Lift New Forest
Long Lane, Holbury, Southampton, SO45 2PA
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 11 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- LIFT SCHOOLS
- Principal
- Mr Robert Forder
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- Lift Schools
- Constituency
- New Forest East
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 800
- Pupils on roll
- 504
- URN
- 138585
- Local authority
- Hampshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 02380891192
About this school
Lift New Forest is a secondary academy in Southampton. It teaches children aged 11 to 16 and has 504 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Lift New Forest, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 103 | 113 | 121 |
| Attainment 8 score | 36.3 | 40.6 | 38.5 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.67 -0.95 to -0.39 | -0.51 -0.78 to -0.25 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 20% | 34.5% | 37.2% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 53% | 55.8% | 58.7% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 17% | 18.6% | 20.7% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 2.9 | 3.4 | 3.3 |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Lift New Forest has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Hampshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 36.3 | 37.8 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 40.6 | 37.8 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 38.5 | 37.1 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 9.7% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 9.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 9.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 573 |
| 2023/24 | 564 |
| 2024/25 | 548 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Lift New Forest compares
Lift New Forest ranked 53rd of 67 secondary schools in Hampshire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 34% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 10% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 38.5 | 9.4% | 44.3% | 504 | — |
| Noadswood School | 45.5 | 11.3% | 22.3% | 1,102 | 2.0 miles |
| Applemore College | 36.7 | 11.8% | 28.8% | 478 | 2.5 miles |
| The Hamble School | 47.2 | 10.4% | 27.5% | 1,139 | 3.7 miles |
| Weston Secondary School | 31.1 | 12.1% | 58.1% | 653 | 3.8 miles |
| Oasis Academy Mayfield | 37 | 12.4% | 46.2% | 884 | 4.2 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 44.34%
- English as an additional language
- 2.4%
- Overall absence
- 9.37%
- Persistent absence
- 23.84%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Noadswood School2.0 miles
Secondary · Southampton
-
Applemore College2.5 miles
Secondary · Southampton
-
The Hamble School3.7 miles
Secondary · Southampton
-
Weston Secondary School3.8 miles
Secondary · Southampton
-
Oasis Academy Mayfield4.2 miles
Secondary · Southampton
Other schools in Southampton
Lift New Forest ranks 14th of the 20 ranked secondary schools in Southampton.
- Applemore College Secondary
- Bitterne Park School Secondary
- Brookfield Community School Secondary
- Cantell School Secondary
- Deer Park School Secondary
- Hounsdown School Secondary
- Noadswood School Secondary
- Oasis Academy Lord's Hill Secondary
- Oasis Academy Mayfield Secondary
- Oasis Academy Sholing Secondary
- Redbridge Community School Secondary
- Regents Park Community College Secondary
Common questions
- What ages does Lift New Forest teach?
- Lift New Forest teaches children aged 11 to 16. It is a secondary school in Southampton.
- Who is the principal of Lift New Forest?
- The principal of Lift New Forest is Mr Robert Forder, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Lift New Forest been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Lift New Forest, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at Lift New Forest?
- Lift New Forest has 504 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 16.
- Is Lift New Forest full?
- Lift New Forest has capacity for 800 pupils and 504 on roll (63%), so it has space against its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Lift New Forest a faith school?
- No. Lift New Forest has no designated religious character.
- Is Lift New Forest a selective school?
- No. Lift New Forest is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is Lift New Forest part of an academy trust?
- Lift New Forest is part of LIFT SCHOOLS. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Lift New Forest's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 36.3 in 2022/23 and 38.5 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Lift New Forest compare with other schools in Hampshire?
- Lift New Forest ranked 53rd of 67 secondary schools in Hampshire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 34% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 10% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Lift New Forest's absence rate?
- Lift New Forest's overall absence rate is 9.4% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Lift New Forest's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Lift New Forest's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 1 July 2026.