Oratory earns national recognition

THE Oratory received good reviews in The Good Schools Guide, which visited the Woodcote school in November last year.

The guide said: “In a crowded Berks/Oxfordshire school market, The Oratory is a distinct alternative and one well worth a visit.

“Recent academic initiatives have wielded strong value-added results, topping the leaderboard in select subjects and groups.”

The Oratory is placed in the top 25 per cent of schools nationally for value-added at GCSE and A Level and in the top 10 per cent for girls at GCSE. This year, two of the U6th pupils received offers from the University of Oxford, with a further two interviewed and awaiting outcomes from the University of Cambridge.

The school was praised for its pastoral care, with the guide giving it the “gold standard”.

The Oratory remains, quite deliberately, small enough that they know every one of their pupils and families choose them for the warmth of a smaller school.

On the topic of sport, the guide said the school was “punching above its small size, The Oratory features superb facilities… notably in sports and the arts.” Oratory hockey has won their Berkshire league five times in a row now, and the 1st XV rugby team has retained the County Cup.

Oratory pupils also currently hold the U18 National School Real Tennis Singles Championship and U13 National Schools’ Doubles titles. The Oratory sport programme is strengthened this year with an all-weather pitch.

You can discover more about The Oratory at their next open morning which takes place on Saturday, March 7.