John Watson School, Oxford
John Watson School is a special school for pupils aged 2 to 19 in Oxford, part of The Propeller Academy Trust.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
John Watson School in detail
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other special schools to John Watson School are John Watson School (under 0.1 miles, Good); Endeavour Academy, Oxford (2.2 miles, Good); Chilworth House School (2.6 miles, Outstanding); and Chilworth House Upper School (2.7 miles, Good, selective).
John Watson SchoolEndeavour Academy, OxfordChilworth House SchoolChilworth House Upper School
The trust
John Watson School is one of 6 schools run by The Propeller Academy Trust, an academy trust.
Who goes there
John Watson School provides for pupils with specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia, other difficulties or disabilities, speech, language and communication needs, autism, physical disability, moderate learning difficulties, severe learning difficulties and profound and multiple learning difficulties.
Getting there
There is no railway, tram or Underground station within about three miles of John Watson School.
4 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is John Watson School (opposite), 90 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood John Watson School stands in is among the 10% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
Sources: DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
John Watson School has not been inspected by Ofsted since it became an academy in April 2026. Before that, as John Watson School (URN 123333), it was rated Good in May 2016. See John Watson School's inspections
At a Glance
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
Yes
Sixth Form
SpLD, Other, Speech and language +5
SEN Provision
No
Special Measures
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby schools
Keep up with John Watson School
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to John Watson School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. John Watson School is in Oxfordshire; for families living there:
- Oxfordshire's school travel policy: Free home to school travel assistance
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 7
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 0
- Children hurt
- 3
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 7 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 7 slight.
3 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 1 on a bicycle and 2 in a vehicle or otherwise.
3 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Oxfordshire is 5 (the median across 369 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Capacity & Demand
Area Demand Pressure - Oxford
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Oxford
Across Oxfordshire council
Places available
7,654
Applications
6,814
Got 1st preference
85.4%
Got preferred school
96.3%
All secondary applications across Oxfordshire council (2026/27), not just this school.
Special educational needs provision
John Watson School provides for pupils with specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia, other difficulties or disabilities, speech, language and communication needs, autism, physical disability, moderate learning difficulties, severe learning difficulties and profound and multiple learning difficulties.
Source: Get Information about Schools (GIAS), Department for Education.
Absence at John Watson School before it became an academy in 20262024/25
Published under the school's previous registration (URN 123333). There are no figures for it in its current form yet, so these are shown separately.
8.8%
Overall absence
26.7%
Persistent absence
101
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Feeder Primary Schools
Primary schools that likely feed into this school, based on proximity
John Watson School
Questions parents ask about John Watson School
What is John Watson School's Ofsted rating?
John Watson School has not been inspected by Ofsted since it became an academy in April 2026. Before that, as John Watson School (URN 123333), it was rated Good in May 2016.
What is the catchment area for John Watson School?
No fixed boundary. When John Watson School is oversubscribed, Oxfordshire allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Does John Watson School have specialist SEN provision?
John Watson School provides for pupils with specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia, other difficulties or disabilities, speech, language and communication needs, autism, physical disability, moderate learning difficulties, severe learning difficulties and profound and multiple learning difficulties.
How do I apply to John Watson School?
Apply through Oxfordshire's coordinated admissions process, naming John Watson School on your application. The national closing date in England is 31 October for secondary places and 15 January for primary places, in the year before your child starts.
How many road collisions happen near John Watson School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 7 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 7 slight. 3 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 1 on a bicycle and 2 in a vehicle or otherwise. 3 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Oxfordshire is 5 (the median across 369 schools, same distance and years).
Where is John Watson School?
John Watson School is at Littleworth Road, Wheatley, Oxford, Oxfordshire, OX33 1NN.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)