GCSE Education
We have carefully selected a GCSE programme which will enable our pupils to achieve a sound bank of essential qualifications.
By focussing on a small number of key subjects, we give our pupils the best opportunity to succeed.
Our GCSE teachers are highly qualified professionals. Specialist teaching makes the GCSE syllabus accessible to pupils with dyslexia and related learning differences.
We offer the following subjects:
| Subject | Level | Board |
|---|---|---|
| Art & Design | GCSE | AQA |
| ASDAN Personal Development Programme | Gold, Silver or Bronze | |
| Digital Functional Skills | Level 1 | NCFE |
| English Language |
IGCSE English Functional Skills Level 1 or Level 2 |
Cambridge AQA |
| English Literature | IGCSE | Edexcel |
| Mathematics |
IGCSE Higher or Foundation Level Functional Skills Maths or AQA Entry Level Maths |
Edexcel AQA AQA |
| Science | GCSE Double (Higher or Foundation Level) or Entry Level Science | Edexcel |
| Film Studies | GCSE | WJEC |
| Food Preparation & Nutrition | GCSE | WJEC |
All pupils in Year 9 - Year 11 will study:
- English Language
- Mathematics
- Science
The qualification they take will be decided in consultation with staff.
Pupils will also have three additional choices. For our current Year 10 cohort, this is:
- Film Studies, BTEC Sport or Personal Development Programme (ASDAN)
- English Literature or Functional Skills IT
- Food Preparation & Nutrition or Art & Design
However, the option pools will vary year-on-year depending on the needs and interests of the cohort.
Pupils also study RE, PSHCE and PE but do not take exams in these areas.
In consultation with staff, some pupils may stop Science at the end of Year 10 when they have completed their Entry Level Qualification and take ASDAN in Year 11.
There may be changes to the GCSEs that are offered for any specific year group. Please contact us for more details.
Our GCSE courses have been chosen to play to our pupils’ many strengths, avoiding subjects with a heavy bias towards writing, spelling and punctuation; or with an extensive research element.
Curriculum Links
Art & Design: Year 9 Curriculum Year 10/11 Curriculum
ASDAN: ASDAN Curriculum
Digital Functional Skills: Digital Functional Skills Curriculum
English Language: https://www.cambridgeinternational.org/Images/414546-2020-2022-syllabus.pdf
English Literature: https://qualifications.pearson.com/en/qualifications/edexcel-international-gcses/international-gcse-english-literature-2016.html
Film Studies: https://www.eduqas.co.uk/qualifications/film-studies-gcse/#tab_overview
Food & Nutrition: Year 10 Food & Nutrition Curriculum
Year 11 Food & Nutrition Curriculum
Functional Skills English: https://www.aqa.org.uk/subjects/english/functional-skills/english-8720-8725
Mathematics: Edexcel International GCSE Mathematics A (2016) | Pearson qualifications
Functional Skills Maths: AQA | Functional Skills | Mathematics | Specification at a glance
Science:
GCSE: GCSE_CombinedScience_Spec.pdf (pearson.com)
Entry level Science: Edexcel Entry Level Certificate Science | Pearson qualifications
Study Skills: Study Skills Curriculum
GCSE Results 2023
August 2023
All staff at school were delighted with the fantastic GCSE results achieved by the Y11 students. There are many elements to be incredibly proud of including:
100% pass rate (Grades 4 - 9) in English Literature, Art, Food and Nutrition and the ASDAN (Life Skills) Qualification
90% pass rate (Grades 4-9) in Maths
75% pass rate in Science
60% in English Language
Amazingly out of all the GCSEs attempted 80% achieved a grade 4 or better with 29% being grade 7 or higher! Considering the complexity of need with our children this is a fantastic set of results!
GCSE Results 2022
August 2022
We are thrilled to share that 77% of all GCSEs taken in the academic year 2021-2022 were awarded a grade 4 or above and a fantastic 32% gained a grade 6 or above.
For pupils who had their GSCE years blighted by COVID and lockdowns, these are a superb set of results, and we are really proud of them.
27% of our pupils achieved 8 GCSEs at grade 4 or above.
91% achieved a grade 4 or above in maths, including one pupil who was awarded a grade 9.
67% of pupils achieved a grade 4 or above in English Language.
100% of pupils who took English Literature achieved a grade 4 or above.
75% of pupils who took Combined Science achieved a grade 4 or above and 100% of the Triple Science grades were 5 or above including a 7 in Biology.
100% pupils who sat Food Preparation & Nutrition obtained a grade 4 with a superb 50% achieving a grade 7 or above.
100% of pupils who took Art achieved a grade 4 or better.
January 2022: We received the English IGCSE results that were taken in October last year by six of our Y11 pupils. The plan was to give the children an early attempt at sitting one of the main GCSE exams. I am delighted to announce that not only did all 6 pass their English IGCSE, but one achieved a Grade 8 and another a Grade 9! This is an incredible achievement by all 6, and they can now focus on the rest of their GCSEs knowing that they have one of the most important banked. We have our fingers crossed that the children who sat their Maths GCSE earlier this term will get similar results when their results are available later this term.
GCSE Results 2021
As a school we were delighted with the GCSE results achieved by our Y11 cohort this year. There were many standout performances with 86% of children who sat the full GCSE passing their English Language GCSE and 80% passing their Maths. Science had similarly excellent results with 83% of the children who sat the full GCSE getting a grade of 4 or better.
All students who sat Film Studies or Art achieved a grade 4 or better with an excellent 50% of the artists achieving a grade 7 or better. This is equivalent to the old ‘A’ Grade. We were particularly proud of one pupil who achieved a 9 in Art. This is the highest grade possible.
