School Information
An outstanding education
just one mile from the centre of Oxford
Within walking distance of central Oxford and easily accessed from the
M40, A34 and major international airports, Headington Rye Oxford occupies a
secluded site amongst 23 acres of green space and sports fields. From September 2024, the Prep School will move to the former Rye St Antony site, a fabulous 12-acre site with unrivalled facilities separated from the Senior School only by a footpath.
Flexibility and choice
Despite its well-earned position in the academic ‘first division’ and an impressive
percentage of successful Oxbridge candidates, the School’s real strength lies in
its commitment to understanding the needs of each individual pupil. From its
flexible boarding options for girls aged 11 and upwards – full, weekly and half-weekly boarding are all on offer – to its individualistic approach to sixth form
study, with 30 A-level subjects to choose from, Headington Rye Oxford is a place
where each girl is encouraged to develop her own skills, strengths and interests.
Over 120 extracurricular activities take place each week, from photography to
Combined Cadet Force, fencing to robotics and from debating to zumba.
Breadth of opportunity
Around 70 girls play sports at county level and beyond. The fencing, cross
country and athletics teams compete successfully at national level and
Headington Rye Oxford’s champion rowers represent Great Britain at the highest
international level. Musicians and actresses can demonstrate and hone their
talents with a wide range of concerts and dramatic productions each year,
whilst creativity thrives among young artists. Whatever your child’s
strengths and interests, Headington Rye Oxford will provide the environment,
support and encouragement that she needs to succeed.
Quality facilities
The School’s ambitious ongoing development programme continues to
deliver a range of top-class facilities, with projects in the last five years
including a new dance and fitness centre, state of the art library, science wing
and refurbished and extended Sixth Form centre. A new creativity &
innovation centre, the Hive, which houses the School’s art, textiles and
photography departments with a focus on cross-curricular learning and
sustainability, opened in 2021 and a new Food and Nutrition Centre with
state of the art teaching kitchens and a mezzanine demonstration kitchen
opened in 2022. A new boathouse is in the final stages of completion and
will be in use from the end of 2023.
The School’s facilities also include a fully-equipped music school,
complete with recording and electronics studios, a 260-seat professional
theatre and art school with mezzanine display area.
Entrance
Headington Rye Oxford holds a Saturday open morning in the Autumn Term plus
additional Prep, Senior and Sixth Form open events throughout the
year. Academic scholarships are awarded at 11+, 13+ and Sixth Form and
scholarships are available for girls showing exceptional ability or talent in
art, dance, drama, music or sport. For the highest performing candidates at
16+, special awards worth 10% of tuition means tested up to 100% are also
available. Means-tested bursaries of up to 100% of fees are also available at
11+ and 13+, providing access for gifted girls who may otherwise have been
unable to benefit from a Headington Rye Oxford education.
“The School means so much to me, it’s been the biggest part of my life. The thought of coming into
school every day and to see everyone makes me genuinely excited.” – Alexandra, Head of Boarding 2023-2022
Student Profile
Name: Dasha Nationality: Russian Boarding school: Headington School Year Group:Upper 4 (Year 9). How old were you when you started boarding? I started boarding in England from the age of 12 where I attended a Prep School near Reading, however I moved to Headington at the age of 14. Are you a full or weekly boarder? Full Why did you want to go to boarding school? It was really my parent’s decision. They wanted me to go to school in the UK to improve my English. Have any other members of your family been to boarding school? No. I have just one sister but she is at school in Russia. How did you find settling in at the school? I found it ok. I was a bit homesick for the first week but you soon make loads of friends and you don’t miss home as much. I still talk to my parents every day so it doesn’t feel like I’m far away. What is boarding life like? I enjoy it a lot. I like having lots of friends in the house and spending time with them, especially at weekends. Weekends are my favourite time because I can chill out and watch DVDs. I like going on the activities as well, particularly to the cinema. It’s good after school as well because you can come back to the house and relax for a bit before having to do any work. I do tennis and go to Film Club once a week as well. I like movies a lot! Which lessons do you enjoy most and why? I like French and Spanish because I enjoy learning languages. I also like Art because the teacher is really good and I find doing art relaxing. Would you recommend boarding to others? Yes definitely! I think it is a great way to make friends and a chance to be a bit more independent away from home. In what ways have you developed since becoming a boarder? I think I am more confident now. Meeting new people and mastering a new language have really helped to develop my self-confidence. 
Name: Afiqah Nationality: Brunei Boarding house: Celia Marsh Year group: Upper 6 (Year 13) When did you start boarding? I joined the school in 2011 as a Lower 6 because I got a scholarship to come here. It’s my first time as a boarder. Are you a full or weekly boarder? Full How do you find life in boarding? I have found it very easy to make friends and the boarding house is very homely and comfortable. The staff are very supportive and there are good facilities at the school. I have a single room, so it is nice to have my own space to relax. Which lessons do you enjoy most and why? I like Biology and Psychology because they are quite related and they are interesting subjects to study. What do you tend to do in the evenings and at weekends? In the evenings I like to sing or do work. Sometimes I go horse riding with the school club. At weekends I either go into Oxford or join in on one of the boarding activities. What do you want to do when you finish school? I’d like to study Human Biology at King’s College in London. Would you recommend boarding to others? Yes I would. I think it’s a good opportunity to be independent and it has made me more aware of managing my money and budgeting which will be useful when I go to university. It’s been a memorable experience. 
