Testwood School
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Testwood School is a converter academy in Southampton for boys and girls aged 11 to 16. It has 820 pupils and room for 1,215. About 31 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, a bit more than at most schools. We give it 11 out of 100. That puts it well below schools like it, ahead of 12% of the 50 schools most like it.
Testwood Lane, Totton, Southampton, SO40 3ZW023 8086 2146testwoodschool.co.ukMr Tim Webber headteacherAll details
Ofsted
Ofsted hasn't published an inspection for this school yet.
Results
GCSE results, summer 2025
172 pupils sat their GCSEs. Here is how they did against every state secondary in England.
All GCSE measures, year by year
| Measure | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2019 | 2018 | Hampshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of Year 11 | 172 | 167 | 137 | 156 | 142 | 107 | – | – |
| Average GCSE scoreAttainment 8 | 42.9 | 34.8 | 42.4 | 43.5 | 42.4 | 44.0 | 45.2 | 46.8 |
| Progress from age 11Progress 8 | – | -1.01 | -0.39 | -0.41 | -0.09 | +0.02 | – | – |
| Strong pass in English and mathsGrade 5+ in English and maths | 37% | 22% | 36% | 41% | 39% | 35% | 44% | 46% |
| Standard pass in English and mathsGrade 4+ in English and maths | 58% | 43% | 59% | 58% | 58% | 59% | 65% | 66% |
| Core subjects scoreEBacc average point score | 3.64 | 2.91 | 3.59 | 3.79 | 3.45 | 3.64 | 3.98 | 4.15 |
| Taking the core subjectsEBacc entry | 15% | 7% | 21% | 37% | 11% | 19% | 32% | 41% |
| Average GCSE score: low-income pupilsAttainment 8, disadvantaged | 31.8 | 25.0 | 34.2 | 32.7 | 34.6 | 36.4 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: other pupilsAttainment 8, non-disadvantaged | 48.0 | 38.9 | 45.1 | 48.0 | 45.2 | 47.0 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: pupils who started behindAttainment 8, low prior attainers | – | 16.8 | 24.5 | 29.6 | 22.5 | 26.8 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: pupils who started aheadAttainment 8, high prior attainers | – | 52.7 | 55.4 | 66.4 | 56.3 | 58.6 | – | – |
Subjects
Results came out for 16 GCSE subjects in 2025. Each figure is the share of pupils who got a grade 5 or better, next to the average for state secondaries in England.
Strongest subjects
Subjects that did worse than the England average: Physics (29% here, 82% across England), Chemistry (39% here, 81% across England), Biology (43% here, 82% across England), Art and Design (29% here, 58% across England).
The small number is how many pupils sat each subject. Subjects with fewer than six pupils aren't published.
Every subject against England, 2025
| Subject | Entries | Grades 9 to 7 | Grades 9 to 5 | Grades 9 to 4 | England 9 to 5 | Rank in England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 172 | 15% | 42% | 62% | 53% | 2,323 of 3,211 |
| English Language | 172 | 15% | 38% | 59% | 54% | 2,677 of 3,210 |
| English Literature | 163 | 15% | 56% | 75% | 58% | 1,579 of 3,202 |
| Combined Science | 144 | 12% | 35% | 54% | 36% | 1,501 of 3,084 |
| Geography | 106 | 16% | 45% | 57% | 51% | 1,726 of 3,116 |
| History | 77 | 38% | 64% | 70% | 52% | 754 of 3,126 |
| Business | 71 | 16% | 32% | 54% | 51% | 1,417 of 1,806 |
| Art and Design | 59 | 5% | 29% | 48% | 58% | 2,543 of 2,818 |
| Music | 42 | 12% | 45% | 64% | 61% | 287 of 395 |
| Religious Studies | 34 | 38% | 77% | 85% | 60% | 426 of 1,825 |
| French | 32 | 28% | 56% | 66% | 60% | 1,197 of 1,974 |
| Drama | 31 | 7% | 65% | 74% | 60% | 408 of 844 |
| Computer Science | 29 | 10% | 35% | 48% | 56% | 1,487 of 1,861 |
| Chemistry | 28 | 18% | 39% | 57% | 81% | 2,447 of 2,537 |
| Biology | 28 | 14% | 43% | 79% | 82% | 2,459 of 2,570 |
| Physics | 28 | 18% | 29% | 68% | 82% | 2,525 of 2,546 |
In combined science each pupil gets two grades and we count the lower one. Rankings only include state secondaries where 20 or more pupils sat the subject.
