Headteacher's Welcome and School Ethos

Testbourne Community School is a special place. 

It is a pleasure to welcome you to the Testbourne Community School website. It has been a privilege to lead this fantastic school since 2017.  During that time, we have consistently been the highest performing secular school in the Basingstoke and Deane and Andover areas and increased our numbers of students on roll by around 20% to 950 today.  Our students are wonderful people; they are friendly, polite and are supported to be confident, articulate, independent and resilient.   This, we believe, will best prepare them for the future.

One thing that seems to surprise visitors to the school and was noted by our Ofsted inspection team in Autumn 2023, is the calm and purposeful environment enjoyed by all.  Behaviour is very good at Testbourne and students feel safe, value diversity and are not concerned about bullying. We place a great deal of emphasis on positive relationships between students and adults in the school, because these are essential ingredients of students’ success in their education.  Ofsted noted that students “are respectful of each other and have warm relationships with staff.”   You can read the full Ofsted report here.

While we excel in developing students’ academic potential, we also place great value on developing their personal qualities.  We recognise children for demonstrating the Testbourne Standards of Excellence, placing value on Kindness and Respect, Honesty and Integrity, Ambition and Leadership.  Students embrace our values and, according to inspectors, “build a sense of responsibility for their own choices and learning.” We also provide an extensive range of personal development opportunities such as a diverse range of extra-curricular clubs including sporting, creative, academic and more.  Similarly, there are fantastic opportunities to complete the Duke of Edinburgh award, experience exciting visits abroad, see West End shows, and participate in skiing or sailing tall ships to name but a few.

We have high expectations for all children, irrespective of their needs or background, and these translate to brilliant outcomes for our students with the vast majority going on to study A-Levels or equivalent at Queen Mary’s College in Basingstoke or Peter Symonds College in Winchester.  We have a broad curriculum offer and an expert staff who embrace the latest research about learning and teaching to ensure that the methods we use are the most effective available.  Throughout your child’s journey with us, we help them to become effective learners, academically successful and well prepared for their next steps.  Year after year, a higher proportion of our students go on to further education, employment or training than either the Hampshire or National averages.

We have a fantastic pastoral support team in the school, providing advice and guidance on a number of issues.  Unlike many schools, we have an in-house counsellor and a range of staff to support children’s mental health and resilience.  We do place tremendous emphasis on developing personal resilience because we do not want children to miss out on their once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to learn in secondary school.

It is impossible, on a website or in this introduction, to give you a complete picture of what life is like at Testbourne, so we encourage you to visit during a normal school day.  Staff will warmly welcome you and students will, as always, be delighted to show you around and answer your questions. They are our best advocates and the embodiment of everything we stand for. 

If you would like to arrange a visit, or have any questions, please do not hesitate to email us using admin@testbourne.school or phone 01256 892 061. 

Mr J Beck 
Headteacher