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Our Lady’s Abingdon, a member of GSA (the Girls’ Schools Association), is a thriving and highly regarded independent day school for pupils aged 11-18 years. It is set in pleasant grounds within walking distance of the centre of Abingdon.
The School was founded in 1860 by the Sisters of Mercy, and although the School is now a charitable company limited by guarantee, the Sisters resident in Abingdon still have a role in the life of the School, helping to strengthen the ethos of integrity and warmth that are two of its special characteristics. Non-Catholics are warmly welcomed and are able to participate fully in the religious life of the School.
As a Christian School, Our Lady’s Abingdon aims to develop the individual talents of each pupil, believing that every human being is created to become a unique person with gifts that need to be recognised and valued.
Although a relatively small school, it offers a broad and balanced curriculum. Pupils take nine or ten subjects at GCSE, while the Sixth Form programme includes Modular A Levels as well as AS/A2 levels and a well-planned Curriculum Enrichment Course. Pupils achieve good examination results and almost all go on to Higher Education. Out-of-School activities complement the curriculum. A wide range of clubs and societies is on offer and pupils participate with success in both the Duke of Edinburgh Award and Young Enterprise Scheme.
Building programmes over recent years have provided excellent teaching facilities for subjects across the curriculum. A spacious Sixth Form Centre and a second computer room equipped for subject-specific classes are recent additions and interactive whiteboards have been installed in key areas of the School. A major building programme was completed in September 2006. This includes a new auditorium, drama studio, science laboratory, exhibition and reception area, teaching space and library/resource centre. In 2008 we have extended the Sixth Form Centre and added a new science laboratory in the main building.
Our Lady’s Abingdon Junior School, which takes boys and girls from the age of three, is on the same site and shares some of our facilities. Almost all of the Junior School pupils move on to the Senior School at the age of eleven. The rest of the Senior School intake is drawn from a range of State and Preparatory Schools, some a considerable distance away.