What is the 11+? A parent's guide to subjects, format and 2026 dates

The 11+ is a selective entrance exam sat in Year 6 by children applying to a state grammar school or to certain independent schools at age 11. It isn't part of the national curriculum, it isn't compulsory, and only a minority of children in England sit it. But for the families who do enter, it tends to dominate Year 5 and the first half of Year 6.

This guide answers the questions parents ask first. What's on the test, who runs it, when the autumn 2026 exams happen, how the application links up with the normal secondary process, and how much preparation a child needs.

The 11+ is the entrance exam used by state grammar schools in England. Grammar schools are state-funded and free to attend, but they're allowed to select pupils by academic ability, a rare exception under the Schools Admissions Code. There are around 163 state grammar schools across England, spread over roughly 35 selective local authorities (per House of Commons Library briefing CBP 1398), which is around one in 19 state secondaries.

The same exam (or close variations of it) is also used by some independent schools at 11+ entry, though many independents now use the ISEB Common Pre-Test or their own paper. There are no grammar schools in Scotland or Wales. Northern Ireland has its own selective transfer process which works differently.

Most 11+ exams test four subjects, in some combination: English, maths, verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning. Not every school tests all four, and the exact mix depends on the test provider and the area.

English covers reading comprehension and grammar, punctuation and spelling. Some schools also include a short written task (usually creative writing or a discursive piece), particularly at the independent end. Maths follows the KS2 national curriculum, so the topics are ones your child already meets at school: Arithmetic, fractions, decimals, percentages, ratio, basic algebra, shape and measures, data handling.

Verbal reasoning is the one that often surprises parents. It tests how a child reasons with words: Finding the odd one out, completing analogies, decoding short word puzzles, working with letter sequences. Non-verbal reasoning does the same with shapes and patterns: Spotting the missing piece, rotating a shape, identifying which figure breaks a pattern. These two strands aren't really about prior knowledge. They reward children who can stay calm, spot patterns and work quickly.

There isn't one single 11+ exam. Different providers run different versions, and your child's exam depends on which schools you're applying to.

GL Assessment is the biggest provider for state grammar schools. Their papers are used across a majority of grammar areas including Kent, Buckinghamshire, parts of Birmingham and Lincolnshire. CEM, the other major provider for many years, stopped offering 11+ tests after 2022, and most former CEM areas have since moved over to GL.

The five Sutton consortium grammars (Sutton Grammar, Wallington County, Wilson's, Nonsuch, Wallington High) run their own bespoke Selective Eligibility Test (SET) at Stage 1, which is two multiple-choice papers in maths and English (not a GL paper), followed by a consortium-set Stage 2. FSCE (Future Stories Community Enterprise) is the separate test provider used by Chelmsford County High School for Girls (CCHS), not part of the Sutton consortium or Wilson's process. The ISEB Common Pre-Test is the standard online entry test for many independent senior schools. Some grammars and many independents also write their own bespoke paper. Format, timing and number of papers all vary, so the first step is to find out which test each of your shortlisted schools uses.

Most 11+ exams take place across one morning, split into two or three papers of 45 to 60 minutes each. A short break sits between papers. Children sit the exam at one of the grammar schools in the area, not at their primary school.

GL Assessment papers are usually multiple-choice, with answers marked on a separate answer sheet that's scanned electronically. That means there are no method marks: An answer is right or wrong, and there's nothing to be gained from showing working. ISEB Pre-Test papers are taken online, adapt to your child's responses, and run a total of around two and a quarter hours across four sections (roughly English 40 min, maths 40 min, non-verbal reasoning 30 min, verbal reasoning 25 min).

Where a written writing task is included (more common at independent schools), it'll typically be 20 to 30 minutes and marked by a teacher rather than scanned. Some areas, like Kent, have a written component alongside the multiple-choice papers.

For most state grammars, the 11+ takes place in September or early October at the start of Year 6. A child currently in Year 5 (born between 1 September 2015 and 31 August 2016) will sit the exam in autumn 2026 for entry in September 2027.

The whole timeline runs in parallel with the normal secondary school admissions process. You sit the 11+ in September, get the result in October, then list grammar schools (alongside non-selective backups) on your LA's secondary school common application form by 31 October. National Offer Day, when you find out where your child has been allocated, is 1 March 2027.

Independent schools using the ISEB Pre-Test usually test in October or November of Year 6 (or, for some senior schools, in Year 5). Independent school deadlines and offer dates vary by school.

Raw marks are converted into a standardised age score (SAS) that adjusts for the child's exact age in years and months at the time of the test. A child born in late August isn't penalised for being almost a year younger than a classmate born in early September.

Most 11+ scoring systems use a scale where 100 is roughly the national average and 140 is close to the top. A standard pass mark for many grammar schools sits around 111 to 121 depending on the area, though super-selective schools (those that admit only the highest-scoring children) effectively require scores in the high 130s. The cut-off changes year to year based on the cohort and number of places.

This is why pre-tests can feel opaque. You'll often see a score and a pass / not-pass result, but the school won't publish exactly where the cut-off sat that year.

It varies a lot by school and area. In counties with a large grammar sector and catchment-based admissions (parts of Buckinghamshire, Lincolnshire, Kent), a child who passes the test usually gets a place at one of the local grammar schools. In London, the situation is very different. Super-selective grammars like Tiffin, Wilson's, the Henrietta Barnett School (PAN 120 for September 2027 entry) and Queen Elizabeth's Barnet receive several thousand applications for around 120 to 200 places, so passing is the floor, not the ceiling. A child also needs to score in the top few hundred and, in many cases, live close enough.

The two big factors are how academically selective the school is, and how it ranks oversubscribed applicants. Catchment, sibling priority, distance and banding all live in each school's published admissions arrangements. Read those for the schools you're applying to before putting them on the form.

Less than the loudest tutoring marketing would have you believe, but more than nothing. Many children doing well on the 11+ have done two things: They've worked steadily on English and maths fluency through Year 4 and Year 5, and they've done enough timed practice papers closer to the exam to get comfortable with the format, the pace and the question styles.

A reasonable rule of thumb is to start light, structured prep around 9 to 12 months before the exam, building up to one or two practice papers per week in the final two to three months. That's enough to handle verbal and non-verbal reasoning (which many schools don't teach), get faster at maths arithmetic, and broaden vocabulary for comprehension.

Beyond that, returns drop off quickly. Over-tutored children often arrive at the exam tired and anxious. The 11+ doesn't reward children who have memorised answers; it rewards children who can read carefully, think clearly under time pressure, and not panic.

Many children who sit the 11+ don't get a grammar place, and the vast majority go on to do well at a non-selective secondary. Strong comprehensives exist in almost every area, and outcomes at GCSE and A-level are driven far more by the child and the support around them than by the type of school.

If your child narrowly misses the cut-off, you may have grounds for an appeal, but appeals on academic grounds for selective schools tend to have a low success rate. It's usually more useful to focus on the next steps: Confirming the place your child has been offered, checking waiting lists if relevant, and helping your child move past the result. Children take their cue from the adults around them. Treat the result calmly and they'll do the same.