Shrewsbury School

Mission statement

“The school aims to educate and empower each individual to flourish in life and contribute positively to the world around them. Its objective is to deliver an education that equips pupils with the academic learning, life skills and strength of character to pursue meaningful and successful lives.”

Academics

Through its Floreat model, Shrewsbury School offers a whole-person approach to learning and personal development in four fields; intellective, expressive, active, and reflective. The model encourages pupils to meet the six Salopian values; wisdom, kindness, courage, spirit, self-mastery and integrity. The diverse curriculum taught in a state-of-the-art setting ensures intellectual stimulation and opportunities for learning both inside and outside the classroom.

The school encourages students to strive for excellence in all subjects by encouraging individuality and resilience, with a dedicated staff committed to ensuring an outstanding educational experience. In 2022, 73% of GCSE students scored in the 9-7 . In the same year, 81%, with 35% of pupils awarded A*-A in all subjects of A-level grades were a B or above and 90% of pupils were offered their first-choice place at University. That year, ten students progressed onto study at Oxbridge and 12 to US Universities, with many others studying at other prestigious international or UK Russell Group Universities.

The school has a strong ‘Futures’ Department where dedicated staff and alumni help prepare students for life after Shrewsbury; the department has been awarded the Quality in Careers Standard.

Activities & sports

Shrewsbury takes pride in the breadth of sports at their school, providing something for everyone, and at all levels of skills. Sports is undoubtedly an integral part of the Shrewsbury experience. Some of the sports they offer include cricket, cross country, rowing, hockey and football, with both non-competitive and competitive opportunities for all sports. An example of this is the school’s football programme which has 19 different teams playing against other schools, in the 2021/22 season, the Boys' 1st XI celebrated an unbeaten run in the Hudl Independent Schools League (ISL). The teams receive excellent training from professional coaches on the school’s nine grass pitches and an Astroturf and current pupils play for professional club academies, including Aston Villa and Shrewsbury Town.

Shrewsbury is also nationally recognised as one of the leading rowing schools in the UK. Since the time that the Royal Shrewsbury School Boat Club (RSSBC) was founded in 1866, they have acquired 14 Henley Royal Regatta wins. The school is one of the best for cricket in the country with 13 teams which have found success in the Lord’s Taverners Colts Trophy and competed for the Silk Trophy, as well as participating in abroad in South Africa, UAE, Dubai, Australia, Sri Lanka and Barbados.

Students are offered the opportunity to participate in the arts, learning instruments in an award-winning purpose-built music school. The school opened a state-of-the-art drama venue in 2020 and has taken eleven original musicals to the Edinburgh Fringe. Furthermore, the school offers a dedicated activities programme, where pupils can explore their individual interests through a diverse range of clubs and societies, as well as activity challenges such as the Duke of Edinburgh Award.

International student community

Shrewsbury is proud to welcome students from over 50 countries around the world, with overseas boarders making up 15-20% of the school’s population. The school encourages tolerance and understanding as they aim for diversity in their school to be reflective of the real world, preparing students for life after they leave Shrewsbury. To help foreign students smoothly transition into life in a British boarding school, they offer English as an Additional Language for students who are not fluent in English. This allows the students to more easily become immersed in the school community.

Boarding life

The school seeks to create a safe and comfortable environment for boarding students so that they can thrive in their academics and co-curricular activities. Each of the twelve boarding houses has a house parent that is dedicated to the well-being of the children and can cater to their needs at any time. All students are supported by a personal tutor who helps them with any academic or personal issues. There is a medical centre just outside of the school’s gates that is run by fully qualified nurses and is supervised by the school’s medical officer. Outside of school hours, there are plenty of activities for students to participate in to ensure students find a home away from home.