Photo: Unknown. Canada. Department of National Defence. · Public domain5 of Southwold’s 9 tested schools score in the lower two fifths in Ontario
Only 1 of the 9 are Catholic, against 34% in Ontario. The 3 km around Southwold counts 7 elementary schools and 2 secondary schools, 5,050 students between them.
What stands out about Southwold’s schools
Results on the rise
At 5 tested schools out of 9, the three-year changes lean upward; Pierre Elliott Trudeau French Immersion Public School, Parkside Collegiate Institute and John Wise Public School gained most often. Results ↓
No French-language school
None of the 9 schools here teaches in French; in Ontario, 10% of schools do. Language ↓
Big elementary schools
At 526 students on average, against 365 in Ontario, the elementary schools are large; Southwold Public School and Kettle Creek Public School lead. Every school ↓
Every figure here sets the area’s schools beside the rest of its province.
How Southwold’s schools do on Ontario’s tests
EQAO’s Grade 3, 6 and 9 assessments and the literacy test, 2024-25: each school against every school in Ontario.
Its School Grade is C: it compares these results with the other towns of the province.
The area’s schools by fifth of the province
Each school’s band is the average of its measures’ fifths. The mark shows an even fifth of the area’s schools.
| Measure | Schools | Middle here | Ontario |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 3 reading | 7 | 63% | 76% |
| Grade 3 writing | 7 | 51% | 65% |
| Grade 3 math | 7 | 63% | 65% |
| Grade 6 reading | 7 | 84% | 88% |
| Grade 6 writing | 7 | 77% | 86% |
| Grade 6 math | 7 | 37% | 51% |
| Grade 9 math | 2 | 40% | 55% |
| Literacy test (OSSLT), first try | 2 | 65% | 85% |
The widest gap is on Grade 9 math, where the area’s schools reach 40% against 55% in Ontario. Across 8 measures: 0 above the middle, 8 below.
Every school’s results (9)
| School | Measure | Band |
|---|---|---|
| Kettle Creek Public SchoolElementary · Grades JK–8 | G3 reading 88% · G3 writing 83% · G3 math 79% · G6 reading 86% · G6 writing 73% · G6 math 41% | Middle fifth |
| Pierre Elliott Trudeau French Immersion Public SchoolElementary · Grades JK–8 | G3 reading 62% · G3 writing 38% · G3 math 73% · G6 reading 100% · G6 writing 94% · G6 math 66% | Middle fifth |
| Southwold Public SchoolElementary · Grades JK–8 | G3 reading 63% · G3 writing 51% · G3 math 53% · G6 reading 94% · G6 writing 90% · G6 math 52% | Middle fifth |
| Lockes Public SchoolElementary · Grades JK–8 | G3 reading 76% · G3 writing 73% · G3 math 63% · G6 reading 78% · G6 writing 77% · G6 math 37% | Middle fifth |
| Monsignor Morrison Separate SchoolElementary · Grades JK–8 | G3 reading 78% · G3 writing 76% · G3 math 71% · G6 reading 75% · G6 writing 82% · G6 math 30% | Fourth fifth |
| Parkside Collegiate InstituteSecondary · Grades 9–12 | G9 math 52% · OSSLT 82% | Fourth fifth |
| John Wise Public SchoolElementary · Grades JK–8 | G3 reading 58% · G3 writing 50% · G3 math 50% · G6 reading 84% · G6 writing 72% · G6 math 34% | Fourth fifth |
| June Rose Callwood Public SchoolElementary · Grades JK–8 | G3 reading 58% · G3 writing 31% · G3 math 49% · G6 reading 74% · G6 writing 77% · G6 math 18% | Bottom fifth |
| Arthur Voaden Secondary SchoolSecondary · Grades 9–12 | G9 math 27% · OSSLT 48% | Bottom fifth |
Ontario Ministry of Education, School Information Finder 2024–25 (EQAO results; N/R where groups are too small). Open Government Licence – Ontario.
Who runs Southwold’s schools
Each level’s schools by system: English public, English Catholic, French-language, and independent or other.
The split by system: English public 8 and English Catholic 1.
The provincial school lists: each school’s board, language and Catholic or public status.
Where the 9 schools in and around Southwold are
Every school as a pin, coloured by system; each opens its own page.
Points from the provincial lists.
Schooling in English and French around Southwold
English, French and other languages of instruction, beside the mix in Ontario.
The mark on each bar is the share of schools in Ontario.
A French-language school would mean a trip out of the area.
Section 23 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms gives French-speaking parents the right to French-language schooling for their children, through the French-language boards.
The 2 boards that run schools here
Each board’s schools in the area, largest first.
