St. Dominic's School in Hambledon, Surrey, England is a co-educational day school, one of the oldest special schools in the United Kingdom. It specialises in the education of children with various disabilities, such as autism, whilst integrating specialised support, including an onsite speech and language, occupational and physio therapy team. Currently pupils are admitted from over 35 different LEAs. It admits and educates pupils aged 7–19.

St Dominic's School
Nearby Hambledon Hurst or Heath characterises the lightly populated area around the school
Location
Map
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GU8 4DX

England
Coordinates51°08′13″N 0°37′37″W / 51.137°N 0.627°W / 51.137; -0.627
Information
TypeSpecial school;
Academy
Established1929
Local authoritySurrey County Council
Department for Education URN145384 Tables
OfstedReports
PrincipalVictoria Perry
Age8 to 19
Enrolment90~
Houses  Sahara
  Kilimanjaro
  Serengeti
  Victoria Falls
Websitehttp://www.stdominicsschool.org.uk/

Previously a non-maintained independent school, in January 2018 St Dominic's School formally entered the state sector and converted to academy status. The school is now part of the Orchard Hill College & Academy Trust.[1]

Admissions

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Applications are normally made through the Local Education Authority in whose area a child's family live. Currently pupils are admitted from over 35 different LEAs.

Background

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On Mount Olivet, a hill in the Greensand Ridge, the place was named after St. Dominic Savio, the patron saint of juvenile delinquents. The site was originally property of Charles Watney. It consisted of an observatory and a chapel, the latter of which remains a prominent assembly place and the observatory remaining as the logo for the school. When Watney's wife died in 1929, some time after Watney himself died, the Roman Catholic congregation of nuns known as the Sisters of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary established the school at her request, and they remain its trustees to this day. The school is one of those supported by the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton (in the Roman Catholic church).

References

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  1. ^ Orchard Hill College, Academy Trust, accessed 4 March 2021
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