The Oaks is a very small independent day special school, registered for four students aged eight to 16 years, who have behavioural, emotional and social difficulties. The very small number of students currently on roll receive one-to-one teaching. All students are looked after by the local authority. None has a statement of special educational needs or an education, health and care plan. They all have histories of challenging behaviour and poor attendance. All students are White British and none speak English as an additional language. The school does not use alternative provision, although it uses a local leisure and sports centre for physical education. The school is one of two owned by Barford Children’s Services. Both are led and managed by one headteacher. The other school, Oakwood School, is nearby and some younger students transfer to this school as soon as they are able to cope with bigger class sizes. Since the last inspection, the school has only had referrals of students aged 14 to 16 years.