St Thomas More High School

St Thomas More High School is a Roman Catholic bilateral school for boys with a mixed sixth form in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex. While the school is predominantly non-selective, a certain number of places are reserved each year for girls who have passed the 11 plus exam.

The school's aim is to provide a disciplined, caring and stable environment that produces confident young people who are prepared to make a difference in the wider world. Ofsted, who ranked the school as ‘Good’, supported this with their assessment that ‘pupils are supported to become active, mature, articulate and responsible young citizens in society; that is the measure of a Tommy More boy.'

• Address: St Thomas More High School, Kenilworth Gardens, Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, SS0 0BW
• Local authority: Essex County Council
• School type: bilateral Catholic boys' school with a mixed sixth form
• Headteacher: Mrs G Ackred
• Number of pupils: 1,200+

St Thomas More High School is a bilateral school. This means that only a proportion of places are academically-selective and reserved for children who pass the 11 plus exam. There are 180 places available in Year 7 overall, of which 30 are selective places.

Regardless of the type of place you are applying for, you will need to register for a school place by 31st October 2023. Registration is carried out on the Essex County Council website and you will need to submit the local authority common application form, and the school's supplementary information form (SIF). Where appropriate, your SIF should be supported by a Certificate of Catholic Practice obtained from your Parish Priest.

If you would like your child to be considered for one of the selective places, you will also need to register them to take the 11 plus exam. This is administered by the Consortium of Selective Schools in Essex (CCSE); registration opens on the CSSE website on Thursday 16th May 2023 and closes on 30th June 2023.

After your child takes the CSSE exam, a team of independent professional markers will double-mark and check the papers. Some scores will be age-standardised and then the results for each school will be ranked in order.

The pass mark can vary from year to year. In 2022, the pass mark at St Thomas More High School was 303. Selective places are only offered to children who live within the catchment area (see below).

Up to 30 places will be offered to boys who have passed the CSSE 11 plus and who live within the school priority area. If two or more boys tie for the final selective place, then oversubscription criteria will be applied:

1. Looked After or previously Looked After children from Catholic families

2. Baptised and practising Catholic boys living in the parishes of Our Lady of Lourdes, Leigh on Sea; St. Helen’s, Westcliff on Sea; Sacred Heart, Southend on Sea; St. Georges, Shoebury; St. Peter’s, Eastwood; St. John Fisher, Prittlewell; St. Teresa’s, Rochford; Holy Family, South Benfleet; Our Lady of Ransom, Rayleigh and Our Lady of Canvey, and Canvey Island

3. Other baptised and practising Catholic boys

4. Baptised Catholic boys

5. Other boys who are Looked After or previously Looked After

6. Practising Christian boys attending Catholic primary schools (priority is given to children whose applications are supported by their Minister)

Practising Christian boys whose parents wish for them to have a Catholic education (priority is given to children whose applications are supported by their Minister)

8. Families who desire a Catholic education for their son

The catchment area at St Thomas More High School covers the postcodes SS0, SS1, SS2, SS3, SS4, SS5, SS6, SS7, SS8 and SS9.