Triumph for inclusive education!

More House School has again proved that commitment to high aspiration and inclusive teaching practices enable disadvantaged young people to fulfil their academic dreams.

Students in the Sixth Form at More House School in Frensham are celebrating impressive successes in their A Level and equivalent BTec results this summer, with many previously believing such achievement was impossible for them.

Despite 83% of More House’s Upper Sixth leavers being the subjects of Education, Health and Care Plans, demonstrating complex special educational needs, for the large majority their next destination is university – a pathway which most thought impossible when they first joined More House.

Having secured grades A*, A, A in his A Levels at More House, Charles is excited to begin his degree in Aerospace Engineering at Birmingham University this September.  With A*, A, A, and also another A in his Extended Project Qualification, Jack is heading to Royal Holloway University to read History.

Other students are looking forward to commencing degrees in subjects as varied as Law, International Relations, Forensic Science, Education, Civil Engineering, Maths, Chemistry and Architecture, at an impressive breadth of universities.  Some of More House’s leavers are taking gap years to pursue travel and employment before starting university, and others are progressing to apprenticeships or directly into employment.

Pupils at More House have typically struggled in their previous schools.  Their special educational needs have made it difficult to make good progress in other provisions, and many previously believed they were not clever.

More House’s headmaster, Jonathan Hetherington, congratulated his students, commenting “this summer’s results are proof that if teachers hold high aspirations for all learners, and if schools commit to whole-class inclusive teaching practices, young people with special needs can make extraordinary progress and achieve excellent outcomes”.

He paid tribute to his pupils’ self-belief and perseverance, and to the expertise of the school’s staff, who now support more than 275 mainstream schools across the UK to make their settings more inclusive.

This summer, More House students achieved a 96% pass rate at A Level, with similar success in their equivalent Level 3 BTec qualifications.  The school’s outcomes for learners with special needs smash national expectations.

With 515 pupils, the school in Frensham is now one of the largest specialist schools in the UK for children with special needs, but delivers a mainstream, academic curriculum enabling success at GCSE, A Level and BTec.

The school was inspected earlier this year by Ofsted, and was awarded four ‘Exceptional’ grades – a very rare achievement.  Its Boarding provision was similarly graded ‘Outstanding’ in all areas in 2026.  Although an independent school, a majority of pupils’ places are commissioned by 35 local authorities.  The school’s reputation as a national leader in inclusion and special needs means that its staff are regularly involved in delivering educational conferences and training.  The school is heavily involved in research with several leading universities.

Some of this summer’s Sixth Form leavers and teachers: