Mary Hare School
Arlington Manor, Snelsmore Common, Newbury, RG14 3BQ
- Phase
- Special schools
- School type
- Non-maintained special school
- Ages
- 4 to 19
- Gender
- Mixed
- Principal
- Mr Robin Askew
- Boarding
- Boarding school
- SEN provision
- HI - Hearing Impairment
- Constituency
- Newbury
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 240
- Pupils on roll
- 146
- URN
- 110180
- Local authority
- West Berkshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01635244200
About this school
Mary Hare School is a special school in Newbury. It teaches children aged 4 to 19 and has 146 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 14 May 2025, where inspectors found that standards have been maintained. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 25 | 22 | 27 |
| Attainment 8 score | 36.4 | 35.2 | 31.5 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.32 -0.25 to +0.88 | +0.52 -0.13 to +1.18 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 20% | 9.1% | 18.5% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 56% | 27.3% | 37% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 12% | 18.2% | 14.8% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 2.8 | 2.9 | 2.5 |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Mary Hare School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | West Berkshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 36.4 | 41 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 35.2 | 40.6 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 31.5 | 38.5 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.3% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8.3% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 14.6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 202 |
| 2023/24 | 173 |
| 2024/25 | 159 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 27.12%
- English as an additional language
- 35.8%
- Overall absence
- 14.6%
- Persistent absence
- 47.5%
Location
Nearby schools
-
The Castle School1.4 miles
Special schools · Newbury
-
iCollege Alternative Provision2.0 miles
Local authority maintained schools · Newbury
-
Priors Court School2.1 miles
Special schools · Thatcham
-
Downe House2.4 miles
Independent schools · Thatcham
-
Northcroft Vocational School2.4 miles
Special schools · Newbury
Other schools in Newbury
- Engaging Potential Special schools
- iCollege Alternative Provision Local authority maintained schools
- Northcroft Vocational School Special schools
- The Castle School Special schools
- Victoria Park Nursery School Nursery
- Beedon C.E. (Controlled) Primary School Primary
- Brightwalton C.E. Aided Primary School Primary
- Burghclere Primary School Primary
- Chaddleworth St Andrew's C.E. Primary School Primary
- Chieveley Primary School Primary
- Compton C.E. Primary School Primary
- Ecchinswell and Sydmonton Church of England Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Mary Hare School teach?
- Mary Hare School teaches children aged 4 to 19. It is a special school in Newbury.
- Who is the principal of Mary Hare School?
- The principal of Mary Hare School is Mr Robin Askew, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Mary Hare School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Mary Hare School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is Mary Hare School?
- Mary Hare School has 146 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 19.
- Is Mary Hare School full?
- Mary Hare School has capacity for 240 pupils and 146 on roll (61%), so it has space against its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Mary Hare School a faith school?
- No. Mary Hare School has no designated religious character.
- What SEN provision does Mary Hare School have?
- The schools register lists Mary Hare School's special educational needs provision as: HI - Hearing Impairment. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have Mary Hare School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 36.4 in 2022/23 and 31.5 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- What is Mary Hare School's absence rate?
- Mary Hare School's overall absence rate is 14.6% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Mary Hare School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Mary Hare School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 29 June 2026.