The Arnewood School Review 2026, Secondary with Sixth Form in Sway, New Milton

Ambition and rebuilding sit at the centre of this school’s current story. For families in Sway and the wider New Milton area, The Arnewood School is the large local option for ages 11 to 18, with a sixth form that is positioned as a key strength and a main school that is working through a demanding improvement phase.

Leadership stability matters in turnaround periods. Mr Jamie Anderson has been headteacher since January 2023, and the public narrative since then has focused on culture, expectations, and improving day-to-day consistency.

Parents should read this school as two linked experiences. The sixth form has a different academic tone and official evaluations place it ahead of the rest of the school. The main school, meanwhile, is addressing behaviour, attendance patterns, curriculum coherence, and pupil confidence in reporting concerns, all while keeping safeguarding effective.

The Arnewood School’s stated values, Ambition, Success, Together, are not presented as marketing gloss. They are referenced as a practical framework for resetting expectations, and are used to describe what staff are trying to make routine: calm lessons, predictable systems, and consistent relationships across year groups.

A key cultural point for parents is that the pupil experience has not been uniform across the school. External review material describes a sixth form that feels purposeful, with focused lessons and students who work diligently, while also describing a minority of younger pupils whose conduct has historically disrupted learning for others. That contrast matters when you are weighing Year 7 entry versus post-16 entry, and it also signals where leadership attention has been concentrated.

The most helpful way to interpret the current atmosphere is trajectory rather than snapshot. The school’s improvement work is described in terms of systems and routines, not quick wins. That tends to suit pupils who respond well to structure and clear boundaries, and it can be harder for pupils who need a highly settled, low-disruption environment immediately, especially if confidence has been knocked by previous experiences of behaviour issues.

For GCSE outcomes, the performance picture is currently below typical levels for England. Ranked 3,368th in England and 2nd locally in New Milton for GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data), the school sits below England average overall. A percentile position around the lower end of the distribution supports the same conclusion.

Progress 8 is a useful signal here because it describes progress from pupils’ starting points. A Progress 8 score of -0.84 indicates pupils made notably less progress than other pupils with similar prior attainment across England, which aligns with the wider improvement narrative around curriculum delivery and classroom conditions.

Attainment 8 is 36.9, and the average EBacc APS is 3.14. The percentage achieving grade 5 or above in the EBacc is 6.8. These figures are best read alongside the school’s current focus on raising achievement from Year 7 upwards, rather than expecting quick change at the point of examinations.

At A-level, outcomes are closer to the middle of the England distribution. Ranked 1,186th in England and 1st locally in New Milton for A-level outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data), results sit in line with the middle 35% of schools in England (25th to 60th percentile). A-level grades show 5.66% at A*, 20.75% at A, 20.75% at B, and 47.17% at A* to B combined. The balance suggests a sixth form that is performing around typical England levels overall, with a meaningful proportion reaching higher grades.

Families comparing options should use FindMySchool’s Local Hub pages and comparison tools to look at GCSE performance and sixth form outcomes side by side, as the gap between the two phases is a central feature of the current profile.

Teaching priorities are best understood as consistency and sequencing. The school is described as still tightening the organisation and delivery of curriculum content so that pupils learn knowledge securely over time, and so that assessment information is used more reliably to address gaps before moving on.

There are signs of structured practice that parents can ask about in visits and conversations. One example is the reference to a common lesson structure, the Arnewood Lesson, intended to clarify baseline expectations across classrooms. External commentary suggests elements such as recall of prior learning are working better than the use of assessment to correct misconceptions, so a sensible parent question is how leaders are now coaching and monitoring that second step.

SEND practice is another practical differentiator. The school describes “pupil passports” as a way of making needs visible to staff, while also acknowledging that adaptation is not consistently precise in every classroom. For parents of pupils with additional needs, the right focus is not whether documentation exists, but how routinely staff adjust tasks, explanations, and checks for understanding in day-to-day teaching.

For most families, the sixth form is the key destination conversation because it offers the local route to A-levels and vocational pathways without changing setting at 16. The most recent available destination figures (2023/24 leavers) show 32% progressing to university, 45% to employment, 7% to apprenticeships, and 3% to further education. Those figures indicate a mixed set of pathways, with employment and apprenticeships forming a significant part of outcomes, rather than an exclusively university-led pattern.

