A School in Shropshire has become the first comprehensive school in England to have a 100 per cent success rate for its pupils at GCSE (roughly equivalent to Junior Cert). Every pupil sitting the exams received at least five grade A to C passes.

Thomas Telford School was opened in 1991 by the Conservative government as one of 15 city technology colleges whose aim was to raise school standards through innovation. Pupils of the school put in a 35-hour week, a third longer than average state schools. Staff at the school have a longer working week but receive performance-related pay and bonuses for covering extra classes or running school clubs. There are at least 1,000 applications every year for 168 places in form classes.