Does every child do well here?
A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. None of the gaps is smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.
At GCSE, 2025
Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.
Getting a place
Open to all. There is no entrance test.
369 places were empty (30% of the total), so almost everyone who applies gets in. Pupil numbers have grown by 6% since 2021/22.
In 2026 every child who applied got a place, so how far away you live didn't matter. That could change if the school gets more popular.
We measure in a straight line from the middle of your postcode to the school. The council measures its own way, and the cut-off changes every year. Use this as a rough guide, and read the council's admissions booklet before you apply.
How places were given out for September 2026. Every child who applied got a place (167 offers for 243 places).
Who goes here
Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.
The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: emotional and mental health (65), Specific learning difficulty (26), Moderate learning difficulty (21), language and communications needs (12), Autistic spectrum disorder (10), Vision impairment (3).
How the mix of pupils has changed
| Census | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils on roll | 820 | 854 | 876 | 834 | 803 | 772 |
| Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals | 31% | 30% | 29% | 27% | 27% | 22% |
| Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language | 6% | 6% | 5% | 4% | 3% | 3% |
| Pupils getting extra supportSEN support | – | 12% | 4% | 10% | 9% | 5% |
| Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans | – | 4% | 3% | 3% | 2% | 1% |
Attendance and behaviour
In 2024/25 pupils were in school 89.4% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 91.4%.
Attendance year by year
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 | 2018/19 | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sessions missedOverall absence | 10.6% | 11.8% | 10.3% | 10.3% | 6.3% | 5.9% | 8.6% |
| Missed with permissionAuthorised absence | 7.4% | 7.6% | 7.5% | 7.9% | 4.9% | 4.0% | – |
| Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence | 3.2% | 4.2% | 2.8% | 2.4% | 1.4% | 1.9% | – |
| Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence | 28.5% | 34.0% | 32.5% | 34.5% | 18.9% | 17.5% | 23.9% |
| SuspensionsSuspension rate | 39.0 | 40.4 | 26.3 | 11.0 | 12.7 | – | – |
| Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | – |
What pupils do next
After GCSEs
Where the 137 pupils who left in 2022/23 were a year later.
Among pupils from low-income families it was 82%, compared with 94% for everyone else.
Earlier years
| Destination | 2022/23 leavers | 2021/22 leavers | 2020/21 leavers | 2019/20 leavers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Still in education, work or training | 91% | 92% | 93% | 90% |
| Education | 75% | 84% | 80% | 86% |
| Apprenticeship | 10% | 2% | 6% | 2% |
| Work | 6% | 6% | 8% | 2% |
| Not in education, work or training | 7% | 5% | 4% | 7% |
Staff and money
From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.
Money
From the academy accounts return, year to August 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other secondary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.
Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.
The area around the school
Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.
Nearby schools
The closest secondary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.
| School | Type | Distance | Pupils | Ofsted | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Redbridge Community School | Foundation | 1.1 miles | 1,106 | Good 2023 | 6 | Compare |
| Hounsdown School | Academy | 1.4 miles | 1,283 | Good 2024 | 43 | Compare |
| Oasis Academy Lord's Hill | Academy | 1.8 miles | 667 | Inadequate 2024 | 1 | Compare |
| Regents Park Community College | Academy | 2.2 miles | 812 | Good 2024 | – | Compare |
| Upper Shirley High School | Academy | 3.0 miles | 1,062 | Good 2019 | 52 | Compare |
| St Mark's Church of England School | Church of England | 3.1 miles | 1,129 | Good 2022 | 35 | Compare |
| St Anne's Catholic School | Academy | 3.9 miles | 1,189 | Outstanding 2022 | 91 | Compare |
| The Mountbatten School | Academy | 4.1 miles | 1,474 | Good 2024 | 66 | Compare |
Compared with schools like it
Our score compares Testwood School with the 50 schools in England whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 50 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.
