WHAT? WHERE?

One of the oldest schools in the UK, Winchester College was founded in 1382 in Hampshire’s beautiful cathedral city by William of Wykeham. There are enough cloisters and quads to rival any Oxford college (no surprise really, since William of Wykeham also stumped up for New College Oxford), and you’ll find the school sitting pretty in 250 acres along the banks of the River Itchen with no-less than 94 Grade I and II-listed buildings to its name.

Famous for its 14th century motto ‘Manners Makyth  Man’ (remember to remind your kids it didn’t originate from Kingsman), Winchester College remains a full boarding Senior School for boys 13-18 years although day pupils including girls are now welcome in the Sixth Form. There are 733 pupils on the roll call here, roughly the same as Harrow and Rugby, and around half of Eton and St Paul’s intake. Girls number 34 in the Sixth Form as day pupils, but from Sept 2026 there will be two dedicated girls’ boarding houses and the plan is to create a 60% boys/40% girls ratio in the Sixth Form as soon as possible.

Class sizes are 18-20 pupils for the first three years, moving to 12ish in the Sixth Form, depending on the popularity of subjects; healthy ratios that support the ‘buzz’ and energy of lessons but still give the academic attention that Winchester is so well known for. Here’s the school’s official video if you fancy a gander.

FACILITIES

/SPORT

Hello, multi-million pound sports centre. Opened in Sept 2024, pupils now have access to an eight-court sports hall, climbing wall, fitness suite, studio with ballet barre and spin, six squash courts, six fives courts, and even a martial arts Dojo. A 6-lane swimming pool will open in 2025. 

The school already has 52 acres of playing fields and a strong reputation particularly for its cricket (there’s an England U19 in the school team), but the creation of the sports centre, along with new appointments like the school’s first full time football pro and Athletic Development Coach (who just happens to be the current British Javelin Champion) – shows an intent to really push participation and success at whole school level.

Cricket and football are the biggies for the boys and netball, rowing and hockey for the girls but there are 30+ sports and activities to choose from each term, including Mountain Biking, Kayaking, Fencing, Golf, Rowing, and Yoga.

/PERFORMING ARTS

Choral music is the big musical calling card at Winchester College. It has its own respected Chapel Choir that includes Quiristers or Qs, 9-13 year old boys from the affiliated Prep school, who sing alongside the tenor and bass of the Winchester College boys. 

There’s also a hundred-strong Glee Club choral society for pupils, parents and teachers, performing two classical concerts a year including Arturo Márquez’s exuberant Danzón No. 2 and Mendelssohn’s masterpiece Elijah in 2024.  Beyond this traditional choral offering there’s a very welcoming, inclusive attitude to music here with a creditable two thirds of pupils learning an instrument. Plenty of space to accommodate the enthusiasm too, with 50 teaching/practise rooms, and eight full time music teachers who galvanise a variety of orchestras, chamber ensembles, rock, wind and jazz bands – some for high level performers, many for those who just want to have a go.

There’s a recording studio and editing suite and a percussion studio, and for performance space the 400-seater New Hall venue does nicely thanks very much, alongside musical sojourns to Winchester Cathedral and  Bishopsgate in the City of London. 

Unusually Drama isn’t currently offered as a GSCE or A level at Winchester which feels a bit of an oversight, but with a full time Head of Costumes at the school, you won’t be surprised to know there are plenty of productions on the go – the school aims to put on numerous shows each year, spanning operas, musicals and plays.

/GENERAL

The DT and Art studios are impressive and have all the bells and whistles you’d expect but particularly lovely is the library, all herringbone floors and exposed rafters leading to a Sixth Form-only area. 

ACADEMICS

Easy reading here for prospective pupils and parents. Winchester College is known for its strong academics, and frankly any child heading to the school is going to be bright and ambitious. The GCSE subjects ignore the wacky and trendy – the only eyebrow worth raising is for Russian, offered as a fourth language option along with French, German and Spanish. Russian is also an option for A level, along with Philosophy & Theology and the compulsory Extended Project Qualification that has become common place in so many Senior schools. There are a few super-brainbox kids taking four or even five A levels at the school, but most pupils study for the standard three. 

So, shall we talk league tables and top grade percentages? You’ll be pleased to know that in 2024, 92% of all GCSEs were at 9-7 and 90% of all A Levels were A*-B. The school delivers great grades, but just as importantly the children are taught to question and actually think using Winchester’s unique  ‘Div’ sessions – weekly lessons unconnected with the exam syllabus, and used for debating and discussing everything from early history to contentious modern news. I sat in on a Sixth Form session and it was fascinating, watching the pupils reading, summarising and then discussing the topic of the day.

One other thing worth pointing out about the academics is that the 70 academic scholars, with their long black gowns, board together in ‘College’, the original 14th century building that overlooks the medieval courtyard, separate to the ‘commoners’ (not kidding on that term, though in fairness it does derive from 600 years ago). The scholars’ intellect elevates them in a way I don’t often see at school. They have all of their lessons, including Div, and extracurricular interests with the rest of the school, so they’re still very much part of normal school life too. 

