richmond Park to trips out to the theatre and cafes on our doorstep. Our grounds mean that we have a campus feel in the middle of one of the most beautiful parts of the city, with all the homeliness and security that brings.
The boarding houses are led by our Director of Boarding, supported by their dedicated boarding team, looking after all aspects of students’ welfare and development. They provide clear support and structure around issues such as personal devices, wellbeing, study time, healthy balance and personal responsibility.
TRAVEL
As the College is so well served by public transport, we do not intend to run a bus or coach service. Richmond station is less than 10 minutes from Clapham Junction or Chiswick, less than 20 minutes from Kingston, and 25 minutes from High Street Kensington. Our own electric shuttle buses will transport pupils from the station to the College in less than 10 minutes. The map opposite illustrates the transport connections.
Travel Map
Thank you for your continued interest in the College. We are excited about the pace of the development and the warm reception we have received from families and neighbours. We have a new Instagram account @thomasscollege -please follow us for updates. If you have any questions, please contact us at College@thomas-s.co.uk or 020 7978 0905.
