Oxford News
UK private school future is uncertain after sudden closure
It is now almost a year since parents at Our Lady’s Abingdon in Radley Road were sent letters informing them the school had closed for good and would not be reopening.
More than 300 families were left with a very short time to find their sons and daughters new schools.
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The Our Lady’s buildings and grounds are now up for sale, despite hopes they could continue to be used for educational purposes.
The school is being marketed for sale by commercial real estate company Newmark, with the sale price “subject to offer” and this could include the use of the site for residential purposes.
The school was forced to close permanently for financial reasons, according to its governors, who sent letters to parents in August last year alerting them to the shocking news.
Newmark says there is an “opportunity to acquire the freehold interest of a former school in a sought-after location with potential for redevelopment, subject to planning permission.”
However, Oxford West and Abingdon MP Layla Moran indicated last month that hopes remain among some residents that the buildings could be used again for education.
She said: “I recently met with a group of local residents and parishioners who wish to re-establish the site as an educational facility and open the site up for use by community groups.
“I am supportive of the group’s proposals as the reintroduction of educational provisions and access for community use will offer ongoing social value to Abingdon and the local community.”
The group has not yet gone public and it is not known whether it has yet made any formal offer to buy or obtain access to the site and its facilities.
Highlights of the site, according to Newmark’s sale prospectus, include the opportunity to acquire the former school and associated land (Use Class F1) with potential for redevelopment; extensive and attractive grounds and playing fields; combined total Gross Internal Area (GIA) of approximately 105,710 sq ft (9,817 sqm); site area of c. 9.10 acres including a separate playing field and drop-off/parking of 5.6 acres; freehold offered with vacant possession.
The Newmark online sales page adds that the site is located in an affluent, sought-after location with strong demand for independent schools.
It says: “Potential for alternative uses including redevelopment for residential, care, retirement or retail subject to the necessary consents.”
The Statement of Affairs submitted to Companies House last year revealed Our Lady’s Abingdon Trustees Ltd racked up debts of £1,555,596 owed to 121 company creditors.
At the end of last year, a team of liquidators hired auctioneers Wyles Hardy to sell school equipment including the school’s fleet of minibuses.
A statement from Wyles Hardy said earlier: “Following sustained financial pressures and the recent introduction of VAT on school fees pupil numbers declined significantly, leading to the school’s closure in August 2025.
“Acting on behalf of the appointed insolvency practitioners we delivered specialist valuation, marketing and asset disposal services as part of the process.
“Our instruction covered a broad and diverse asset base across multiple departments, including design and technology, domestic science and music, as well as plant and machinery, grounds care equipment and the school’s fleet of minibuses.”
A spokesperson for the Institute of Our Lady of Mercy said in March: “Over the last six months, following the handover of the site from the liquidator, we have been working diligently to both clear and secure the Our Lady’s Abingdon site, as well as reflect on how best the site can be used moving forward.
“Meetings are ongoing about the site’s future, taking into account our obligations as a charity, and we are hopeful to be in a position to share more information in the early part of the summer.”
The institute has been asked for further comment.
On Wednesday, September 2, it was the Concours judging and private viewings to dominate the agenda for the day.
Twelve Concours classes were held across almost a century of motoring, including The Golden Age of Motoring, 100 Years of Carrrozzeria Touring, La Dolce Vita, 60 Years of the Lamborghini Miura and Passione Ferrari.
Two new classes also made their debut for 2026, Rare Breeds of the Digital Age and Hypercar Heaven, which recognise the growing importance of contemporary performance cars within the international collector market.
Judging will take place across Wednesday and Thursday, with the show field bringing together a 70-strong collection of classics, supercars and hypercars from around the world.
Some of the cars include Aa Maserati 8C 3000, Alfa Romeo Sprint Berlinetta, a one-off Maserati 3500GT Spyder Prototipo by Vignale, a very early Porsche 356 Split Window Coupé, Aston Martin DB3S, Lamborghini Miura P400S, Bizzarrini 5300GT, Ferrari 250 GT Series 1 Cabriolet, Bugatti EB110 Prototype, Aston Martin Valiant Prototype and the extraordinary Bugatti Bolide, one of just 40 produced worldwide.
Helen Pike has decided to step down as Master of Magdalen College School at the end of the 2026/27 academic year, the school in east Oxford announced in March.
MCS is one of the top performing schools in the country, ranking in the top 20 independent secondary schools in The Sunday Times Parent Power Schools Guide 2026.