Name: Oratai Nationality: Thai Boarding house: Celia Marsh Year group: Lower 6 (Year 12) When did you start boarding? I started boarding at Headington last year as my parents wanted me to complete my A Levels. Are you a full or weekly boarder? Full. Have any other members of your family been to boarding school? Yes, my brother and sister have both boarded before. How did you find settling in at the school? I settled in really easily and have made a good group of friends. What do you tend to do in the evenings and at weekends? After school I do drama or work on my artwork. At weekends, I sometimes go on boarding activities, depending what is on offer. Otherwise, I do a bit of work and plenty of relaxing! How often do you keep in touch with your family? I text them a lot and tend to call them once a week. Would you recommend boarding to others? Yes I would. I love being with friends all the time and I like the boarding house a lot. I think you learn to be more responsible as a boarder.
Address
Open on Google Maps- Address Oxford
- Zip/Postal Code OX3 7TD
- Phone: 01865 759116
- Fax: 01865 759116
- Email: admissions@headington.org
- Website: www.headington.org
News
Excellent GCSE results at Headington
Headington’s Hive was packed with a hubbub of laughter, excitement and a few tears of joy as girls celebrated another fantastic set of GCSE results. While most received their results electronically, many chose to come in to school to mark the occasion with teachers and friends. This year 32.9 per cent of all grades at
Headington girls celebrating fantastic results
It was celebration time at Headington School’s Sixth Form as girls and staff reunited to collect their A Level results. Girls were sent their results electronically but many came to celebrate with teachers and friends and to discuss their next steps. Hours of study in the classroom and revision at home paid off as
Girls get cooking with Prue at Headington
Chef, restaurateur and TV presenter Prue Leith was the guest of honour for a special opening ceremony for Headington’s new Food and Nutrition Centre. Prue visited the School on Friday 23rd September to cut the ribbon, meet some of the girls cooking in the state-of-the-art new facilities and enjoy afternoon tea with a selection of
Fantastic GCSE results at Headington School Oxford
A hubbub of laughter, excitement and a few tears of joy filled the Hive as girls came together to celebrate their GCSE results at Headington. While most received their results electronically, many chose to come in to school to mark the occasion with teachers and friends. This year 38.9 per cent of all grades at
Headington girls celebrating fantastic results
There were hugs and smiles of joy as girls celebrated the rewards of hard work as they picked up their A Level results. Girls were sent their results electronically but many joined teachers and friends in school to mark the occasion. It was the first time since 2019 that results were awarded based on terminal
Headington School Eco Textiles programme shortlisted for national awards
Headington’s ground-breaking Fashion Textiles Department has been shortlisted in two prestigious national awards. The School’s Eco Textiles approach has been shortlisted for Best Experiential Learning in the Muddy Stilettos Best Schools Awards while our Head of Fashion Textiles, Mrs Kate Turnbull, has been shortlisted as best Subject Lead (Secondary) in the highly competitive TES Schools
Headington GCSE Results
There were smiles and tears of joy as girls celebrated their GCSE results together. While most received their results electronically, many chose to come in to school to mark the occasion with teachers and friends. Orla, who achieved ten 9s and an 8, was among those celebrating with friends. She said: “I am very pleased,
Headington’s A-Level Results
It was time to celebrate two years of hard work and unexpected challenges as Headington sixth formers received their A-Level results. Girls were sent their results electronically but many joined teachers and friends in school to mark the occasion. Despite the huge disruption to their A-Level studies, with two prolonged periods of remote learning over
Headington Boarding Bubble
As schools closed to most on 5th January 2021 following the announcement of another national lockdown, Headington’s boarding houses remained open for those boarders able to return. This term the School welcomed back 30 students from U3 – U6. Normally, the School is home to around 200 boarders on site but most are currently, like our day girls, accessing remote education from homes both in the UK and all
A Headington School sixth former has secured a place on a prestigious filmmaking course
Flo (L6) has been accepted onto an intensive documentary filmmaking course at the BFI. This year, Flo has been attending the Drama Department’s Sixth Form Script Writing Club and has developed a script entitled “Looks Like You’ve Reached the End”, about a world where everyone’s life is transcribed in a book. This brings along its dangers because
6th Form Success in British Physics Olympiad
Despite their remote settings, Headington School’s Upper Sixth physicists have been participating in the UK’s most prestigious pre-university competition, the British Physics Olympiad. This event aims to encourage the study of Physics and recognise excellence in young physicists through annual Physics competitions. It is designed to stretch and challenge the top young physicists in the
Academic Presentations
Some of Headington School’s brightest and most curious minds have been going above and beyond the curriculum to explore subjects in greater depth. Each year the School hosts an Academic Presentations Evening, featuring presentations on projects chosen by U6 girls completing Extended Essays or applying for Oxbridge which give them the opportunity to explore particular
