United Kingdom · Winchester
Winchester College is boys-only and full boarding from 13. Its Sixth Form accepts girls and boys as day pupils or boarders from 16, so age and residence determine which route is available.
Winchester College has two different age-and-residence models. Boys entering Year 9 at 13 are full boarders. At 16, girls and boys may join the Sixth Form as day pupils or boarders.
Girls first entered the Sixth Form in 2022. Purpose-built girls’ boarding houses opened from September 2026. The school is expanding its registered capacity from 740 to 920 between September 2026 and September 2028.
Pupils follow GCSE or IGCSE courses before moving to A-Levels. The Sixth Form programme normally comprises three A-Levels plus Div. Eligible pupils may take an additional A-Level, and the Extended Project Qualification is optional.
Div is Winchester’s non-examined programme of cultural, historical and philosophical study. It continues throughout the school, including the Sixth Form. Families should view it as an additional compulsory strand, not a qualification or substitute for an A-Level.
The school does not offer the IB Diploma. A pupil seeking an international diploma rather than A-Levels should compare the qualification route before applying.
This route is for boys joining as full boarders. Registration is encouraged by 1 October of Year 6. Late applicants can contact Admissions or use the Registrar’s Route, but they are considered only as places become available.
The process uses a confidential school reference, an online General Ability Test, a handwritten writing assessment and an interview. Winchester says no special preparation or past papers are required.
For Year 9 entry in September 2029, the current 2026–27 guide gives the following schedule.
| Stage | Date |
|---|---|
| Registration deadline | 1 October 2026. |
| General Ability Test and writing assessment | 16–20 November 2026. |
| Interviews in Winchester | 11–15 January 2027. |
| Offer and acceptance | March 2027. |
Boarding-house placement and taster events follow in Year 7. Boys sit Winchester Entrance in spring of Year 8, but admission is no longer conditional on those results. Election and music or sport assessments also take place in Year 8.
Winchester also advertises an 11+ route through The Pilgrims’ School. A boy joins that separate prep school in Year 7, then progresses to Winchester College in Year 9. He is not a Winchester College pupil from age 11.
For Year 7 entry in September 2027 through Pilgrims, registration closes on 1 October 2026. Assessments run on 5–7 October. Interviews are 19–23 October in Hong Kong or 12–14 November in Winchester.
Offers follow in December 2026, with acceptance in March 2027. These dates belong to the Pilgrims route and should not be used for direct Year 9 or Sixth Form applications.
Sixth Form entry is open to girls and boys for day or boarding places. Registration closes on 1 October of Year 11. Late applications use the same availability-based Registrar’s Route.
The application includes reports, a reference, a personal statement, a short curriculum vitae and identity documents. Applicants take Winchester’s online General Ability Test. The school then shortlists candidates for in-person assessment.
Shortlisted candidates complete an extended writing task and a humanities or STEM paper. The paper depends on their three proposed A-Level subjects. Each candidate also has one pastoral and one academic interview.
For Sixth Form entry in September 2027, the current guide gives the following dates.
| Stage | Date |
|---|---|
| Registration deadline | 1 October 2026. |
| Online General Ability Test | 9–10 October 2026. |
| Interviews and further assessment | 6–9 November 2026. |
| Decisions | December 2026. |
| Induction | June 2027. |
The offer remains conditional until GCSE or equivalent results arrive in August. Published conditions are grades 7 or higher in every subject and grades 8 or higher in proposed A-Levels. Extension subjects may require grade 9.
Winchester’s houses are central to daily life. Each house has a Housedon, resident matrons, tutors and domestic staff. Tutor groups contain about 12–14 pupils, with regular individual meetings.
The school has 13 boarding houses, including College for academic scholars. St Cross and St Catherine are the two girls’ Sixth Form houses. Boys entering at 13 cannot choose a day place.
Each house has its own kitchen and dining room. The central Health and Wellbeing Centre is staffed around the clock by paediatric nurses. Families should still ask how specialist medical or therapeutic needs would be managed.
The January 2026 SEN document names support for needs including dyslexia, dyspraxia, ADHD, autism, sensory impairment, hypermobility and slower processing. Prospective families may discuss provision with the Head of Learning Support before applying.
The school asks for educational-psychology or medical evidence at least three months before an entrance examination when access arrangements may be needed. External recommendations are considered against examination-board rules and the pupil’s normal way of working.
Year 9 pupils with identified needs generally begin personalised study-skills sessions after settling in. Support later becomes more targeted. Sixth Form sessions usually occur during free periods and can address essay writing, analysis or learning barriers.