Of 2 boards, the largest here is Thames Valley DSB, with 8.
| Board | System | Schools | Students |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thames Valley DSBParkside, Southwold, Lockes, John Wise, Pierre Elliott Trudeau French Immersion, Kettle Creek, June Rose Callwood, Arthur Voaden | English public | 8 | 4,525 |
| London District Catholic School BoardMonsignor Morrison Separate | English Catholic | 1 | 525 |
Boards as Ontario’s list names them (its short forms: DSB, CDSB, CS).
How children get a place in Southwold
The neighbourhood school
No application round, no lottery: the address fixes the school, and the board handles the paperwork.
Catholic schools
Catholic schools here are public, paid for by the province. Elementary places usually go to Catholic families; Catholic high schools take any student.
The provinces’ education acts and the boards’ own admission policies; check with the board for a given address.
The 9 schools in and around Southwold
High schools within reach of Southwold
Every secondary school within 15 km of the town, nearest first.
Within 15 km, families can reach 4 high schools: 3 English public and 1 English Catholic. Parkside Collegiate Institute is closest, at 11 km.
| School | Board | System | Band | Students | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parkside Collegiate InstituteSecondary · Grades 9–12 | Thames Valley DSB | English public | Fourth fifth | 1,015 | 11 km |
| Arthur Voaden Secondary SchoolSecondary · Grades 9–12 | Thames Valley DSB | English public | Bottom fifth | 355 | 12 km |
| Central Elgin Collegiate InstituteSecondary · Grades 9–12 | Thames Valley DSB | English public | Fourth fifth | 690 | 12 km |
| St Joseph's High SchoolSecondary · Grades 9–12 | London District Catholic School Board | English Catholic | Middle fifth | 960 | 12 km |
Distances in a straight line from the town’s centre point.
Towns its size in Ontario
Similar-sized towns and their schools within 3 km, by population.
| Town | Population | Schools | Students | French | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pioneer Park | 8,781 | 17 | 10,745 | 1 | 2.3 km |
| … | |||||
| Huron South | 5,555 | 22 | 12,925 | 1 | 1.4 km |
| Espanola | 5,504 | 5 | 1,205 | 2 | 0.7 km |
| Stirling | 5,489 | 1 | 690 | 0 | 16 km |
| Island Park-Wellington Village | 5,486 | 36 | 10,600 | 13 | 2 km |
| Southwold | 5,473 | 9 | 5,050 | 0 | 11 km |
| Garner | 5,456 | 12 | 6,855 | 0 | 2.3 km |
| North Gower - Kars | 5,439 | 7 | 2,650 | 1 | 12 km |
| Metcalfe | 5,434 | 12 | 4,140 | 2 | 1 km |
| Wingham | 5,411 | 4 | 1,260 | 0 | 1 km |
| … | |||||
| Mill Courtland Woodside Park | 3,319 | 43 | 22,315 | 0 | 0.8 km |
More schools are within reach in 198 of the 286 other towns. 180 of 287 have a school teaching in French.
Populations from Statistics Canada; schools from the provincial lists, in or within 3 km of each town.
Schools in the towns around Southwold
For each nearby town, its schools in or within 3 km of its outline, with straight-line distances.
| Town | Schools | French | Catholic or independent | Nearest secondary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwold | 9 | 0 | 1 | 11 km |
| Oneida 41 12 km | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 km |
| St. Thomas 13 km | 14 | 0 | 3 | 0.6 km |
| Central Elgin 14 km | 17 | 0 | 3 | 2 km |
| Dutton 17 km | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11 km |
| Lambeth 19 km | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4.3 km |
Most schools next door: Central Elgin, 17.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- What isn’t here. No province rates its schools by inspection, and enrolment covers one year (Ontario and Alberta only), so there is no trend.
- Bands, not ranks. A band is the fifth of Ontario’s schools a result falls in, averaged over the school’s measures; small groups go unreported, so places would overstate it.
- The year. The province’s school list, 2024-25.
- Boards and systems. A public school belongs to a board of one language; in Ontario, Alberta and Saskatchewan a board is also public or Catholic. An independent school runs itself.
- Which schools count. Every school inside Southwold’s outline or within 3 km of it, the rule used across the site.
- The kinds of school. An all-grade school teaches from kindergarten through high school; elementary and secondary schools split those years.
Questions about schools in Southwold
Is there a French-language school in Southwold?
Not within 3 km of Southwold. The French-language board still serves families here.
How many schools are there in Southwold?
Inside the town there are 1; another 8 sit within 3 km.
How do I get a place at a school in Southwold?
Start with the board for the system you want; your address sets the school.
Which boards run the schools in Southwold?
Thames Valley DSB (8) and London District Catholic School Board (1), with each one’s schools in brackets.
Sources: Ontario Ministry of Education, School Information Finder 2024–25 and school contact list (Open Government Licence – Ontario) · map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors. Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).