How the score was worked out
The score is out of 100. A 11 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 11% of secondary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 7 to 15. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.
| What we looked at | How much it counts | Against schools like it | Effect on the score | Based on |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Results over three years | 20% | below | -0.18 | 2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 172 pupils |
| Ofsted inspection | 0% | no data | – | |
| Progress pupils make | 20% | well below | -0.43 | DfE progress measure; 172 pupils |
| Direction of travel over five years | 10% | below | -0.08 | results and attendance falling year on year |
| Attendance and behaviour | 10% | below | -0.09 | 2024/25; 884 pupils |
| Results, allowing for the mix of pupils | 10% | below | -0.08 | Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 172 pupils |
| What pupils do next | 5% | in line | 0.00 | 137 pupils |
| What parents say | 0% | no data | – |
Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.
Questions parents ask
Is Testwood School a good school?
The figures are weak. Testwood School scores 11 out of 100. That is well below schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 12% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 7 to 15, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much.
How good are Testwood School's GCSE results?
In summer 2025, 37% of pupils got a grade 5 or better in both English and maths. Across England it was 46%. Its Attainment 8 score, which is the average grade across a pupil's best eight subjects times ten, was 42.9, against 46.8 for England. In each subject, pupils here finished about a grade behind children across England who started secondary school at the same level.
How many pupils does Testwood School have?
820 pupils aged 11 to 16 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 1,215 places, so it is 67% full.
Is Testwood School oversubscribed?
Probably not. 369 places were empty in 2024/25 (30% of the total), so most families who apply get a place.
What is attendance like at Testwood School?
Pupils were in school 89.4% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 91.4%. 29% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.
How big are the classes at Testwood School?
The average class had 23.9 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 22.8. 3% of classes had more than 30 pupils.
Does Testwood School have a sixth form?
No. Pupils leave after Year 11 for a sixth form elsewhere, a college or an apprenticeship; 91% of 2022/23 leavers were still in education, work or training six months on.
These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.
Contact and details
- Address
- Testwood Lane, Totton, Southampton, SO40 3ZW
- Telephone
- 023 8086 2146
- Website
- www.testwoodschool.co.uk
- Headteacher
- Mr Tim Webber
- Type of school
- Converter academy (Academy converter, academies)
- Phase
- Secondary school, ages 11-16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Single-academy trust
- Testwood School (1 schools)
- Local authority
- Hampshire
- Ward
- Totton Central
- Constituency
- New Forest East
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Opened
- 17 August 2011 (academy converter)
- URN
- 137315 · LAESTAB 8505406 · UKPRN 10034792
- Formerly
- Testwood Sports College
Recent changes
- New KS4 results for 2024/25
Where these figures come from
- School details: Department for Education, Get Information About Schools, refreshed daily (this page rebuilt 13 September 2026).
- Inspections: Ofsted management information, monthly; latest publication in our data 27 August 2026.
- GCSE results: DfE key stage 4 performance tables, 2024/25 final.
- Attendance: DfE pupil absence in schools in England, 2024/25 full year.
- Pupil characteristics: DfE school census, January 2026.
- Staff: DfE school workforce census, November 2025.
- Class sizes: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026.
- Pupil premium: DfE allocations and conditions of grant, 2026 to 2027.
- Money: DfE financial benchmarking and insights tool, academy accounts return 2024/25.
- Admissions outcomes: Hampshire council's published allocation statistics (source), entry years 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026.
- Neighbourhood: police.uk street-level crime, HM Land Registry price paid data, NaPTAN bus stops, English Indices of Deprivation 2025.
- All under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Full list and update calendar.