The Children's Hospital School at Great Ormond Street and UCH has served long-stay paediatric patients for over 70 years, bringing the classroom directly to hospital bedsides and specialist treatment rooms across two of London's leading children's hospitals. This state special school operates in the heart of Bloomsbury, Camden, delivering the National Curriculum to inpatients aged 4 to 18 who face extended hospital admissions at Great Ormond Street Hospital and University College London Hospitals. With its third consecutive Outstanding Ofsted rating and a mission centred on "Continuity, Enjoyment, Achievement", the school ensures that serious illness does not interrupt education. The school deploys a team of approximately 40 specialist teachers and teaching assistants trained in both mainstream and medical needs settings, bringing mobile science labs, museum artefacts, virtual choirs, and innovative teaching tools to children undergoing treatment.
Founded in 1951 with just two teachers, the Children's Hospital School has grown into a pioneering institution where education and healthcare unite. The school's ethos centres on maintaining educational continuity and a sense of normalcy for children whose medical circumstances have removed them from their home schools and daily routines. Staff describe bringing "the outside world inside straight to the bedside", using mobile ponds filled with minibeasts, 3D-printed museum replicas, and rich multimedia resources to create engaging learning environments amid clinical surroundings.
The school operates across two hospital sites: the main location at Great Ormond Street Hospital and a classroom base at UCLH's T12 Schoolroom on Euston Road. Pupils access teaching in both classroom settings and directly at the bedside, with every lesson tailored to the child's current medical condition, energy levels, and treatment schedule. The school's commitment to providing an "ordinary" educational experience within extraordinary circumstances defines its identity, fostering resilience, friendship, and determination in young patients who face significant health challenges.
Under the leadership of Headteacher Neela Moorghen, who joined in September 2024 from Grasmere Primary School, the school maintains close partnerships with Great Ormond Street Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and UCLH. Staff work closely with medical teams, families, and home schools to coordinate learning that bridges the gap between hospital admission and eventual return to mainstream education.
Ofsted judges the Children's Hospital School as Outstanding, its third consecutive top rating following previous inspections in 2009 and 2006. Inspectors noted that staff are "extremely, and rightly, proud to work at the school", praising the delivery of "an ambitious and well-considered education in and among the busyness of a hospital ward or during medical treatment". The inspection highlighted teachers' exceptional subject knowledge and their skill in adapting daily to pupils' changing medical needs, recapping prior learning and adjusting curriculum delivery to help pupils learn "extremely well".
The school teaches the full National Curriculum across primary and secondary phases, covering literacy, numeracy, English, maths, and science as standard, alongside a broad range of foundation subjects. However, the curriculum remains flexible, with teachers authorised to deviate from national frameworks when medical circumstances require a different approach. Lessons are designed to minimise anxiety about missing schoolwork while fostering a genuine sense of achievement and progress. Pupils participate in school plays, virtual choirs, and weekly awards ceremonies that replicate the rhythms and rituals of mainstream school life.
Teachers coordinate closely with pupils' home schools, using email, phone, and virtual learning environments to maintain continuity. Students are encouraged to bring their home school login credentials so they can access familiar learning platforms and resources during their hospital stay. The school also facilitates examinations in hospital where needed, working with exam boards and home schools to arrange assessments at the bedside or in designated exam spaces.
SEND provision is integral to the school's identity. A designated SENCo oversees individualised support for pupils with diverse and often complex special educational needs arising from their medical conditions. Teachers and teaching assistants bring experience from a wide range of settings, including mainstream schools, special schools, PRUs, and other medical needs environments, ensuring that every child receives expert, personalised teaching regardless of their health status or learning needs.
Safeguarding arrangements are judged effective, with Neela Moorghen serving as one of the school's designated safeguarding leads. Given the vulnerability of the school's cohort, safeguarding protocols are woven into every aspect of school life, balancing the clinical nature of hospital care with the pastoral and protective responsibilities of education.
