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Many of the private secondary school options offer a boarding element, too. The Oratory School, Pangbourne College and Shiplake College all offer co-ed boarding environments, as does Abingdon School for boys (but not Helkats). These tend to be a combination of flexi, weekly and full boarding – check with the schools directly as offerings can vary depending on numbers and demand. Sitting in hundreds of acres of Capability Brown landscaping, Radley College is the belle (or beau, rather) of the ball, one of only three remaining boys’ full boarding schools in the country (alongside Eton and Harrow, not that you needed telling). Our reviewer found it ‘unassuming, with a touch of old-school scruffiness’; a ‘sweet shop’ of extracurricular delights on offer and with ‘fizzy’ and ‘exciting’ teaching ensuring tip-top university destinations. Paradise for country mice but increasingly diverse, too. Full boarding only – school’s 19th-century founders modelled school life on monasticism, and it shows (in a nice way).
Do read our Area Guide to Oxford and north Oxfordshire for the lowdown on the boarding options available there, many of which may interest you. Summer Fields and The Dragon are probably the two that you’ll consider at prep level, and from 13+ St Edward’s, Oxford is co-ed and academically on the up.
Further afield, families who live in South Oxfordshire will have their eyes on Eton College, Winchester College or Harrow School for boys (Cothill and Moulsford send loads); Downe House, Wycombe Abbey or St Mary’s Ascot are deemed good for the girls. Co-ed is increasingly attractive, though – you can see that from all those local schools making the leap – and Wellington College, Stowe School, Marlborough College and Bradfield College are all popular.
Need help? Perhaps you suspect your child has some learning difficulty and you would like advice on what you should do. Or perhaps it is becoming clear that your child's current school is not working for him or her, and you need help to find a mainstream school which has better SEN provision, or to find a special school which will best cater for your child's area of need. Our SEN consultancy team advises on both special schools, and the mainstream schools with good SEN support, from reception through to the specialist colleges for 19+. Special Educational Needs Index
Find top international, British, IB and American schools in over 40 countries. The Good Schools Guide International publishes impartial and forthright reviews of international schools across the world.
We examined the value-added from KS2 to GCSE for 2022 to see which state selective grammar schools added the most value to their offspring. A note of caution - the more highly selective a grammar school, the less scope there will be to add value.
Grammar schools are state-funded, academically selective senior schools. The education a child receives at grammar school is paid for by the state unlike at private schools which provide education for a fee. There are currently around 163 located in 36 English local authorities, with around 167,000 pupils between them. Northern Ireland has a further 67 grammar schools, but there are none in Wales or Scotland. A word of caution: there are private schools that have the word 'grammar' in their name but this is purely for historical reasons.
At specialist music, dance or performing arts schools, the arts aren't optional extras. They’re intrinsic to the school curriculum. Students are expected to fit in high level training and hours of practice alongside a full academic provision. It's a lot to ask any child to take on, but for those with exceptional performing ability this kind of education can be transformative.