Testimonials
"Appleford School sprinkles magic dust over dyslexic children."
Martin Cooke, Headmaster, Clayesmore School (www.clayesmore.com)
"We are both thrilled with Leonie's school reports and we will continue to encourage and support her through all that she does in life. Thank you for all your help and support."
Parents
"Lara has had a good term with some excellent grades. She works hard and seems dedicated. She is proud to be a House and School Prefect and takes her responsibilities seriously although she occasionally insists on having the last word! Lara likes her teachers and appears to have a good rapport with most. Her friends are very important and she enjoys being in a mixed environment.
"Lara has made great progress during the 18 months at Appleford. Her confidence has grown enormously. She loves to participate and school has allowed her this for the first time in her academic career. Happy child - happy parents!"
"Lara has made great progress during the 18 months at Appleford. Her confidence has grown enormously. She loves to participate and school has allowed her this for the first time in her academic career. Happy child - happy parents!"
Parent
"We are both surprised that Alex has settled down into his boarding experience, many sleepless nights were had about the prospect.
"It is lovely to have a little boy home at weekends who is happy and growing in confidence, and is also more than happy to return to school. No "headaches". Alex's difficulties particularly with listening and being easily distracted are not a great surpirse, but we have every confidence that he will continue to improve over time. It is good to see his improvement in maths and positive feedback for PE.
"Thank you to all the staff for the support and kindness Alex has received."
"It is lovely to have a little boy home at weekends who is happy and growing in confidence, and is also more than happy to return to school. No "headaches". Alex's difficulties particularly with listening and being easily distracted are not a great surpirse, but we have every confidence that he will continue to improve over time. It is good to see his improvement in maths and positive feedback for PE.
"Thank you to all the staff for the support and kindness Alex has received."
Parents
"We have noticed a huge improvement in Freddie's self confidence and ability to form his own judgment since being at Appleford.
"He is obviously very happy and settled at Appleford and is looking forward to boarding.
"He is very proud to be on the school committee. We were very impressed with his A1 grade for personal organisation in his Orcheston House report and look forward to seeing this at home!"
"He is obviously very happy and settled at Appleford and is looking forward to boarding.
"He is very proud to be on the school committee. We were very impressed with his A1 grade for personal organisation in his Orcheston House report and look forward to seeing this at home!"
Parents
"There isn't much that I can say apart from I wish we had found you all earlier. Leonie has made such a massive improvement in all departments. Never before has she been found reading in her room, or wanting to read. She has become very confident. She speaks all the time about her teachers and new friends at school. I am very proud of the effort Leonie is making in her schooling, so well done Leonie, keep it up princess, and also a big thank you to everybody at Appleford for all your hard work and encouragement with Leonie's progress."
Parent
"When our son first joined Appleford we were living in Dubai, and are now in Bermuda. I remember well how downhearted I was when we were looking for a school for him and Appleford was the last one to be visited, by which time I was feeling pretty despondent and hopeless. From then on it just kept getting better and better! From the very first the Appleford team made us feel that our struggling son was valued, welcomed and that they could really help him.
"I can honestly say that we can wholeheartedly recommend Appleford as our son has been really happy there and has made great progress academically. At his previous school it was a really unhappy and stressful struggle for him to keep up with the pace of the class, even with an assistant working one-to-one with him, especially with such a large class size. Appleford’s classes are much smaller and the children are taught at the level they actually are, rather than where they should be! Our family noticed within the first few weeks that his confidence grew once he was in a school where it is accepted that everyone has a tricky time with one aspect of learning or another, and that he was no longer the odd one out! The improvements in his academic skills have come along more gradually, but this last year we were thrilled to learn that his reading and comprehension skills had leaped by 33 months in only 9 months!
"I have found the staff to be an incredibly caring group of teachers and carers who truly work together as an effective team. In fact, after our son being at Appleford three years, I consider many of the teachers and boarding staff as great friends too, despite the fact that I am only able to visit sporadically throughout the year. Although he has moved up into the Seniors, he has stayed in the junior boarding house as a Prefect and enjoys helping care for the younger boys in his house. I must say that Coral and Andy Wedd (Elston’s Houseparents for the last 3 years) are the nicest, most caring people you could hope to entrust your son to, and they have been particularly supportive with practical help during term time, such as buying new school shoes or even liaising with other parents to arrange a weekend out with one of our son’s weekly boarder friends!
"I know the whole idea of boarding school for many may be very difficult to contemplate, but I really can assure you that Appleford is a genuinely happy school where the children are given excellent support both in the classroom and also in their boarding lives."
"I can honestly say that we can wholeheartedly recommend Appleford as our son has been really happy there and has made great progress academically. At his previous school it was a really unhappy and stressful struggle for him to keep up with the pace of the class, even with an assistant working one-to-one with him, especially with such a large class size. Appleford’s classes are much smaller and the children are taught at the level they actually are, rather than where they should be! Our family noticed within the first few weeks that his confidence grew once he was in a school where it is accepted that everyone has a tricky time with one aspect of learning or another, and that he was no longer the odd one out! The improvements in his academic skills have come along more gradually, but this last year we were thrilled to learn that his reading and comprehension skills had leaped by 33 months in only 9 months!
