Moving to Hampshire?

[guineapiglet]

Hello there - wondered if any of you can help with our family dilemma?! My husband is likely to be offered a job near Southampton, (350 miles south!) and we are debating what to do next. I have NO geography of the area at all and no idea about schools etc. Any kind help would be so appreciated. We have a child about to start year 10 so are thinking about leaving the move until she begins sixth form as it may be impossible to find somewhere where she can have her current GCSE options. Our other child is about to start year 5 so he would be beginning school there in year 7. I would dearly love them to go to the same school as this will be a BIG move for both of them, so any help about schools in the area - willing to look further afield, but again have no geography or knowledge of Salisbury/Winchester/Lymington/Christchurch etc etc. Would be really glad to hear any ideas or advice - we are willing to consider all options! May be mad planning so early, but these things take time.........

I left Symonds in 1990. When I talk about rivalry it's pretty tongue in cheek, really -Winchester's a lovely place to grow up and go to school, whichever school

I second that, Juicy. We are all very happy here

Dear all
Just to say job has been offered and accepted, but on advice of current school we won't be moving down til after GSCEs in June 2012. Can't even think that far ahead!! So we will be looking at 6th form and Year 7 entry for Son. I am really grateful for responses about Winchester and would be pleased to hear from anyone in Lymington area to hear about schools and housing there. This is for the simple girly reason that after a long time living next to the West Pennines, a place by the sea is very appealing to me ( don't care about rest of family!!!!!) and it looks very commutable. Next step will obviously be to come and explore the area, so if anyone knows a nice place to use as a base and explore, all ideas would be welcome. Many thanks to all.

Best bet for 6th form is Brockenhurst college it is very good and lymington has a station and loads of students get it to Brockenhurst . (college is minutes from station)..
Lymington would be best bet for acccess to good college and transport links so would New milton also is by the sea and is lovely. It also has a station direct to Brockenhurst.Worth checking out. Also an excellent school is Highcliffe used to be a grammar school and still maintains excellent results even though its not selective. hth

Thank you princess, this is really helpful and I have to say, having researched only on 'up my street' (!) these suggestions look really good and I will follow them up. I'm wondering if you live in the area now and have any suggestions about places to live, and also commuting distances - is it an easy commute from Lymington/Brockenhurst to the Uni? - How far is the Uni from the station? Sorry to bombard you, am hoping to come down at half term to answer these questions myself, the timing of it all is awful in terms of planning, as both children return to their respective schools tomorrow and so summer holidays could have been more useful instead of enjoying our selves we could have been school and house searching!!!!

Bombard me as much as you want I like to help,
I still live in the area should be able to answer most things.
Commuting is tricky question as it depends on the time of day you are travelling . The train station in Southampton would need a bus ride to the uni and unless he is based in the Eastleigh campus which has a very close rail station.

Driving from Lymington to Southampton uni would be about an hour , Brockenhurst probably about 50min.
For the "real" forest experiance then the villages are lovely around lymington like hordle , beaulieu, east/west boldre BUT if I remember you have older children and you will be a taxi service as buses are limited.
So for the ease of schools , trains , shops etc I would stick with lymington itself or if you have enough £££ Brockenhurst.
I can't remember if I suggested Ringwood the senior school has a 6th form as well and is very good. No station but the journey to your DH work should be about 45min as its almost on the the main road A31 which turns into M27.
(Sorry to give you another suggestion) .. TBH I like Ringwood and Lymington equally just Lymington is on the coast and Ringwood is larger with more shops.

Thanks again, princess, your knowledge is very valuable! It is local insight which always makes the difference. I guess I would like husband to have minimal commuting time, but also want to be near good schools/sixth form college, have a social life in a city AND be near the sea!!! So it sounds as if you can have it all on your doorstep. From other messages I can see Winchester would also be very desirable... and lets face it, a 10 - 15 mile drive to the sea certainly beats a 2 hour drive as we have to here, if we wish to glimpse the coast! Its all a question of lifestyle choices isnt it, and as you so rightly say, affordability of housing etc and choices for the kids as they get older. Just been reading another thread about accents, and wonder how mine will fare, moving with very disctinct Mancunian accents to somewhere very different!!!!! Personally I am getting very excited at the prospect. Is there anywhere you would recommend around the M27 corridor? From the map it looks very commutable but not sure about schools..... I will keep the questions coming if you are sure you don't mind!

Will have a think of other places along M27. But don't worry about accent my DH is from Manchester too gets the odd "pardon" ( mainly from my mum ) as they haven't a clue what he is saying but thats all really. He prefers it down here down although misses Old Trafford dreadfully

Hi there, me again, just finished an exhausting week on the telephone!!! Ringing admissions people, and round the various schools of the county. Rather frighteningly, yet not unexpectedly, we have to have a temporary address PDQ to apply for admission for September 2012.... there is no lee way given to people moving out of county particularly it seems, and the geography of a a 500 mile round trip commute seems to have not registered. Have tried to narrow down areas and the choice seems to be

1. go for 11- 18 education at Highcliffe/ or Fordingbridge

1. Go to Lymington and daughter to 6th form college/son to local state school IF we can get an address there!!!!!!!

Would welcome your comments particularly princess as you are a local person. Another slight spanner to throw into the works is that my son is anaphylactic, so proximity to a hospital would be useful. You mentioned you worked in the medical field, wondered which hospital you would recommend, is Lymington hospital equipped with A and E?

