Good schools in Hampshire

[LadyManu]

Hi,
I am confused by the school system here and wanted to know more about the secondary school education and any good schools for my DD to attend. We are currently in Fareham and looking to move towards North Baddesley/Eastleigh/Winchester/Chandler's Ford..as we are struggling to find a house to buy. But we also wanted to have an understanding of schools as our DD is the oldest and her move to secondary school ideally will determine the area we move to.
The school's we have in mind are Kings school, Thornden, St Anne's Catholic school, South Wilts Grammar school and/or Portsmouth Grammar school. Do we need to be in catchments, is there a 11+ exam for all these schools? Could someone please help :) Thank you

Thornden you will need to be in catchment for.

SWGS will be 11+ and distance based.
Portsmouth Grammar I would imagine is 11+ due to 'Grammar' in the name.

From an academic point of view I'd probably be happy with any of the 3 in Winchester (Kings, Westgate, HenryB), or Perrins in New Alresford, or Thornden, or the 2 in Romsey (Romsey, Mountbatten).

I don't know enough about St Annes to comment.
I've also heard quite good things about Toynbee.

SWGS publishes admissions data on its website so you can see furthest distance offered. I know some kids commute there and to BWS from Romsey (though why they do when there are 2 good comps in Romsey is slightly beyond me unless the parents want single sex).

Portsmouth Grammar school is a private school where you pay fees, it’s not a traditional grammar school.
they have their own 11+ entrance exam like the majority of private schools do.

There is no 11+ in Hampshire and no state grammar schools. The secondary school as are all 11-16 so if you want a school sixth form your only option is to go private or out of county. Portsmouth Grammar is a private school and will set their own entrance exams. South Wilts is not in Hampshire and will require 11+ and have a distance criteria - it’s the only reasonable option if you want a school sixth form.

Winchester is generally a good bet as you then have an easy commute to Peter Symonds for sixth form.

Thank you for all the inputs :).

So is Kings and Westgate not entirely based on catchment?

Is Mountbatten a good school? Any reviews?

SWGS is kind of a question because we understand it is too far for commute if we stay in Hampshire. But we would still like to consider it.

Winchester is a good bet , I agree but getting a house there that meets our needs is questionable.

Kings & Westgate will be based on catchment, but eg Westgate is an all through school now so the primary pupils will have some level of priority. I don't know how tight they are eg whether you can get in if out of catchment.
Mountbatten is good, as is Romsey, as is HenryB, Kings and Westgate.

What you need to be thinking about is not whether these schools are good, they all are, but whether their ethos, strengths, weaknesses, extra curricular etc will suit your child.

Depending how many years out you are though, you also need to remember that schools change with new heads etc, plus they need to adapt to budget constraints and knock on effects of pandemic on pupils and families.

For example of things to find out:
. fussiness over uniform
. amount of homework
. how prescriptive on GCSE options
. detention for everything or serious things only
. when and how they set
. encouragement / praise to all or just the high achievers
. help to SEN children or try to subtly dissuade parents from sending child there
. football team for best only or B and C teams too
etc.

We are in Hampshire (Andover) and lots of girls commute to SWGS from here and even further afield.

SWGS admission data: https://www.swgs.wilts.sch.uk/catchment-area/

For Chandlers Ford Thornden has always had the reputation of being the best state school but house prices definitely reflect this.

The Toynbee School used to be v good also, though I don't know what it's like now.
Most hants state schools are 11 to 16, with pupils then going on to 6th form colleges / tech colleges.

The colleges system in Hants is, on balance, I think good, pupils have to make a positive choice at 16, none of this staying at school by default even though they don't do the subjects a pupil wants that I read about on MN.

From Romsey it is relatively easy to reach all of these:
Peter Symonds, Barton Peverill (A levels)
Eastleigh (vocational)
Sparsholt (agricultural)
Richard Taunton (don't know what that offers)
Brockenhurst (A level & vocational)
Totton College (vocational)

If you want a grammar school - why not move to a grammar area (Bucks/Kent etc). Also go on to the 11 plus forum where people who want to go down this route discuss it all 11 Plus Exams Forum - 11 PLUS REGIONS (elevenplusexams.co.uk)

Where do you need to be for work? There are some very good comps in Hampshire, move into the catchment of one and then no stress or pressure for the 11 plus and then lots of choice at sixth form level. (I have an academic DD, went to grammar myself and goes to one of the comps I’ve listed below, I’ve never considered faffing about grammar schools, her school genuinely caters for all abilities and because she only has a short walk, she has so much time for interests, hobbies and friends, it’s a great way to grow up.)

You’ve got good advice upthread. Winchester and Chandlers Ford will be pricey to find a house, but the schools are excellent.
I know people in Eastleigh happy with Wyvern.

Extending up from Winchester, you have Perins in Alresford, Amery and Eggars in Alton, Bohunt in Liphook, TPS in Petersfield. You really are spoilt for choice.

I agree. The lack of grammars in Hants is not a bad thing, far from it.

I am overwhelmed with all the replies :)
Thank you so much all!

For a better perspective. I can be anywhere for work as I have a remote job. But partner needs to be close to Portsmouth in the sense that they should be able to be there in under an hour. So, close to any of the train stations would be ideal for a house. Hence Southampton and Winchester areas are good.

So ideally I am assuming that being in the Catchment matters !

Also as @TeenDivided suggested, a lot of factors to look into per School. But to understand if these policies are being properly administered, we would need the parents point of view.

If we were to talk about Thornden in particular, how are they with their policies? Ofsted report seems to be gone down to good from an outstanding.
And Kings has not had any Ofsted reports recently!!

We are, I guess, looking for a school that are strict with their policies and gives great importance to GCSEs performance and is good with extra curricular activities. No to bullying and No to drugs is top most in priority. :)

Lots of choice then. I’d personally look up the A3 on the Portsmouth line. Quick regular trains. Petersfield, Liphook and the traffic isn’t as bad as Winchester. Great schools!

I’d work on where do you want to live. Go and visit some of the areas, see what you can get for your money. Then you can start to narrow it down. I think all the schools you’ve mentioned have lots going on and you can ask in local group what it’s like and the schools.

Steer clear of any school that says they don’t have any bullying, they’ll be lying. My DD says there is occasional bullying at her school but she also says that it is dealt with rapidly and robustly if staff see it or it’s reported to them. That’s the key - students feeling confident to report it and staff dealing with it.

Be aware that being in the catchment area doesn't mean you necessarily would get in! Many popular schools are full within less that a mile of their catchment.
All schools will have some disruptive behaviour (bullying, fights, vaping etc).
You would be able to commute from the Chichester area too to Portsmouth (I'm not up to date, but there always were some quite decent schools there). That's worth looking into (and there is a school in Barnham right by the station that I believe is okay too).