Oxbridge is not a defining feature of this school’s profile, but there is evidence of a small academic pipeline. In the measurement period, three students applied to Cambridge, one received an offer, and one secured a place. The practical implication is that highly academic applicants can be supported, but the dominant post-16 story is broader: a combination of university, apprenticeships, and direct employment routes.

Year 7 admissions are coordinated by Hampshire County Council. For September 2026 entry, the published key dates are clear: applications opened on 08 September 2025, closed on 31 October 2025, and on-time applicants were notified on 02 March 2026, with a later date for establishing waiting lists also published by the local authority. This is a state school with no tuition fees, so the admissions process and oversubscription criteria are the main practical variables for families.

The school’s published admission number for Year 7 in September 2026 is 180. Families should treat published numbers as capacity signals, not guarantees about class size or staffing, and should still look closely at how oversubscription criteria are applied in practice.

For sixth form entry, applications are made directly to Arnewood Sixth. For September 2026 entry, the school published an application deadline of Friday 09 January 2026, with interviews scheduled later in January. Because sixth form timelines can shift year to year, it is sensible to confirm the current cycle’s dates early in the autumn term of Year 11.

Safeguarding is a non-negotiable threshold for any school undergoing improvement, and the most recent graded inspection states that safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Beyond safeguarding, the pastoral picture has centred on behaviour, bullying, and pupils’ confidence that concerns will be dealt with fairly. Historic issues described include disruption to learning, antisocial behaviour outside lessons, and pupils’ reluctance to report bullying or prejudicial language because they did not trust that it would be addressed well. In these areas, the immediate question for parents is not policy wording, but credibility: whether pupils now believe systems work.

A later monitoring visit describes substantial progress in behaviour systems and a marked reduction in suspensions, while also noting the need to prioritise attainment and continue embedding culture change. For families, this implies a school that is moving in the right direction, but one where you should still explore how consistent classroom conditions are across subjects and year groups.

Extracurricular provision is one of the school’s strengths, and it is presented as a meaningful part of pupil experience rather than an optional add-on. Pupils have access to structured lunchtime and after-school activities, with a timetable that includes both participation clubs and targeted academic support.

The detail is useful. Examples from the published programme include MFL Film Club at lunchtime, Christian Union at lunchtime, and Homework Club after school in the library. These offerings are not just “things to do”, they also support routines, friendships, and supervised study, which can be particularly valuable for pupils who benefit from structure after the school day.

Sports and creative activities are also visible. The timetable references football and netball on the astro, badminton and basketball in the sports hall, and girls’ football on the field. On the arts side, School Orchestra and String Orchestra appear as weekly fixtures, signalling a music programme with regular rehearsal structures rather than one-off events.

For exam-year pupils, targeted revision sessions are also listed by subject, including GCSE science, languages, humanities, and core subjects. The implication is that support is built into the weekly rhythm, but families should still ask how pupils are identified for intervention, and how attendance at these sessions is encouraged.

Published information describes school opening hours as 8am to 4pm Monday to Thursday and 8am to 3.30pm on Fridays during term time, with expectations about when students must be on site within that window.

Transport is typically straightforward for families in Sway and New Milton, with a mix of walking, cycling, and local public transport options. For older students, the sixth form experience often involves independent travel, so it is worth considering your child’s confidence with routines and time management as part of the choice.

Wraparound care is not usually a core feature at secondary level. Families who need structured supervision beyond the standard day should check what is available through after-school clubs, homework provision, and any study spaces offered on site.

• Inspection status and pace of change. The current overall judgement is Inadequate and improvement is still in progress. The direction of travel appears positive, but families should be realistic that stability takes time to embed.

• Learning conditions in the main school. Historic disruption and bullying concerns are described alongside work to improve behaviour and confidence in reporting. If your child needs a consistently low-disruption environment immediately, probe how consistent classrooms are now across subjects and year groups.

• GCSE outcomes remain a key weakness. Current GCSE performance indicators and Progress 8 suggest that achievement is below typical England levels, even as improvement work continues. Families should ask how the school is strengthening curriculum delivery and catch-up from Year 7 onwards.

The Arnewood School is a large local secondary with a sixth form that looks stronger than the main school, and a clear emphasis on rebuilding culture, behaviour, and learning conditions. It will suit families who want a community-based 11 to 18 route, are comfortable engaging with a school in active improvement, and value structured extracurricular options such as homework support, orchestras, and practical clubs. The main decision point is your child’s tolerance for a setting still embedding consistency, and whether the improving trajectory aligns with your risk appetite.