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The new academic year will start next week, with Ms Pike preparing for one more year in charge before she hands over to her successor, who will take over in September 2027.
The first female Master at MCS, Ms Pike guided the board of governors to one of the most significant decisions in the school’s history, to become fully co-educational from 2027.
While there has been a co-educational sixth form at the school for 15 years, the school last month announced it will become fully co-educational over the coming decade.
Ms Pike said earlier: “I love MCS, and it is a perennial privilege to lead this remarkable school.
“Being Master of MCS is a brilliant job, and I am declaring my intention early in order to give MCS the very best opportunity to find the right Master for September 2027. I shall continue to do all in my power to further the fortunes of this wonderful school until then.
“I look forward to a new phase in my own professional life, one that builds on all that I have enjoyed and achieved in my career during the past 30 years.
“Having encouraged many cohorts of pupils to take sensible risks and to do something creative and different when the time feels right, I am doing just that.”
During Ms Pike’s tenure, MCS has been recognised as a Top 20 Independent School and South East School of the Year by the Sunday Times and won Independent School of the Year for Social Mobility.
Thanking her in his letter to the school community, chair of governors, Bob Price, said earlier this year: “Helen is an outstanding leader and will go with our sincere gratitude and warm thanks for her exceptional headship.
“She will leave the school in excellent shape for her successor.”
Recruitment for a replacement for Ms Pike is now under way.
Last month, Ms Pike congratulated pupils on their “outstanding success” in this year’s A-Level exams, after more than a quarter of pupils (43) achieved three A*s or more and 25 secured all A*s.
In total, 39 pupils from the 2026 cohort are heading to Oxbridge, while 22 have secured places to study medicine.
As part of the school’s expansion plans, MCS is preparing to build a new Science, Library and Partnerships building.
A spokeswoman said the new building will offer an exciting opportunity to reimagine the senior school site as staff look ahead to full co-education.
She added earlier: “With a vision to create a sector-leading science building in the centre of Oxford, the development will enable us to support an ambitious and forward-looking science curriculum, expanding to the emerging and rapidly advancing areas of robotics, AI and Big Data.”
Holding banners which read ‘For f**k’s sake, just stop oil’, the demonstrators took to the road in Parliament Square at noon today (Wednesday, September 2).
This was as Andy Burnham faced his first Prime Minister’s Questions, and many of the protestors glued themselves to the road.
The group demanded that the UK government stop approving all further oil and gas developments, and sign a Fossil Fuel Treaty to stop oil and gas extraction.
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Just Stop Oil say that the police are expected to arrest all those blocking the road, and that one lane has been left free of glued-on action takers to permit access for emergency vehicles.
Andy Burnham is due to make a decision on whether to allow more drilling for oil and gas in the North Sea.
Reverend James Crote, a Baptist Minister and grandfather from Chesterton near Bicester, said: “Today is my grandson’s first birthday. I have to take action for the sake of his future.
The 69-year-old added: “The government has been dilly-dallying about whether to say yes or no to the Rosebank oil field but, if we want a future for our children, there is no choice – it has to say ‘no’.
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“I am here as a Christian Minister because the Church has to speak out and demand that the government stops approving further oil and gas developments now. It’s time for us all to say ‘For God’s sake, Just Stop Oil’.”
Data from the Met Office indicates that 2026 was the hottest summer in UK recorded history, beating 2025, which was the previous hottest summer on record.
2026 was also one of the driest summers on record, delivering record-low food harvests.
Climbing temperatures have triggered wildfires across the country, and national fire chiefs said the wildfire risk facing the UK is “like nothing we have seen before”.
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Taking action, grandmother Victoria Ann Lynch-Staunton from Leamington Spa, said: “What is happening is beyond a tragedy.”
The 71-year-old added: “I beg everyone to join Just Stop Oil or governments will continue to prioritise endless growth and corporate profit over billions of lives – yours and your children.
“Wake up and smell the coffin. It is the responsibility of all of us to act now!”
A Just Stop Oil spokesperson said today: “We are all Just Stop Oil.
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“Every single person who fears deadly wildfires, devastating droughts, and spiralling food shortages is Just Stop Oil.
“The first duty of government is to keep the public safe – but by greenlighting oil and gas drilling, they endanger our survival while corporates and billionaires laugh their way to the bank.
“Every one of us feels alone and powerless in the face of this insanity, but we know there is massive political and public support for our demand.
“So we’re inviting everyone to join us at an online call on 3rd October 2026 – because it’s when we work together that we are powerful and win.”
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