Bohunt Wokingham Sixth has opened in Arborfield with room for 300 students, the first sixth form in the borough's rural south. Open evening is 15 October.

Students in the south of Wokingham borough can now stay in the borough for A levels without leaving their own school. Bohunt Wokingham Sixth, known as BW6, has started its first term in a new building at Bohunt School in Arborfield.

The sixth form will have 300 places once it has two year groups. The school’s own website says it opens with 150 Year 12 students (Bohunt Wokingham Sixth).

Wokingham Borough Council says the rural south of the borough “currently lacks a sixth form” (council, 9 September). Until now, most Bohunt students finished Year 11 and moved to schools and colleges outside the borough.

What happened

Francis Construction finished the building in August. The council and Bohunt Education Trust took the keys the week before term started, and students began the school year inside it.

This year is also ten years since Bohunt Wokingham first opened. It was the first new secondary school in the borough for more than 50 years, according to the council’s executive member for children’s services, Cllr Prue Bray, speaking in 2023 (council, 2023).

Cllr Bray, now also deputy leader, said: “BW6 is a much-needed facility which will enable more young people to access high-quality, post-16 education locally.”

Headteacher Jen Comber said the school was “thrilled to welcome our students into our exceptional new sixth form building”.

An official opening is due later this autumn. No date has been published.

What it cost, and who paid

The project took four and a half years from the first council decision, and its price rose along the way.

  • March 2022: the council agreed to put £3.7 million towards a sixth form, with the trust adding £2 million.
  • 28 September 2023: the scheme had grown to include 150 more places for 11 to 16 year olds and better facilities for pupils with special educational needs. The estimated cost of that revised project was £10.5 million.
  • The same day, the council’s Executive raised its contribution to up to £5.25 million, funded through borrowing, with the trust matching it (council, 2023).
  • 10 July 2025: ground was broken (council).
  • 26 February 2026: the building was topped out (council).

Timeline of Bohunt Wokingham Sixth from the 2022 funding decision to the October 2026 open evening

The council’s 2026 announcements talk only about the 300 sixth form places. They do not say whether the 150 extra places for younger pupils, part of the 2023 scheme, have also been delivered. We could not find a published answer.

Demand for places

Families have turned up in numbers. BW6’s first open evening, on 16 October 2025, drew more than 675 visitors, the school says (BW6). In February the headteacher said the school had been “delighted by the number of applications we have received for September”.

Applications for this September are now closed. The school’s applying page says late applicants should contact the school.

The school says it aims to run every A level it advertises. It also says a course “may not run if there is insufficient take-up” (courses).

What it means for you

  • If your child is in Year 10 or 11: the next open evening is on Thursday 15 October, 4.30pm to 7pm, for current Year 10 and 11 students. The school warns parking will be limited (open evening).
  • If you live in Arborfield, Finchampstead, Barkham or Swallowfield: a sixth form within the borough’s rural south is now an option alongside the schools and colleges further afield.
  • If you are weighing up choices: check the course list before you apply, because a subject with too few takers may not run.
  • For how borough schools did this summer: see our reports on A level results and GCSE results.

Getting there in the coming months? Barkham Road, one of the routes towards Arborfield, is under a long Thames Water closure. Our roadworks page has the current dates.

Sources