Is Winchester LGBTQ+ friendly for teens? 🏳️‍🌈

[temm09]

We are looking at moving to Winchester from SW London. We have two teenagers, one will be going into Yr11 and the other going into Yr9. The younger one has struggled with anxiety and depression over the last year and has missed pretty much the whole of the school year. She has come out as a trans male, and since then his confidence has really grown.

The whole family are ready for a change, and we are all excited for a move out of London, but I'd love to get thoughts on whether Winchester will be a safe, friendly place for my young trans son. 🏳️‍⚧️

I'd also love to hear thoughts on secondary schools - where are we likely to get a place, and which ones are the most inclusive for my son. My older daughter is set on going to Peter Symonds (the main driver for our move to Winchester). Both children are talented artists, and we were so impressed with the PSC art department and the teachers.

Many thanks in advance for your honest but kind views. ☺️

Hi there, I can’t speak for Winchester as a whole (I left about 15 years ago, although visit family there regularly). I went to Symonds years ago and it’s continued to thrive - I think it might be a great place for your children as it is incredibly liberal and pastorally-focussed. Potential feeder schools like Kings might be worth a look-in too. If not, Thornden (in Chandlers Ford) is very good, and spoken highly of in terms of inclusion. I hope that helps - best of luck.

@naomisno1fan As requested, please be kind. You don't know our full story, but maybe it will make you feel better to know that in our case 'trans' simply means that my child wants to dress like a boy and be called he. Nothing more. No drugs or surgery involved.

After suffering with anxiety and depression for so long, he is finding what makes him feel more comfortable and is rebuilding confidence.

The opposite of depression is expression, and he is able to express himself because we are allowing him to. If he isn't hurting anyone (including himself) then surely we can be more supportive.

@notthemayo Thank you so much! We loved PSC! Thanks for the helpful info 😀

Barton Peveril also has an excellent reputation for arts subjects, so take a look at both. DD went to Symonds from further afield in Hampshire & loved her time there, but had no inclusivity needs. Her LGBT school friends all went to Barton.

I assume that you won't be moving mid-GCSEs for your oldest. Many Hampshire schools start their GCSE courses in year 9, so it might be problematic for your youngest as well.

As a note of caution though, SW London is very, very different to Winchester & the surrounding areas for teenagers.

Oh, I completely forgot to mention Barton Peveril! Very artsy there, and (I believe) got Outstanding at last inspection.

Not called for and not helpful.