Full House for West Buckland GCSE students
All of West Buckland’s GCSE students have achieved at least 5 GCSE passes this year, with 96.4% of all grades passed at grade 9-4. Whilst there were pleasing results across all subjects, history enjoyed almost 80% passes at grade 9-7. All West Buckland’s GCSE students achieved at least 5 GCSE passes this year, with 96.4%
Headington girls celebrate fantastic GCSE results
There were smiles and tears of joy as girls at Headington School celebrated an amazing set of GCSE results together. In the second year since switching to the new 9-1 grading system, an incredible 34.1 per cent of all GCSEs taken at the School were graded as a 9, the highest possible level. Twenty-three girls
Headington girls celebrating another stellar set of results
Headington School girls picked up another fantastic set of A-level results. An impressive 49.5 per cent of all entries were rated at A* or A, and 78 per cent were graded at B or higher. Girls collected a total of 146 A* and A grades between them, sitting a total of 295 A-levels. It
Headington girls achieve excellent IB results
Headington School is celebrating its ninth year of top International Baccalaureate results, with three girls achieving an impressive 44 marks out of 45. Head of Day Katya Davisson, Bethany Kippin and Isabelle Bach all achieved the score and secured their first choice university places. Katya, who is headed to Durham to study Music, said: “I
Smiles all round as girls secure outstanding GCSE results at Headington
Girls at Headington are celebrating strings of 9s, 8s and 7s alongside their A*s and As as more of the GCSE exams move over to the new grading system. With the bulk of the exams sat at Headington moving over to the 9-1 system, nearly a third of the qualifications taken under the new specifications
Celebrations after another set of outstanding GCSE results at Headington
Girls at Headington are celebrating the end of two years’ hard work today as they receive an impressive set of GCSE results. Of the 120 girls sitting exams, 11 achieved 10 or more A*s, while an impressive 47 girls, nearly 40 per cent of the yeargroup, achieved at least 10 A*s or As. A total
Headington girls celebrate another stellar set of results
It was celebration time at Headington School as girls picked up another fantastic set of A Level results. This year 61.7 per cent of all entries were rated at A* or A, and 86.1 per cent were graded at B or higher. Fourteen girls achieved three or more A*s, with three taking home four top
Celebrations after another set of outstanding GCSE results at Headington
Girls at Headington are celebrating after achieving fantastic results in this year’s GCSE examinations. Significant numbers of girls achieved higher results than in their mock examinations and the majority achieved well above their predictions – in some cases getting several grades higher than expected. Headmistress Caroline Jordan said: “I am absolutely thrilled for each and
Headington School’s GCSE Results
Outstanding GCSE results at Headington Headington is celebrating another excellent set of GCSE results, with the percentage of A* and A grades well improved on last year. Girls achieved over 52% at A* grade and over 83% at A*/A. 16 girls achieved 10 or more A* grades, with one student gaining twelve straight A*s. Holly
Headington’s A Level Results
Impressive A Level results for Headington Headington’s A Level students have again achieved excellent results, with A* and A grades making up an impressive 65.1% of all results. These come on the back of an exceptional set of IB (International Baccalaureate) Diploma results earlier in the summer where 53% of our IB students achieved 40
Headington School Oxbridge Success
Many congratulations to all our girls who have received offers from Oxford and Cambridge Universities. Forty-one per cent of all the girls who applied to Oxbridge have now received offers and of the girls who went to interview, 61 per cent were successful. The girls have been offered places to read a wide range of
Headington School to the ends of the earth
As part of a celebration for the new Lab 4, we were fortunate to have the opportunity to invite Dr George McGavin to give a lecture based on ‘the ends of the earth’. Dr McGavin is a zoologist whose specialism is bugs. He was in school in December to describe to Upper Fifth girls the
Headington School Design Flair
Girls in the Lower Fourth Book Binding Club enjoy making and designing their own books using a wide variety of papers and unusual materials. Last term former Headington student Roz Edenbrow who left school in 2008 returned to school to run the popular club. Lower Fourth student Anya created and bound two miniature books (pictured
Headington School Physics Olympiad
Eight physicists from Upper Sixth took part in the British Physics Olympiad in the autumn term. Congratulations to everyone who took part, particularly Natalie who scored in the top 20 per cent of all entrants achieving a Silver award. Rachel and Georgina achieved Bronze I awards, Helen achieved a Bronze II, and Alice, Nancy, Emma
Headington School – former head girl awarded MBE!
Congratulations to former head girl Lily van den Broecke who was awarded an MBE in the 2012 New Year honours list for her services to rowing and Paralympic sport. Lily, who was head girl at Headington in 2010, led her team to a gold medal at the London Paralympic Games after being selected to cox
Headington School Science Star
Congratulations to Upper Sixth student Kara who is through to the finals of the National Science and Engineering Competition. Kara entered the competition following her placement with the Nuffield Bursary Scheme when she worked at Oxford’s Natural History Museum in 2012. During her time at the museum Kara researched dung beetle biology and ecology and