The school's facilities reflect its unique setting. Teaching takes place in dedicated schoolrooms at both GOSH and UCLH, as well as at bedsides throughout hospital wards. Teachers use portable equipment—from iPads and laptops to mobile science kits and creative arts materials—to deliver engaging lessons wherever pupils are located. The school has developed innovative teaching methods that bring the curriculum to life even in the most restricted environments, using virtual field trips, 3D-printed museum objects, and live video links to create rich, interactive learning experiences.
Pupils can participate in extracurricular activities adapted to hospital life. Virtual choirs allow students to sing together despite isolation protocols, and school productions enable creative expression. Awards ceremonies and recognition events maintain the celebratory culture of mainstream schools, helping children feel proud of their achievements during difficult times.
The school's integration with hospital services means that pupils benefit from coordinated medical and educational support. Teachers liaise with nursing staff, consultants, and therapists to ensure that lesson timing, content, and delivery are appropriate to each child's treatment schedule and wellbeing. This collaboration creates a holistic support network where education reinforces recovery and resilience.
Admission to the Children's Hospital School is strictly for inpatients at Great Ormond Street Hospital and University College London Hospitals. There is no application process in the traditional sense; access is automatic for children admitted to either hospital for a long-stay admission. The school is not geographically catchmented and serves pupils from across the UK and internationally, reflecting the national and international reach of both hospitals as specialist paediatric centres.
Families are informed about the school's availability shortly after their child's admission, typically through liaison between hospital staff and the school's team. Once a child is well enough to participate, a teacher will visit the ward or bedside to introduce the school, discuss the child's home school curriculum, and begin tailored teaching as medical circumstances allow. The school emphasises flexibility: teaching adapts to the child's energy, treatment timetable, and wellbeing, with no expectation that pupils attend for set hours or follow a rigid schedule.
There is no competition for places, no distance criteria, and no oversubscription. Every eligible inpatient can access the school's provision. This inclusive model reflects the school's fundamental mission: ensuring that no child's education is derailed by illness, regardless of where they live or how complex their medical needs.
The Children's Hospital School at Great Ormond Street and UCH is a remarkable institution that exemplifies the power of education to provide continuity, hope, and normalcy in the most challenging circumstances. Its Outstanding Ofsted rating reflects genuinely outstanding work: highly skilled teachers delivering ambitious, personalised learning to children undergoing serious medical treatment, often at the most vulnerable moments of their lives. The school's innovative teaching methods, flexible curriculum, and deep collaboration with hospital teams create an educational environment that is both compassionate and academically rigorous.
For families whose children face long hospital admissions, the school offers invaluable reassurance. It ensures that learning continues, progress is made, and school life remains part of a child's identity even when health takes centre stage. The school's commitment to maintaining links with home schools and facilitating smooth transitions back to mainstream education demonstrates its understanding of the broader picture: hospital is temporary, and education is a lifelong journey.
While the school's setting is unique and access is limited to inpatients at two specific hospitals, its impact is profound. It serves as a national model for hospital education, proving that serious illness need not interrupt academic achievement or personal growth. For the children it serves, the school is a vital source of stability, achievement, and hope during some of the most difficult periods of their young lives.
Yes. Ofsted rates the school Outstanding, its third consecutive top rating. Inspectors praised the school's ambitious curriculum, expert teaching adapted to daily medical needs, and exceptional staff commitment. The school delivers high-quality, personalised education to seriously ill children, maintaining academic continuity and fostering resilience during hospital treatment.
There is no application process. The school is exclusively for inpatients at Great Ormond Street Hospital and University College London Hospitals with long-stay admissions. Once your child is admitted, hospital staff and the school's team will inform you about educational support and begin teaching when medically appropriate.
The school serves children and young people aged 4 to 18, covering primary and secondary education phases. Teaching is tailored to each child's age, ability, and home school curriculum.
Yes. The school coordinates with exam boards and home schools to arrange examinations in hospital, either at the bedside or in designated exam spaces, provided pupils notify the school in advance and medical circumstances allow.
The school maintains close contact with home schools through email, phone, and virtual learning platforms. Teachers coordinate curriculum planning, share progress updates, and help pupils access their home school's resources and learning environments. This ensures continuity and smooth transitions back to mainstream education.
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