Credit needs to go to all staff. Many of whom have taught these children when they were in Y4/5 at school. Parents, staff, and children were delighted with the results.
Our pupils are carrying on their studies at Abingdon & Witney College, BCA, City of Oxford College, Floor Train, Newbury College and Pangbourne College.
GCSE Results 2020
21/08/2020
The Unicorn School were delighted to welcome only their third cohort of Y11 pupils to the school to receive their GCSE results. All pupils should be very proud of the hard work they have put in over the last few years to achieve truly remarkable results.
We are delighted to announce that 86% achieved a level 4 (Equivalent to a C grade) or higher in their GCSE results. This is up from the 81% achieved last year and the 75% that achieved the same two years ago.
Similarly, 9% of all GCSE results were in the highest 7-9 bracket (Equivalent to an A or A* under the old system) mirroring our achievements from last year.
Especially impressive were the results in the three main core areas:
English:
English Language –
90% achieved a level 4 or higher compared to 81% from last year and 50% from 2 years ago.
64% achieved a level 5 or higher.
20% achieved a level 6 or higher.
English Literature –
80% achieved a level 4 or higher compared to 80% from last year and 40% from 2 years ago.
70 % managed a level 5 or higher.
30% managed a level 6 or higher.
Maths:
90 % achieved a level 4 or higher compared to 82% from last year and 100% from 2 years ago.
60% achieved a level 5 or higher
An amazing 30% achieved a Level 7 or higher!
10% of our children achieved a level 9 which is the highest level possible.
Science
83% achieved a level 4 or higher compared to 86% last year and 92% from two years ago.
52% achieved a level 5 or higher
22% achieved a level 6 or higher
90% of our children achieved a Maths, English and Science GCSE of grade 4 or higher! This compares to 82 percent from last year and 50% from two years ago.
Other Subjects:
Art:
100% Achieved a 5 or better
50% Achieved a 6 or better
Film:
80% Achieved a level 5 or better
60% achieved a level 6 or better
40% achieved a level 7 or better
20% achieved a level 8 or better
Finally:
70% of our children walked away with at least 5 GCSEs of Grade 4 or higher.
60% achieved at least 6 GCSEs of grade 4 or higher
30% achieved at least 7 GCSEs of grade 5 or higher
17/01/2020 Yesterday was another very positive day at The Unicorn School when the Y11 children received their iGCSE English Language results. The Year 11 children sat their English Language iGCSE early in November 2019.
90% of our children achieved a level 4 or better in the exam. This is a fantastic result and the best ever by a Unicorn cohort beating the amazing 82% who achieved it last year and the 66% who achieved it the year before. The children should be incredibly proud of their achievements.
Considering the range of difficulties that our children have this is a phenomenal set of results that Miss Graham, Mrs Carter-Tabasso and all the staff involved in supporting the children should be rightly proud of. To put this into context the National average for Level 4 or above is 72%.
In addition the stats for those children achieving Level 3 or above was 100% here compared to 90% nationally and Level 5 or above was 60% here compared to 54% nationally.
Our pupils will be carrying on their studies at Abingdon & Witney College, D’Overbroecks, King Alfred’s, LVS, St Bede’s College, Manchester and West Berkshire Training Consortium. A-level subjects being studied include Mathematics, Economics, Politics, Psychology, Drama, Art, Film Studies and Entrepreneurship. Others are studying BTECs in Media Studies, Sports Studies, IT and Electrical Instillation. One pupil is also doing a Level 2 Business diploma.
A more detailed breakdown of the school's examination results is available on request from: office@unicornoxford.co.uk
GCSE RESULTS 2019
We are delighted to announce that 81% achieved a level 4 (Equivalent to a C grade) or higher in their GCSE results. This is up from the 75% that achieved the same last year. Similarly 9% of all GCSE results were in the highest 7-9 bracket (Equivalent to a A or A* under the old system)
Considering the anxiety levels of our children and the complexity of their needs we were delighted with these results.
64% of our children walked out with at least 5 GCSEs or better including Maths, English Language and at least one science. 36% achieved at least 7 GCSEs or better!
82% achieved a level 4 or higher in English Language
82% achieved a level 4 or higher in Maths
86% achieved a level 4 or higher in Science
(*National Average for all of these is approx. 70%)
80% achieved a level 6 or higher in Art
9% achieved a level 7 or higher across all GCSEs
Our pupils will be carrying on their studies at D'Overbroecks (one with an Art scholarship), Reading College, Newbury College, City of Oxford College, Abingdon & Witney College, Oxpens College and United World College, New Mexico. They are taking A-levels as well as studying subjects ranging from Forensic Science to Vet Nursing and working in a nursery with young autistic children.
A more detailed breakdown of the school's examination results is available on request from: office@unicornoxford.co.uk
GCSE RESULTS 2018
The Unicorn School were delighted to welcome their very first cohort of Y11 pupils to the school in August to receive their GCSE results.
We are delighted to announce that nearly 10% of our children achieved a Level 7 (Grade A) or higher in their GCSE grades. 75% achieved a level 4 (Equivalent to a C grade) or higher.
Especially impressive were the results in Maths where 100% achieved a level 4 or higher and in Science where 92% achieved a level 4 or higher.
In addition, all children who sat the course achieved their Level 2 BTEC passes in Food and Nutrition and Level 1 in Construction.
Our pupils will be carrying on their education at St Bartholomew's Newbury, Newbury College, Berkshire College of Agriculture and Frewen.
Considering the anxiety levels of our children and the complexity of their needs we were delighted with these results. We are very proud of the hard work they put in over the last few years to achieve truly remarkable results.
A more detailed breakdown of the school's examination results is available on request from: office@unicornoxford.co.uk