Oakwood is a specialist college located in the beautiful South West of England. We have three campuses, each delivering our core Oakwood values whilst ensuring we meet the needs of each local community.

Our Dawlish campus is situated in the coastal town of Dawlish near Exeter. It is a short walk from the town centre and the golden beach, with excellent transport links via bus or the Great western train line to Exeter, Plymouth and beyond. At Dawlish we provide learning programmes for around 80 learners, a small number of whom enjoy the residential experience in our onsite shared property, and in single and shared flats and houses in the nearby area.

Our Torpoint campus is situated just a short walk from the ferryport and enjoys beautiful views of the River Tamar and beyond. We attract learners from both Plymouth and Cornwall to study here. Students benefit from accessing our local Torpoint community, but also take part in the huge range of trips and activities that Plymouth has to offer. At Oakwood Torpoint we provide learning for up to 25 learners. Torpoint is a day student only campus.

Our newest campus, Oakwood Yate, is located in Yate, South Glos. with excellent transport links to Bristol and beyond. The campus benefits from being centrally located in the bustling town centre of Yate with a wide range of shops and leisure facilities providing excellent work experience and community access for our learners. At Oakwood Yate we provide learning for up to 15 learners. Yate is a day student only campus.

The College’s focus is to develop the knowledge and skills of every learner to prepare them for independent life, living and work. We provide individualised and bespoke learning programmes that follow the pathways to adulthood, and include employment related qualifications and work experience.

The College was inspected by OFSTED in September 2018, and judged to be good in all areas and Outstanding for Personal Development, Behaviour and Welfare (PDBW), with inspectors describing the learners as…” making excellent progress in their personal development and behaviour. They gain skills that can help them to be more independent in their daily lives”.

As Principal of Oakwood Specialist College, I am delighted to welcome you in finding out more about this very special place. Oakwood is a Specialist College where young people achieve amazing things, supported by a team of dedicated, caring and committed staff.

We celebrate the diversity of every individual in our college community and work hard to ensure that learners enjoy a blend of happy, creative and positive learning opportunities and achieve stretching targets that enable them to progress on to their next steps after College.

Preparing for the next steps is really what college life is all about, and our varied curriculum and fantastic enrichment opportunities are designed to ensure that everyone realises their potential. We are proud of our excellent opportunities for work experience which are a key feature of study programmes, and of the progress our learners make through the Duke of Edinburgh awards scheme – all firmly focused on personal development and empowerment.

I am particularly proud of our therapeutically informed approach to learning, using strategies across the college, complemented by specialist input from our excellent multi-disciplinary team including Speech and Language Therapy and Counselling. You cannot fail to feel the energy, positivity and warmth when you arrive at Oakwood so I would encourage you to come and visit us, and I hope that you choose to make our college, your college.

Esther Williams

College Principal

If you're searching for your next post, why not contact us now? You'll be working at a great school and be part of a friendly, helpful team. We're always interested to hear from enthusiastic, committed teachers - send us your CV now via our School Talent Pool and say what sort of role you're looking for. By joining our School Talent Pool we'll know you're interested in working here when a future vacancy occurs.