The Unicorn School (Abingdon) A GSG School
- The Unicorn School (Abingdon)
20 Marcham Road
Abingdon
Oxfordshire
OX14 1AA - Head: Mr A Day
- T 01235 530222
- F 01235 536889
- E [email protected]
- W www.unicornoxford.co.uk
- A special independent school for pupils aged from 6 to 16 with dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia and speech and language difficulties
- Read about the best schools in Oxford and Oxfordshire
- Boarding: No
- Local authority: Oxfordshire
- Pupils: 120
- Religion: Non-denominational
- Fees: £25,965 - £27,495 pa
- Open days: Wednesday 24th April 2024
- Review: View The Good Schools Guide Review
- Ofsted report: View the Ofsted report
What The Good Schools Guide says..
The Unicorn is a Microsoft showcase school: all staff learn IT, with teachers monitoring laptop work electronically in real time during lessons, able to ‘live’ mark; students then use a ‘reflect’ option to consider their experience of the work, for the teacher to read. The Microsoft licence includes Immersive Reader and Voice to Text, allowing pupils to speak to their laptop using a headset...
What the school says...
The Unicorn School is a special co-educational day school for children with dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia and speech and language difficulties, aged between 6 and 16 years. The Unicorn School offers GCSE education. The Unicorn School provides a nurturing environment in which every child is helped to build self-confidence, appreciate their learning difficulties and develop their own personal learning style. The school has achieved accreditation status from CReSTeD and from the children's communication charity ICAN. The classes are small, with a maximum of 12 pupils and every child receives at least half an hour of daily individual tuition. ...Read more
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What The Good Schools Guide says
Head teacher
Since 2015 Andrew Day BEd MBE, schooled at a Welsh-speaking comprehensive, on to maths and sport at the University of Wales, Cardiff. Head of maths, IT, rugby and cricket at Bristol Grammar Lower School, then academic lead for Hornsby House School, Wycliffe Prep and Cheltenham College Prep before his first headship at specialist dyslexia school Calder House in Chippenham.
Under his headship, many more suitable applications for each available place has led to school roll rising from 57 to 120; despite this increase, class sizes of 12 maintained. Having extended specialist dyslexia teaching to year 11 he is taking pupils up to age 19 from Autumn 2025. Day’s view, ‘The use of new technology is a key – artificial intelligence could be a game-changer for our children so we...
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Overall school performance (for comparison or review only)
Special Education Needs
The aim and philosophy of the Unicorn School is to provide specialist education for dyslexic children, from both the independent and mainstream sector, and to teach strategies and skills to enable them to return to mainstream education as soon as possible. All children must have an Educational Psychologist report prior to entrance. Specialist teachers teach pupils in small classes of 8 to 10, with a daily half-hour of individual tuition. Educational and emotional needs are met on an individual basis as well as through a friendly atmosphere and community spirit. Parents are supported throughout the time they are associated with the school and helped to find supportive schools for their children to move on to.
| Condition | Provision for in school |
|---|---|
| ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder | |
| Aspergers | |
| Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders | |
| CReSTeD registered for Dyslexia | |
| Dyscalculia | Y |
| Dysgraphia | |
| Dyslexia | Y |
| Dyspraxia | Y |
| English as an additional language (EAL) | |
| Genetic | |
| Has an entry in the Autism Services Directory | |
| Has SEN unit or class | |
| HI - Hearing Impairment | |
| Hospital School | |
| Mental health | |
| MLD - Moderate Learning Difficulty | |
| MSI - Multi-Sensory Impairment | |
| Natspec Specialist Colleges | |
| OTH - Other Difficulty/Disability | |
| Other SpLD - Specific Learning Difficulty | |
| PD - Physical Disability | |
| PMLD - Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty | |
| SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health | |
| SLCN - Speech, Language and Communication | Y |
| SLD - Severe Learning Difficulty | |
| Special facilities for Visually Impaired | |
| SpLD - Specific Learning Difficulty | |
| VI - Visual Impairment |
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