"I have found the staff to be an incredibly caring group of teachers and carers who truly work together as an effective team. In fact, after our son being at Appleford three years, I consider many of the teachers and boarding staff as great friends too, despite the fact that I am only able to visit sporadically throughout the year. Although he has moved up into the Seniors, he has stayed in the junior boarding house as a Prefect and enjoys helping care for the younger boys in his house. I must say that Coral and Andy Wedd (Elston’s Houseparents for the last 3 years) are the nicest, most caring people you could hope to entrust your son to, and they have been particularly supportive with practical help during term time, such as buying new school shoes or even liaising with other parents to arrange a weekend out with one of our son’s weekly boarder friends!
"I know the whole idea of boarding school for many may be very difficult to contemplate, but I really can assure you that Appleford is a genuinely happy school where the children are given excellent support both in the classroom and also in their boarding lives."
Parents
"I would like to thank you very much for your help and support in our recent fight with the LEA.
"You were very important to my son during his time at Appleford and he will miss you very much. Please give my sincere thanks to all the staff. Your kindness will not be forgotten."
"You were very important to my son during his time at Appleford and he will miss you very much. Please give my sincere thanks to all the staff. Your kindness will not be forgotten."
Ex Parent
"Dear Headteacher
"A few weeks ago I drove through Shrewton and passed the gates of Appleford on my way to Salisbury Plain Training Area for an Iraq Pre-Deployment Combined Arms Exercise.
"I was a pupil at Appleford from September 1990 to July 1994, and felt this was a good moment to write back and let the school know how I have got on since leaving and hopefully provide a bit of inspiration to the boys and girls at Appleford today. Sitting back in Elston House 15 years ago I could never have imagined what it is possible to achieve, but also appreciate the grounding and development in education that Appleford provides. Even today dyslexia plays a part in my life; however my foundation at Appleford has helped me understand the difficulties dyslexia presents and, at the same time, never be a barrier to one’s development in education.
"After I left Appleford I moved on to Strathallan School in the heart of Perthshire, Scotland. Although initially the move 500 miles north was slightly overwhelming, I soon settled in and eventually finished there in May 2000 as a school prefect, having represented the school in Rugby, Cricket, Hockey and Tennis and achieved good results in my Scottish Higher Grades and A-Level exams. That summer was spent in North Western Australia travelling, sailing and working for my uncle who is a Bush Ranger responsible for the remote Kimberley Region and ecological advisor to the Australian Government.
"I then went on to St. Andrews University to read for a degree in Geography. I enjoyed every minute of my four years there, playing a lot of golf and the Gaelic hockey game of Shinty. With the generous four month summer holidays you get at University I spent most of my time in the Sultanate of Oman travelling around the Arabian Peninsular and joining dolphin, whale and turtle marine conservation expeditions in the region.
"After finishing with a 2:1 (MA) degree in Geography at St. Andrews I went to the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and a year later commissioned into the 1st Battalion The Royal Green Jackets, a light infantry battalion based 8 miles from Blackpool. Earlier on this year I attended the Infantry Battle School in Wales, with overseas exercises in Malawi and Cyprus. In a week’s time I will be deploying on operations for 7 months, operating from Basra Palace in Southern Iraq commanding a platoon of 35 soldiers.
"When training on Salisbury Plain 2 weeks ago I could not help but feel proud that I had been a pupil at Appleford School."
"A few weeks ago I drove through Shrewton and passed the gates of Appleford on my way to Salisbury Plain Training Area for an Iraq Pre-Deployment Combined Arms Exercise.
"I was a pupil at Appleford from September 1990 to July 1994, and felt this was a good moment to write back and let the school know how I have got on since leaving and hopefully provide a bit of inspiration to the boys and girls at Appleford today. Sitting back in Elston House 15 years ago I could never have imagined what it is possible to achieve, but also appreciate the grounding and development in education that Appleford provides. Even today dyslexia plays a part in my life; however my foundation at Appleford has helped me understand the difficulties dyslexia presents and, at the same time, never be a barrier to one’s development in education.
"After I left Appleford I moved on to Strathallan School in the heart of Perthshire, Scotland. Although initially the move 500 miles north was slightly overwhelming, I soon settled in and eventually finished there in May 2000 as a school prefect, having represented the school in Rugby, Cricket, Hockey and Tennis and achieved good results in my Scottish Higher Grades and A-Level exams. That summer was spent in North Western Australia travelling, sailing and working for my uncle who is a Bush Ranger responsible for the remote Kimberley Region and ecological advisor to the Australian Government.
"I then went on to St. Andrews University to read for a degree in Geography. I enjoyed every minute of my four years there, playing a lot of golf and the Gaelic hockey game of Shinty. With the generous four month summer holidays you get at University I spent most of my time in the Sultanate of Oman travelling around the Arabian Peninsular and joining dolphin, whale and turtle marine conservation expeditions in the region.
"After finishing with a 2:1 (MA) degree in Geography at St. Andrews I went to the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and a year later commissioned into the 1st Battalion The Royal Green Jackets, a light infantry battalion based 8 miles from Blackpool. Earlier on this year I attended the Infantry Battle School in Wales, with overseas exercises in Malawi and Cyprus. In a week’s time I will be deploying on operations for 7 months, operating from Basra Palace in Southern Iraq commanding a platoon of 35 soldiers.
"When training on Salisbury Plain 2 weeks ago I could not help but feel proud that I had been a pupil at Appleford School."
Ex Pupil