Great schools

Welcome to Tower Hamlets

Tower Hamlets is truly unique, offering some of the very best of London, packed into one dynamically diverse borough. We’re moving forward, boldly proving that Tower Hamlets epitomises our capital’s rich past, its exciting future and the energy that drives it all forward.​

Our TH_IS campaign celebrates and promotes what makes Tower Hamlets so special.

TH_IS Great Schools campaign

Tower Hamlets has some of the best schools in the country. We celebrate the excellence in our schools through our TH_IS Great Schools campaign.

We have a lot to be proud of:

• 97% of Tower Hamlets schools are rated Good or Outstanding by Ofsted.
• Tower Hamlets Council has funded universal free school meals for all primary school children since 2014. The council's 23/24 budget includes £5.7m to extend this to all secondary school pupils in the coming months - making us the first local authority in the country to do so. 
• Pupils in further education can apply for The Mayor’s Educational Maintenance Allowance (EMA), a £400 payment to eligible students to support them with their studies.
• Mayflower Primary School in Tower Hamlets was ranked the best primary school in the country in The Sunday Times Parent Power League Tables 2023. Three other Tower Hamlets primary schools were also ranked in the top 100 primary schools in Greater London.
• Nearly all schools in Tower Hamlets access instrumental and vocal tuition through THAMES. Lessons are free to pupils and there is no charge for instrument hire.
• The Tower Hamlets Holiday Childcare Scheme provides high-quality, safe, and affordable childcare for children aged three to thirteen during school holidays.
• Tower Hamlets is the top performing borough in London for the Mayor of London’s Healthy Schools Bronze, Silver and Gold Awards. 97% of schools have been awarded the Healthy Schools London Bronze Award. 
• All primary schools in Tower Hamlets are Water Only Schools, a scheme led by the Greater London Authority, to encourage healthy behaviours.
• Tower Hamlets has one of the highest participation rates of The Daily Mile in the country. Children run or walk at their own pace in the fresh air with friends for 15 minutes a day.
• The council has a dedicated programme, run by Global Learning London, to support schools across Tower Hamlets with their anti-racist work. It provides support for schools’ reflection, approach, and interrogation of the school curriculum, dealing with incidents and culture. 

Working together

More than three quarters of schools in Tower Hamlets are maintained. This creates excellent partnership working and a collaborative working culture.

THEP

87 out of 94 Tower Hamlets schools are members of THE Partnership (THEP). Currently only open to schools within Tower Hamlets, THEP provides significant opportunities for schools to work with and learn from colleagues across the borough, as well as practitioners and experts from across the country. Their collaborative approach supports schools to negotiate and broker solutions to meet their improvement priorities.

LETTA

LETTA offers training programmes, open to all schools in Tower Hamlets, to train and develop outstanding teachers, support staff and leaders for future generations of children. Many of these programmes are fully-funded and come with nationally recognised qualifications and accreditation.

The programmes include:

• Initial teacher training leading to QTS with PGCE
• Foundation Degree in Early Years, providing support staff with an opportunity to gain an undergraduate degree
• Teaching Assistant Level 3 - fully-funded
• Lead London - a fully-funded leadership development programme
• Professional Mentor Programme - a fully-funded level 4 mentoring qualification
• School improvement support and bespoke staff development

Job vacancies

Come and be part of the great schools community in Tower Hamlets. View our latest school vacancies.