The public material does not price learning support, external assessments or EAL tuition. Disclose needs early and obtain written confirmation of suitability, frequency, adjustments and charges before accepting.
Winchester can support only a limited number of Child Student visa applications. The 2027 guide says families who selected the visa option will be contacted after Easter in Year 11. School support costs £1,440 per pupil each year.
Every pupil whose parents live overseas must have an Educational Guardian while at Winchester. Parents appoint and assess the guardian; the school does not provide one. Unsuitable arrangements can prevent visa sponsorship.
The guardian must be over 25, speak English and live permanently in the UK. They should ideally live within two hours of Winchester and must meet the pupil before school starts.
The guardian provides emergency contact and suitable accommodation when school is closed. Hotels, university halls and unsupervised stays are not accepted. Ask the school to approve the proposed arrangement before signing an agency contract.
The published 2026–27 fees include VAT where applicable:
| Place | Per term | Three-term total |
|---|---|---|
| Boarding | £20,700 | £62,100 |
| Sixth Form day | £15,318 | £45,954 |
The £480 registration fee is non-refundable. It is waived when the pupil qualifies for free school meals and evidence is supplied. Admissions invites families with other payment concerns to contact the team.
For Year 9, the acceptance payment is £2,000 by 1 June of Year 6. It is credited to the first year’s spring invoice. It is lost if the family later declines the accepted place.
The deposit section publishes £4,000 for UK-resident parents and £20,700 for non-UK-resident parents. Year 9 families pay in Year 8. Sixth Form families pay when signing the parent contract.
The deposit is returned after departure, less unpaid fees and extras. It is not returned when a family withdraws before the pupil starts. Confirm the applicable residence category in the offer and contract.
A school-supplied laptop is compulsory, with its cost spread over the first three bills. The amount is announced during the summer before entry. GCSE and A-Level exam entries typically cost £500–£1,000 per set.
The page still labels music prices 2025–26. Those termly charges are £417.60 for 30 minutes, £550.80 for 40 minutes and £784.80 for 60 minutes weekly. They should not be treated as confirmed 2026–27 prices.
LAMDA tuition starts at £30 for 30 minutes, with published termly totals of £200–£350. Trips, optional sports equipment, some books and replacement items also cost extra. Trip deposits are non-refundable.
The 2025–26 billing guide describes a fees-in-advance scheme covering up to five years, with a 1.5% discount. It returns unused whole-term credits after departure, less debts. Insufficient notice also costs one full term.
That document is dated and supplements the parent contract. The current ordinary notice date, fee liability and refund rules are not public. Request the current contract before paying any acceptance amount or deposit.
Means-tested bursaries range from 5% to 100% of fees and can include laptops, trips or activities. They are reviewed annually. The 2024–25 reporting figures show an average 74% fee remission and 33 pupils paying no fees.
Families must select financial support during registration. The bursary guide’s summary gives an earlier July of Year 5 deadline for 13+ support and September of Year 11 for 16+. Confirm the exact date before relying on the general admissions deadline.
Founder’s Scholarships are open at 13+ and 16+ and provide a non-means-tested 25% fee remission. Major Scholarships provide 10%. Scholar and Exhibitioner titles at 13+ do not automatically reduce fees.
Music and sport awards provide specialist tuition or coaching but no automatic fee remission. They may be combined with a bursary or academic scholarship.
Winchester can suit a boy who actively wants full boarding from 13. It can also suit a girl or boy seeking a co-educational A-Level Sixth Form with either day or boarding residence.
Continue with the Winchester school-search guide, UK admissions guide and boarding guide.
Official pages and documents we read. If a figure matters to your budget or your application, open the link and confirm it is still current.
Friendly orientation, not an application. Dates, fees, and programme details move. Confirm everything with the school.
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Winchester College and St Swithun's serve different pupils. The College is full-boarding for boys from 13 and co-educational at 16+, with day places then available. St Swithun's is a girls' day and boarding school from 11. Entry point and boarding need should decide which application is relevant.
5 minStart with your child’s needs and the schools you can realistically access. A boys’, girls’, or co-educational label does not tell you enough about teaching, friendships, support, or daily life.
8 minStart with the child and a realistic weekly timetable. Then confirm who provides care, which nights are covered, and what happens when plans change.
7 minStart with the qualification your child would actually receive. Then check its subjects, language demands, and recognition in the countries where they may study next.