A teenager has risen to hockey stardom after spending just two years at prestigious Shropshire school - and gained a placement to inspire others.

Adam Thwaite has been training with the Hockey Wales Under 18 squad, as well as becoming an Ambassador for the national charity Action for Children and coaching younger students at the school.

The 18-year-old, originally from Chester, will now continue to train with his national team as well as inspire hockey players of the future with a gap year placement at Cranbrook Grammar Boarding School in Kent before going to Bath University to study Sports Science.

Adam’s mum Andrea said: “The variety of experiences and skills Adam has gained from being a pupil at Ellesmere College and being part of the Hockey Wales U18 Squad has helped him secure this exciting opportunity.

“As an Ambassador for Action for Children he made national news last year when he met the Princess of Wales on World Mental Health Day, where they discussed the challenges young people face around mental health.

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“Adam is sad to leave Ellesmere as it has provided him with valuable experiences, skills and friendships - but he is also looking forward to this new opportunity and developing new skills.”

Adam moved to Ellesmere from The King’s School Chester to spend year 12 and 13 focusing on developing his skills at the Hockey Academy alongside completing his A levels.

During his time there he has helped coach the year nine hockey team and supported his younger peers in the Army Section of Combined Cadet Force in his role as Sergeant.

Now, during his gap year, Adam will coach sports and assist with the running of sports facilities, school trips and extracurricular activities, along with boarding house duties.

Harry Foulkes follows in the footsteps of Adam, by representing Wales in Hockey for Hoci Cymru.

Harry, who joined Ellesmere from The Maelor School in 2022, for his GCSEs, took part in the Euro 5s hockey tournament in July and despite the heat, finished seventh overall, after two wins, one draw and two losses.

Both Adam and Harry developed their skills and improved their game at Ellesmere College alongside getting help from the Support for Learning team with Dyslexia support.

This is additional support which their hockey coach Simon Taylor has been able to relate to.

Simon, who is well known in Shropshire for his decade of work with Shropshire Hockey Association, took on the role of high performance coach at Ellesmere College in 2018.

He said: “Both Adam and Harry have really made the most of their time at Ellesmere.

“They have taken full advantage of the fantastic facilities here, as well as hockey coaching lessons and I have been impressed with their dedication and ability to maintain a good school and sports life balance.

“The boys are always hungry to improve and progress comes quickly to them. I look forward to following their hockey progress once they leave Ellesmere College and am excited to see them inspire more young people along the way too."