Many thanks again, turing cold up here!!!

All your options are good ones its about checking out each area and see which one that you prefer. Highcliffe is very very nice has a lovely beach and an excellent school. Fordingbridge would be easier for your DH to get to work.
Lymington has a minor injuries unit open i think 9-9. Deals mainly with basic breaks, bumps and knocks etc.. If your son has a full anaphylactic shock if you are in Lymington you will have to go to Southampton I think.
If you are in Fordingbridge I'm really not sure either Salisbury or Southampton
Highcliffe I think it will be Bournemouth a&e

I'm not 100% but its right to the best of my knowledge

Small point- the traffic in the New Forest is gridlocked during the summer. Absolute nightmare. From the junction of the M3 and M27 to at least Ringwood if not Bournemouth can also be stationary!

Personally I might look at Kings with the anaphalxis problem as you can practically see the Royal Hants hospital from there.

Kings feels like a grammar school. It is very strictly streamed in all the academic subjects- something like 12 groups for each. It might not suit all comers but it has a big catchment (mostly fields and villages!) so it is possible to get in from quite a distance away.

Westgate has a bit of a reputation for being perhaps more arty and liberal. It serves Middle Class Winchester and you have to be in catchment to stand a chance.

Henry Beaufort is maybe the weaker of the 3 though still good by national standards.

Thornden in Chandler Ford is a proper comprehensive. It too has a very specific catchment and is also rather middle class. However it hardly streams at all yet gets amongst the best if not the best GCSE results in the county.

Mountbatten in Romsey is sound.

Avoid Toynbee and Crestwood. Sorry!

The Salisbury grammars have hyper competitive entry and the alternatives are not 'strong'.

I might be completely wrong but I thought Lymington's hospital was still a bit 'cottage' with only a minor injuries unit?

Good luck.

Hi again, half term looms and we are on our way to look round the new forest area, wondered if any one has any experience or comments about schools along the south coast - Highcliffe, Arnewood, or Lymington, and further north, Ringwood or Burgate? It would be so great to have a personal view of the schools, as it will involve lots of driving and children getting very bored!!! We feel we would like to be in this area, rather than the Winchester side, but are open to ideas, particularly having looked at house prices!!!!!
Many thanks !

Hi guineapiglet
We too are thinking of moving to the Highcliffe area. My daughter is in year nine now at a very good school and on speaking to Highcliffe and Twynham schools it looks unlikely that she would get a place in year ten which was our aim so not sure what to do now, I wondered how you had got on,many thanks oh and this is my first post

Hi happy have you thought about contacting Ringwood secondary it is a very good school or if you are flexible fordingbride too has an excellent secondary .

The grange iN christchurch although has lower results then twynham has an excellent head teacher who is really turning the school around .

HTH

I did the Winchester/Romsey/Chandlers Ford secondary trawl a year ago, selecting a school for DS1- and here are my opinions!

Kings: An amalgamation of 2 secondary moderns. Felt very much like my grammar! Smart, strict uniform; rigorous streaming in everything (A1,2,3,4; B1,2,3,4: C1,2 etc) Guess the DCs know exactly where they stand!! Big catchment, largely fields so not impossible to get into from a fair distance away. Bit of occasional hassle where the 'posh' kids and the kids from the huge Stanmore council estate disagree (that's from the mouth of an ex-head girl!). Good GCSE results.

Westgate: Ex grammar- you have to live in catchment, which is very liberal, middle-class Winchester. 2 separate lots of friends who live in this catchment chose Kings for their DSs as they felt it might be too arty and liberal for them. Pretty good GCSEs and well rated by those who attend.

Henry Beaufort: Didn't visit, work with many who attended: Say it's perhaps the weakest of the 3 secondaries, but still fine by national standards.

Mountbatten (Romsey): Very pleasantly surprised. Recent new Head who is sorting out a few discipline issues the school suffered from, as a result of many of the northern Southampton secondaries being SO BAD a lot of DCs arrived at MB from N. So'ton who weren't really 'school ready' if you get my drift. Good friend's DD there, very happy, DD and mum. Reasonable GCSEs. Lovely site.

Romsey Community : mm. I have never liked the school, I tried as it was DS's junior school's catchmented secondary but it's scruffy and seems hell bent on crackpot educational ideas like setting Y7's adrift with 4 week single subject 'projects' to do as homework with no structuring whatsoever- Lots of tears and that's just the mums! Adequate GCSEs

Thornden (Chandlers Ford): OK, I'm biased as this is our chosen school. Strictly catchmented, big (1400 Y7-11) BUT it is a proper comprehensive yet actually produces the best GCSE results in the county for non-selective Y7-11 schools. Relaxed uniform as in no ties or blazers, fabulous performing arts complex. Real feeling of purposeful activity. Feeds Peter Symonds, mainly with some DCs heading for Barton Peverell.

