Thomas’s College

We also chose Thomas’s for our youngest. They will be entering Y7 this Sept. We liked the more modern approach to teaching/curriculum and the Head’s vision. The campus is beautiful and all the staff and students we interacted with were kind and friendly.

Our oldest is at Ibstock and has been there for 3 years (joined in Y7). He is thriving there both academically and socially. Our youngest had an offer with a scholarship to Ibstock but ultimately chose Thomas’s. He didn’t want to be in his brothers shadow and I think Thomas’s is a great fit for him.

Thank you so much @Btwmum23 that is really great to hear. I hope your daughter has a wonderful time there, it sounds lovely. We will visit in the autumn and I might come back to you for an update if we end up getting a place, if you don’t mind! Have a great summer 😊

Hi @Btwmum23 which school did you choose in the end, and why, if you don’t mind me asking?

I thought that too - but I looked back over threads and it really feels like multiple posts from the same two posters. They clearly fell out with the school and are unhappy. I’m not saying they don’t have grounds but seeing as everyone else I’ve read on here and in real life has overwhelmingly positive things to say, I’m keeping some perspective on those comments.

I’m glad to read this as we have already chosen to go with Ibstock and the other various negative posts were making me worried. But PP is right in saying that the complaints are always general and not specific. it could be some
isolated unhappy families.

i also know someone with an older child having a great experience who are sending their youngest now - about as positive a recommendation as you can get.

ps we saw loads of cakes (and I swear we only ate a small selection!) I think the second sitting of the auditorium talk only got the leftovers……..

I have had four children go through different local independents, and can honestly say that we were favourably impressed with Ibstock compared with the others (LU, LEH and Hampton). Our Ibstock child (our youngest) was the one who seemed the happiest and best fit in their chosen school (and by nature, is not generally the easiest or most compliant of our children). They left 3 years ago so were there for the very early years of the new leadership.
Academically they were very on it, discipline was very strong, phone policy strict and accepted by the students.
And very importantly for growing teens, the food was the best of all the schools.

i don’t know why it gets such a bad press on here. I don’t know of any families who were unhappy, and many I know sent multiple children there. Certain posters seem to pop up every time Ibstock is mentioned to slate it without giving any concrete examples of why they are unhappy.

I think a lot of people must have been really hungry. Judging by the number of empty trays, there had clearly been plenty of food at some point. When I asked one of the staff if more was coming out, she looked completely shell-shocked and said that every time they brought something out, a scrum of people rushed over and it was gone in seconds.

It was honestly quite shocking that there was absolutely nothing left by the time we arrived. So many very disappointed faces around 😅

I went to the offer holders’ day today and met a mum whose older son is already at Ibstock. She said they’ve been really happy there, especially with the pastoral care, and described their experience as phenomenal. They’re now sending their younger son too, which I think speaks for itself.

Honestly, every time I go to Ibstock I’m impressed by the pupils. They seem to genuinely love the school — and I don’t think that’s something you can easily fake, especially when they’ve been there a while. I keep coming away with the feeling that it’s a very creative place. The magazine they produce, The Wall, is seriously impressive — it covers quite current, high-level and even sensitive topics, and all the artwork, articles and photography are done by the students. That’s pretty amazing.

The staff and parent groups also seemed genuinely passionate. Of course, you could say the unhappy ones might not show up, but the enthusiasm felt real.

The main talk and Q&A were a bit generic though — I do wish they’d allowed more time for proper questions.

And one slightly funny (and slightly embarrassing) moment — the last question in the Q&A was about the food. They really hyped it up and then led us all to the refectory… and it was completely empty 😂 There was basically nothing left, apart from some pretty awful coffee. Quite a few parents looked unimpressed, and I even spotted some concerned faces among the senior management.

But overall, it was another positive visit and definitely left a good impression again.

Thanks! That’s helpful context.

I agree an offer-holders day is useful, but I’m mainly trying to work out what to look for / what to ask so it’s not just a polished presentation. If you had to pick 2–3 “litmus test” questions that helped you assess Thomas’s (e.g. behaviour boundaries, homework expectations, academic tracking/comms, staff stability), what would they be?

No worries if you don’t have specifics — just trying to be practical about due diligence.

I think the best thing to do is to go to an offer holders day and see the school in action. This is what I'm planning to do and will ask a few more questions then too. I've heard through local friends with friends with children at Thomas's College that they are very impressed with the school on all levels. I think for me I have confidence in the Head and his staffing team looking at where they were previously. I also have a number of friends with children at Thomas's prep schools and they have all been super happy - given Thomas's College is run by the same family this is reassuring.
I think at the offers holder day more specifics can be questioned on academics, pastoral etc . Hope this helps and best of luck with your decision

Hi Honeybee15 — congratulations! We’re also considering Thomas’s (newer school) and I’m trying to work out how to do proper due diligence when there isn’t a long track record yet.

Would you mind sharing what gave you confidence so early on? For example:

• What did you ask about pastoral care & behaviour boundaries day-to-day?
• How did you assess academic rigour (set structure, homework expectations, assessment frequency)?
• Any insight into staff stability / leadership and how communication with parents works?
• Did you speak to any current parents/pupils, or see any lessons in action?

Any concrete pointers on what to look for would be hugely helpful. Thank you.

We have an offer for our daughter for yr 9 2026. Love the campus and the vibe of the school- I think they are looking to take this year group up to 100 students for 2026. Interested to hear what the sport is like and if students train/play fixtures every weekend. Thanks

Thanks. Super helpful. We’re also deciding for Y7 and trying to compare the day-to-day culture/pastoral fit as much as the facilities.

Just to sanity-check the “bigger campus / more children” point, the publicly available figures I’ve found are:
• Ibstock Place School: school size listed as 1,048 pupils (ISC).
• Thomas’s College: ISC lists 315 pupils; Ofsted shows 111 pupils currently on roll and capacity 630.
• Campus: Thomas’s College materials describe a five-acre campus; Ibstock is widely described as eight acres.

If you look at simple “pupils per acre” density (so we’re comparing like-for-like):
• Ibstock (1,048 pupils / 8 acres): ~131 pupils per acre
• Thomas’s current (111 pupils / 5 acres): ~22.2 pupils per acre
• Thomas’s at capacity (630 pupils / 5 acres): ~126 pupils per acre

So Thomas’s feels much more spacious right now, but at full roll it looks broadly similar to Ibstock on this metric. If any current parents are willing to share, I’d really value thoughts on pastoral care, behaviour boundaries, and academic pressure in the first year of Y7.

I don't think Thomas's campus is bigger, Ibstock has quite a few more children and they have all their sports on site which is great! Even though the Thomas's campus is brand new, it was hard for me not to be impressed with the facilities that Ibstock has.

My personal feel from Thomas's so far is that they try and encourage children to do the best they can, so if your child is academic, they will be stretched. I had concerns about this and the Head of Academics called me back and talked me through lots of things, so I would encourage you to do the same if that would help with your decision making.

Afraid I can't really answer about Drama and Ballet as my child isn't really into them - Ibstock do have a very impressive theatre and I expect it would be more established than Thomas's - especially as they have more children. There was a Year 7 panto that was fun and there are productions going on if you sign up to the various drama things, that's all I know really.

Following — we’re also deciding for Y7 and feel very lucky to have a couple of offers. The hardest bit is judging the day-to-day culture and pastoral care from open days. Would really appreciate any parents’ insights.