Dragon School

Established in 1877, Dragon School is a vibrant community dedicated to nurturing the potential of every child. Situated in the heart of Oxford, the school...

The Dragon School in Oxford was founded in 1877 by a group of Oxford academics seeking a high-quality preparatory school for their sons, and rapidly developed under its first long-serving Headmaster Charles Lynam (always known as "the Skipper") and his nephew Charles Cotton Lynam into the most distinguished preparatory school in England. The school sits today on a central Oxford campus on the east bank of the River Cherwell, immediately adjacent to the University of Oxford. The Head is Emma Goldsmith.

The Dragon was one of the very first English prep schools to become co-educational — admitting girls from 1934 — and today educates around 796 pupils ages 4-13 across a Pre-Prep and Prep School, with a substantial boarding population. The school is a member of the IAPS and the Boarding Schools Association. The Dragon is the single most distinguished preparatory-school feeder in the United Kingdom to the major British public schools — Eton, Harrow, Winchester, Westminster, Marlborough, Charterhouse, St Paul's and Radley all receive substantial intakes of Dragon boys and girls each year, and many of the most distinguished pupils of those schools were Dragon boys before progressing to their senior school at 13.

The Dragon's alumni list reflects its role as the entry point of the senior public-school elite. The barrister and novelist Sir John Mortimer — barrister of Rumpole of the Bailey, autobiographer of A Voyage Round My Father, and one of the great voices of late-twentieth-century English liberal letters — was a Dragon boy. The Labour leader Hugh Gaitskell (Labour Leader 1955-63 and the politician who substantially created the modern post-war Labour Party before his early death in 1963) was at the Dragon. The actor Hugh Laurie CBE (Blackadder, Jeeves and Wooster, House MD) was at the Dragon before Eton. The Lord Chancellor Charles Falconer, Baron Falconer (Lord Chancellor 2003-07 under Tony Blair) was at the Dragon. The novelist and political satirist John Wells was a Dragon pupil.

The school operates a substantial bursary programme via the Dragon School Trust, intended to provide educational access for academically able children regardless of family means.

Ou r Dragons have gone into an ex traor dinary array of professio ns, f rom entrepreneurs to explorers, lawyers to professors, actors to app developers, accountants to surgeons, academics to activists (the list goes on!). N ot only do you n ow have access to some brilliant minds – you, yourself, are one of them, and we can’t wait to see where your Dragon wings take you.

Even wh en you’ve g one through t h ose Bardwe ll Road gates for the final time, you re main a Dragon for life, and we love an excuse to celebrate our ever-growing, diverse, and talented community, as you emb race your potential and soar to new heights! From senior school achievements through to career next steps, family news and all your big adventure s, your journey beyond the Dragon is just as important to us as your days at s chool, so let’s stay connected. Tell us what you’ve been up to; we’d love to hear your story and celebrate your successes, big or small.

Every year, you will recei ve your community magazine and a termly e-newsletter to keep you connected to your fellow Dragons, not to mention in vitations t o Drag on events. From regular year group reunions at Bardwel l Road to events in London, N ew York, Hong Kong and beyond, your connection to the Dragon lives long after your days spent playing eggy and devouring B un B reaks.