We chose this school as we needed one that worked for both DSs; DS1 is reasonably academic, so would have been fine at Kings or M'batten, DS2 is less clever, which is where he would have found himself in the 'C's at Kings and perhaps in classes with the less able and less well behaved at Mountbatten?

Avoid the northern Southampton schools (sorry!), and Toynbee, Crestwood and Quilley and try not to buy where you rely on the car park that is the M27 to get around.

South Wilts in Salisbury, 22 miles away from So'ton IS good but unless your DC is very clever or you've been tutoring, getting in is very hard. Salisbury is awash with Preps whose sole purpose is getting kids through the 11+.

Good luck!

Dear All, thank you for excellent advice and postings, really helpful and I am really grateful. We spend half term driving and trying to get a feel for the area, which is lovely and am really looking forward to discovering a whole new area. We loved the Winchester area, but we also had a good look around the other schools in the new forest. To be honest, it might come down to commute for husband, and also our desire to see the kids at the same school, with such a massive move, we feel this will give them some support, knowing that they are both going to be starting somewhere new and with no context, friends etc, Daunting but we have to get on with it. We really liked Ringwood site and the town, and equally liked Burgate, lovely area and lovely friendly town. Sorry, too many lovelys!!! We loved Highcliffe school, but rather put off by the massive commute and also the rigid catchment, we reckon it would take over an hour to Soton, not much fun. Drive thru new forest might be preferable!! Good luck with your own hunt, let me know how you get on, and anyone with any further thoughts would be most welcome. Thanks for all the honesty!!!xxxx

P>S> sorry Ampere and Happy not, meant to finish last message by asking some questions:
How far is Peter Symonds from CHandlers Ford, is there any difference in the two sixth froms, presumably you have to live in Thornden catchment for feeding into 6ht form? Happynot, where are you moving from? Are you just looking in Highcliffe area. We did look around Lymington, school looked fine, and 6th form has good reputation, but the commute from Lymington was a nightmare, unless you use the train, maybe. Let me know how your research goes! XX

My nephew goes to Symonds and he lives at Botley.

Went to look at Symonds last week for ds (Year 10) as I'm hoping he'll get in as a boarder, and whilst there were more buildings than when I was there, it still seemed to have a buzz.

Sad to see Wyke Lodge (where I boarded) turned into offices though!

Hi myprob and guineapiglet
Thanks for you advice we really wanted to be near the coast and although I like Bournemouth I think it may be too busy, if anyone knows any areas we're open to suggestions I will check out Ringwood.We are in Woodford Essex and want to get away from London.My main concern is my daughter I rang Twyham and Highcliffe schools and was told its highly unlikely that she'd get a year ten place in September 2011 so we will probably have to rethink.I should add that my elderly parents will move with us just something else to throw into the mix! but I really feel it would be better for us all.Just had really bad experiences of local Hospitals over the last eighteen months which is also prompting a move.

Hello all and thanks for recent comments Hello again happynot, think we might be in a similar boat as I also have to move my parents and Mother in Law (eek!) in addition to our family move, and parents are out of our county up in Cumbria, so that is a major headache. Hosps in area are pretty good I think, I have to keep an eye out on them as both parents will need access and also my son needs to be relatively near one as he is anaphylactic. Have decided to have some time to think about it all, and everyone's comments have been really helpful, lots to think about with teenagers, in particular access to public transport/amenities etc so you dont end up being a taxi service. We liked the Winchester area, and Romsey but all schools are 11 - 16 and ideally we would like them to go to same school, so that we are not starting two separate schools as well as all the input required re parents etc. Huge headache, but I do feel that people moving out of county are not really catered for AT ALL, you have to fit in with the local LEA admissions etc, this surely must have to change given current economic climate as more people will be on the move not necessarily within the constraints of 'term time,' and having to have an address in catchment 12 months before you want to start!!!! Hope your search is productive, let me know how you are doing.

I live (and have taught) in Christchurch. Twynham is ranked outstanding if you are looking at the State route,or Bournemouth still has the grammar system. Ringwood School is great too,both towns fairly easy drive to Soton. I commuted for a yr or so,took about 45 mins. There are also a four of good independents around too.

Thanks for this ninky what a fab name! I guess we have ruled out schools onthe coast because of the long commute to Soton, so your comments have been helpful, we are thinking about Ringwood and nice to know journey not too long! I guess it is finding the right balance and keeping everyone happy in this situation, so thanks for advice.

With a job near Southampton you are probably better off living the right side of the town as there is a lot of traffic on the M27 & M3 during rush-hour. Living in Winchester is quite expensive and the place is full of traffic and nowhere to park.
As wife of the wonderful Andy Norriss mentioned above Peter Symonds is still good and both our boys enjoyed it and were successful there. It is very big these days...
Andrew Norriss no longer teaches history there but writes brilliant children's books for ages 8 to 11.
We get a lot less snow here than almost anywhere in the country too!