Dragon School Trust Ltd   Dragon School Trust Ltd Bardwell Road

The Dragon Preparatory School (for 8-13 year olds), together with the Dragon Pre-Preparatory School, Lynams (for 4-7 year olds), is one of the best known schools in the country and numbers amongst its former pupils a very wide range of successful men and women. Situated on two sites in leafy North Oxford, its roots lie in progressive educational theory of the late nineteenth century. Founded as the Oxford Preparatory School in 1877 the school was started by a group of Oxford University dons for their own children. Run for many years by the Lynam family, the Dragon reflected their unconventional approach to education which was based on the belief that children should enjoy school and understand the world around them.The School today reflects its radical roots and has an ethos that hinges on a dynamic balance of relaxed unpretentiousness and academic discipline which has been described as ‘robust informality and relaxed rigour'. Children's needs are at the heart of the Dragon and pastoral care is paramount; discipline relies on common sense, kindness and individual responsibility. The joy of learning and the fun of childhood exploration are shared throughout a warm school community where every child is encouraged to try everything and do his or her best.School life centres on a broad curriculum designed and delivered by a large, very well qualified teaching staff. A huge range of after school activities and clubs extend timetabled subjects and games with every kind of interest and activity. An outstanding sporting school, the Dragon fields strong teams across the board of competition while offering a programme that includes and encourages every level of ability. The extensive Dragon music programme mirrors this in breadth and diversity with orchestras, choirs, bands and performances of every kind.Boys and girls leave the Dragon, usually at thirteen, to join the finest independent senior schools – a great many with scholarships and awards across the range of academic, cultural and sporting achievement. Former pupils maintain Dragon friendships into adult life and retain a strong affection for the school returning with pleasure for school occasions.For the past fifty years the Dragon has been a charitable trust dedicated to providing all that is best in education for boarding and day children up to the age of 13. The school is administered by a governing body.