Michael Hardy Blog, News & Updates

Wokingham’s local schools – an updated guide

12 April, 2018

We understand that the choice of local schools can be a big consideration when choosing a new area to move to. Recent research has revealed that one in four families with school-aged children have moved house to be closer to their preferred school, so for many house-hunters, becoming familiar with the schools in and around their chosen locale is a must.

That’s why we include a regular overview of Wokingham’s local primary and secondary schools on our blog, and why our website allows you to see how each property we represent for sale or for rent fits into their catchment areas on an interactive area map.

At present, there are 75 primary schools and 23 secondary schools in the Wokingham area – a mix of maintained schools (those funded and controlled by the local education authority), academies (state-funded schools that operate independently from the LEA) and independent schools (private schools that are overseen by a board of governors or trustees). There are also several special schools for children with special educational needs.  

Here’s our latest guide to the schools in Wokingham, Crowthorne, Finchampstead and Arborfield.

Schools in Wokingham

Wokingham itself is a hub for both primary and secondary schools, and two new schools have opened in the area in the past couple of years.

Floreat Montague Park is a primary academy that welcomed their first intake in September 2016. The school’s approach is built developing character strengths, core skills and knowledge, while the brand new site boasts a multi-use games area and a habitat area.

Also new to Wokingham is Northern House School, a secondary academy for children with special social, mental or emotional health needs. Northern House aims to encourage every child to discover the joy of learning and to reach aspirational targets.

Other relatively new schools in Wokingham have continued to develop since being established in the area. Academy and STEM-focused (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) free school, Evendons Primary, has achieved an Ofsted rating of Outstanding since opening in 2014. Wokingham’s first primary academy, Windmill School, now has Reception to year 2 classes and two Key Stage 2 classes – years 3 and 4, with plans to create a new year group each year until 2019. Windmill’s partner school, Wheatfield Primary, is also still growing and aims to offer all classes with places for 210 children from Reception to year 6 by September 2020.

Notable primaries among Wokingham’s older schools include St Paul’s CofE Junior School, Walter Infant School and St Teresa’s Catholic Academy, which all hold Ofsted ratings of Outstanding.  

Most of the area’s secondary schools fall within Wokingham itself, such as mixed school St Crispin’s, which became a Circle Trust academy member in February 2018, and The Holt School, an Ofsted-rated Outstanding girls’ academy. Rated Good by Ofsted, The Emmbrook School is another mixed secondary which is also a specialist maths and computing college. Just up the road in Winnersh is The Forest School, a boys’ academy with a mixed sixth form.

There are many more schools in the Wokingham area than those we’ve mentioned here, the number of which reflects the Borough Council’s plans to build 10,000 homes in carefully planned new or extended communities by 2026.

Schools in Crowthorne

There are many primary schools in and around the village of Crowthorne, several of which took on academy status in 2017 and 2018. These include Wildmoor Health School in nearby Bracknell, a school of around 200 pupils, Oaklands Junior School and Hatch Ride Primary School – both members of the Corvus Learning Trust, and Saint Sebastian’s CofE Primary School, which is believed to have been originally founded way back in 1875.

Crowthorne also has a large local secondary and sixth form school, Edgbarrow School, rated as Outstanding by Ofsted, and a historic and prominent independent secondary school catering for both boarding and day pupils between the ages of 13-18, Wellington College.  

Schools in Finchampstead

This village and civil parish of Wokingham Borough gained its first secondary school in 2016. Located between Finchampstead and Aborfield and still growing, Bohunt School is a mixed academy of up to 1500 pupils aged 11-18, and should be full by 2022. Parts of Finchampstead may also fall within the secondary catchment zones for Emmbrook, The Forest and Holt Schools and St Crispin’s, but Bohunt represents the area’s first dedicated secondary.

When it comes to primary schools, Finchampstead CofE Primary School has an Outstanding rating from Ofsted and strong links with Finchampstead’s St James’ Church, while Nine Mile Ride Primary bases its curriculum on a growth mindset. The independent Waverley Preparatory School and Nursery accepts children from three months to 11 years, and took the top spot in the Times Top 100 independent Prep schools in 2016.

Schools in Arborfield

Formerly centred around the British Army garrison that was vacated in 2015, the village of Arborfield is being redeveloped with plans for 3,500 new homes. As we mentioned above, the newly-opened secondary, Bohunt School, sits close to both Arborfield and Finchampstead and will welcome pupils from both areas. Nearby in Ryeish Green, Oakbank School is a secondary academy and free school that’s been up and running since 2012.  

For younger children, Arborfield has several established primaries, including The Coombes CofE Primary School and Nursery and Farley Hill Primary School, rated Good by Ofsted.

Building work is also currently underway on a new primary school in nearby Shinfield, The Floreat Silver Meadow Primary, which is due to open in September 2018. 

This is just a few of the schools available in the Wokingham area, you can see a full comparable list on gov.uk. It’s worth checking the latest catchment areas on the Wokingham Borough Council website too, as these can change over time.

We’re also more than happy to advise you on which schools are close to our listed properties, simply get in touch to find out more.