The Cooper School
Academy converter secondary school in Bicester (Oxfordshire).
Location
iSchool location from Get Information about Schools. Nearby schools are coloured by phase. Open Map+ for a full-screen map with neighbourhood deprivation (England only).About
iWritten by WhatSchool from official school data (Get Information about Schools, DfE and Ofsted).The Cooper School is a secondary school located in Bicester, Oxfordshire. The school caters for boys and girls aged 11 to 18 and currently has 1,228 pupils on roll, with a capacity of 1,333. It is part of the ACER TRUST. The school is led by Dr Robert Whannel.
Enrichment
9 activitiesiFound on the school website by WhatSchool. Not verified by Governance Register; the school website is the authority.- Drama
- Duke of Edinburgh
- Football
- Lego
- Photography
- Rugby
- Stem
- Textiles
- Young Enterprise
Awards
3 awardsiFound on the school website by WhatSchool. Not verified by Governance Register; the school website is the authority.- Anti-Bullying CharterRecognised award
- Duke of EdinburghPersonal development
- Healthy SchoolsHealth and wellbeing
Key facts
- URN
- 141069
- Type
- Academy converter
- Phase
- Secondary
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Admissions
- Non-selective
- Sixth form
- Has a sixth form
- Nursery
- No Nursery Classes
- Local authority
- Oxfordshire
- Constituency
- Bicester and Woodstock
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Opened
- 2014
Governing body (2 current, 6 former)
iAcademy trust: local governing body and trust board.1 governor is linked to a profile (all confirmed).
Governors marked “Confirmed same person” have exactly the same forename and surname as the only officer of that name at the school’s own academy trust company on the Companies House register, so we treat them as the same person. The governance record itself comes from DfE.
Leadership
| Name | Role | How appointed | Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mrs Taryn Ward | Chair of Local Governing Body | Appointed by foundation/Trust | since 2026 · until 2030 |
| Mrs Jill Cottee Confirmed same person Former | Chair of Local Governing Body | Appointed by foundation/Trust | since 2025 · term ended 2026 |
Full governing body
| Name | Role | How appointed | Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mrs Charlotte Broom | Local Governor | Ex-officio by virtue of office as headteacher/principal | since 2026 |
| Mrs Charlotte Brown Former | Local Governor | Elected by parents | since 2025 · term ended 2026 |
| Mrs Taryn Ward Former | Local Governor | Appointed by foundation/Trust | since 2025 · term ended 2026 |
| Mr Keith Wadley Former | Local Governor | Appointed by foundation/Trust | since 2025 · term ended 2026 |
| Lee Smith Former | Local Governor | Appointed by foundation/Trust | since 2025 · term ended 2026 |
| Dr Robert Whannel Former | Local Governor | Ex-officio by virtue of office as headteacher/principal | since 2021 · term ended 2026 |
Source: Department for Education, Get Information about Schools (governance records, as at 1 November 2026). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Names are shown as published; there are no addresses or contact details. Current and former are worked out from term end dates when the page loads. Object or ask for removal · Report an issue with this record