Thanks rendezvous, all this is very reassuring. Realised had made a punctuation error, it should have read p.s. ( ie not Peter Symonds,!) as my youngest is just 11 and not quite a teenager..... but all the info you have sent is very useful - I did get the impression it is quite a safe town to be for teenagers, which was part of its attraction. Your advice about clubs etc has been noted, so thankyou.

I wouldn't worry about the PS teenager. My DD went there from another school and made friends very quickly despite being quite shy. There are lots of extra curricular activities. PS is known locally as 'party college' as someone is having a 17 or 18 birthday party each week. Kids come from all over to the college (as far as the Falkland Islands) so yours wont feel like an outsider. Pre school you might consider things like local sports clubs (netball,hockey,football and teh Penguin swimming club) where they could meet other kids. There are also things like drama groups at the Theatre Royal and Stagecoach. Winchester is a great place for teenagers as its relatively safe and they all love hanging round by the river in the summer. Good luck with the move

Dear All - is there anyone out there whose child is about to start in Yr 7 at The Westgate in September? We are about to move to Winchester for our child to start at the school, and eldest to hopefully start A levels at Peter Symonds. We would like to get to know other families in the area, as have very few contacts and would really like our children to have some familiar faces when they start - realise I might be a bit idealistic here. We have just taken a rental on a property near the hospital, moving at the end of the school year, fingers crossed. Do get in touch if you can help! PS one is not quite a teenager!