PASTORAL CARE

Post Covid, it’s now common place for schools to have a pastoral tick off list as long as your arm and Winchester College is no different. The main responsibility for each child’s pastoral care lies with the Housemaster/mistress of each boarding house, but there’s also support from a 24/7 Health and Wellbeing Centre, counsellors, independent listeners, a Deputy Head Pastoral, Designated Safeguarding Lead and a nurse and chaplain, all of whom get together each week to discuss each child. However, I’m in agreement with the school’s approach that the pastoral care gaze should be firmly on the latest research on how to avoid crises arising in the first place, rather than just coping with the mental fallout. It seems to be working – in the last survey conducted in 2024  95% of kids reported being happy / 98% felt safe at school. 

THE HEAD

I really liked Elizabeth Stone, the Head here since Sept 2023. She’s kept the title of Headmaster – “saves changing the stationery!” she quips – but I sense it also tickles her to question perceptions and do things her own way. Warm and approachable with a secret stash of Aussie chocolate koalas that she dishes out on birthdays to the kids, she’s clearly wild about learning, at one point literally plonking herself next to me on the sofa with her computer because she was so excited to show me the breadth of planned lessons for the ‘Div’ classes. Big priorities for her over the next year is planning for the girls’ boarding and supercharging the sport so I’ll report back.

BOARDING

94% of children board at Winchester College in one of 11 individual mansion houses dotted around or close to the school grounds. Boarding here is vertical, by which I mean  boys from all year groups are included to create a family environment of older and younger siblings. Breakfast, lunch and dinner all eaten at home adds to the idea of the school family.  At lunch, pupils can expect to meet and hone their social skills by chatting to adult guests. I sat next to some poor Year 9s when I visited Hoppers’ boarding house, but the kids talked away amiably, served food to the table, ate (fast – lunch is short and speedy) and seemed pretty comfortable with the whole thing. 

Winchester College retains its Saturday lessons which I know is kind of Marmite to many parents but is much more common in boarding schools where structure is so important and home much further away. All pupils, boarders and day study from 8.45am to 1pm on Saturdays, followed by sports/extra-curricular activities in the afternoon. Boarders can return home after Chapel or Faith Circle on Sunday mornings before heading back to school by 9pm on Sunday night. 

The big news is that there are two brand new Girls’ Boarding Houses opening in Sept 26 each home to around 60 girls. A seismic, exciting moment for the 600-year-old school – I’ll report back on it nearer the time when I’ve seen the houses. 

QUIRKS

Oh my god, where to start? There’s a whole raft of words and phrases here that they call Notions. Shall we talk about MobLib (the main library), or Winkies (Winchester College’s unique mix of football and rugby ), Toytime (the study period in the boarding houses) and Up to Books (in school and in lessons). The Fellows’ Library contains over 10,000 rare books and manuscripts that pupils can experience (under supervision obvs) including a first edition of Newton’s Principia,  the First Folio of Shakespeare’s plays and song books belonging to Elizabeth I. That’s one very happy librarian!  You’ll also spend the next five years trying to remember that Year  9-10s are called Junior Part and Middle Part, and Years 11-13 are known as V Book, VI Book 2 and VI Book 1. 

Unsurprisingly there are a huge number of traditions here, including Illumina where pupils cover the medieval walls which surround the playing fields with candles, and a large bonfire is lit to commemorate the removal of a wall in 1862 which separated those boys housed in College from boys who lived outside the College walls. There’s also Morning Hills when the whole school makes a trip to the top of St Catherine’s Hill for a morning service before heading back to their boarding houses for breakfast. 

SEND

There’s a Learning Support team and one-to-one help is available for all. SEND pupils are not put in special subject sets but taught within the class, with extra help away from the class provided on a rota basis.

MOBILE PHONE POLICY

Phones are handed in at bedtime, and there is no access to phones during the school day. Phones are returned to pupils after breakfast on Sundays.

ISI REPORT

The latest ISI report from 2023 shows all criteria met. 

TRAVEL

You can travel on direct train from London Waterloo to Winchester in just under an hour, or from Southampton Airport (with direct flights to Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dublin) in 15 minutes.

FEES

Brace yourself. Boarding pupils pay £17285 per term (£51,855 per annum). For day pupils (Sixth Form Only) it’s £12,789 per term (£38,367 per annum). Not quite your price bracket? There’s also a means-tested bursaries programme that can cover 100% of fees, as well as a Wykeham Award bursary for a Sixth Form student currently studying at a UK state secondary school. 

WORD ON THE GROUND

Very positive from the kids who love the food and rhapsodise about how dedicated and kind the teachers are (art teacher Mr Forsythe – well done, you’ve been name-checked!). The decision to accept girls to Sixth Form was not popular with some parents at the time, but that’s now old news.

THE MUDDY VERDICT

Good for: Winchester has switched up its offering beyond its stellar academics with its sports and arts programmes so if you’re looking for an all-rounder offering, take a look with fresh eyes. School life here is very busy, so it will suit joiner inners who want to make the most of their opportunities. The College’s 250 peaceful acres are only a few minutes walk from the city, giving  pupils the benefit of both worlds.

Not for: 2025’s intake of girls in the Sixth Form will still be in the vast minority until the boarding provision gets going in 2026. The girls I saw at the school seemed settled and happy but it depends if girls being so outnumbered by boys bothers you or not.

Want to see for yourself? Be my guest! Book an open day. 

Winchester College, College Street, Winchester SO23 9NA. Tel: 01962 621100. admissions@wincoll.ac.uk

Words: Hero Brown, Editor-in-Chief, Muddy Stilettos