11+ School Application & Exam Timeline

Month by month

1. 1

   Plan

   Year 5, autumn and winter

   • Decide between grammar schools, independent schools or both, and shortlist schools.
   • Go to open events: many independent schools hold them in the autumn before registration.
   • Start regular, light practice: reading, vocabulary and arithmetic fluency help for every school.
2. 2

   Register

   March (Year 5)

   • Bexley Selection Test registration: last year it ran for the whole of March only, with no late entries.
3. 3

   Register

   May to early July (Year 5)

   • Newstead Wood registration (last year 1 May to 30 June).
   • Medway Test registration (last year 18 May to 12 June, no late entries).
   • St Olave's registration (last year 8 to 29 June, closing at midday, no late entries).
   • Kent Test registration (last year 1 June to 1 July), including any access arrangements.
   • Independent schools start opening applications over the summer.
4. 4

   Grammar tests

   September (start of Year 6)

   • Bexley and Kent tests are sat in the first half of September.
   • The Medway Test and St Olave's stage 1 test are in the middle of the month (Medway was 15 to 20 September last year), and Newstead Wood's test is later in September.
   • Local authority secondary applications (the CAF) open.
5. 5

   Results and applications

   October

   • Grammar test results arrive by email, usually early to mid-October.
   • Name your schools on the local authority form by 31 October.
   • Registration starts closing for independent schools (St Paul's, Bromley High and CLSG closed in October last year).
6. 6

   Independent tests

   November

   • Most remaining independent registrations close in early to mid-November (City of London School, Dulwich College, St Paul's Girls', Godolphin & Latymer, Eltham, JAGS, Colfe's, Alleyn's).
   • On-screen first-stage tests: CLSG's reasoning test, the ISEB Pre-Test for St Paul's Girls', St Paul's and JAGS, the London 11+ Consortium test for Godolphin & Latymer (late November or early December), City of London School's test and short story (27 November last year).
   • JAGS Welcome Mornings (creative writing, group task and interview) run from mid October to late November.
   • Bromley High's entrance exam, and St Olave's stage 2 English and maths papers.
7. 7

   Written papers and interviews

   December and January

   • St Paul's Girls' written papers in early December, St Paul's (boys) on 9 December and Dulwich College's tests on 4 December last year.
   • CLSG second stage, Eltham and Colfe's written papers in the first week of January, and Alleyn's exams on 8 January last year.
   • Interviews for shortlisted children through January.
8. 8

   Offers

   February and March

   • Independent school offers: around 12 February last year.
   • National Offer Day for state and grammar schools: 1 March.

Last year's dates by school

For September 2027 entry. Expect a similar pattern one year later; the exact days will change.