Frank Wise School
Hornbeam Close, Banbury, OX16 9RL
- Phase
- Special schools
- School type
- Community special school
- Ages
- 2 to 19
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Ms Heidi Dennison
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- SEN provision
- MLD - Moderate Learning Difficulty, SLD - Severe Learning Difficulty, PMLD - Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty
- Constituency
- Banbury
- Setting
- Urban: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 117
- Pupils on roll
- 119
- URN
- 123332
- Local authority
- Oxfordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01295263520
About this school
Frank Wise School is a community special school in Banbury. It teaches children aged 2 to 19 and has 119 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Frank Wise School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 6 November 2024, 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 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 4 | 9 | 10 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | - | 0% | 0% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | - | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | - | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in maths | - | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | - | 0% | 0% |
| Average scaled score in reading | - | - | - |
| Average scaled score in maths | - | - | - |
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 9 | 6 | 7 |
| Attainment 8 score | - | - | - |
| Progress 8 score | - | - | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | - | - | - |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | - | - | - |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | - | - | - |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | - | - | - |
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 Frank Wise 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 | Oxfordshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | — | 58.8% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 0% | 59.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 0% | 60.8% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 9.3% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 9.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 10.3% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 121 |
| 2023/24 | 119 |
| 2024/25 | 122 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 40%
- English as an additional language
- 11.5%
- Overall absence
- 10.29%
- Persistent absence
- 30.68%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St John's Priory School0.5 miles
Independent schools · Banbury
-
English Language Training0.6 miles
Other types · Banbury
-
Tudor Hall School1.4 miles
Independent schools · Banbury
-
Bloxham Grove Academy2.2 miles
Free Schools · Banbury
-
Bloxham School2.6 miles
Independent schools · Banbury
Other schools in Banbury
- Bloxham Grove Academy Free Schools
- Swalcliffe Park School CIO Special schools
- Bishop Carpenter Church of England Primary School Primary
- Bishop Loveday Church of England Primary School Primary
- Bloxham Church of England Primary School Primary
- Brailes Church of England Primary School Primary
- Chacombe CEVA Primary Academy Primary
- Cherry Fields Primary School Primary
- Chipping Warden Primary Academy Primary
- Christopher Rawlins Church of England Primary School Primary
- Cropredy Church of England Primary School Primary
- Culworth Church of England Primary Academy Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Frank Wise School teach?
- Frank Wise School teaches children aged 2 to 19. It is a special school in Banbury.
- Who is the headteacher of Frank Wise School?
- The headteacher of Frank Wise School is Ms Heidi Dennison, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Frank Wise School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Frank Wise 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 many pupils are at Frank Wise School?
- Frank Wise School has 119 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 2 to 19.
- Is Frank Wise School full?
- Frank Wise School has capacity for 117 pupils and 119 on roll (102%), so it is at or above 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 Frank Wise School a faith school?
- No. Frank Wise School has no designated religious character.
- What SEN provision does Frank Wise School have?
- The schools register lists Frank Wise School's special educational needs provision as: MLD - Moderate Learning Difficulty; SLD - Severe Learning Difficulty; PMLD - Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have Frank Wise School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 0% in 2023/24 and 0% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- What is Frank Wise School's absence rate?
- Frank Wise School's overall absence rate is 10.3% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Frank Wise School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Frank Wise 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 30 June 2026.