Grammar Schools in Sutton

The Sutton Selective Eligibility Test (SET) is a standardised test used by six Sutton grammar schools for their admissions process. For five of these, as detailed above, success at the SET does not guarantee a place. The potential student must then undertake a second stage assessment, set by the school. Greenshaw High School is the only school to use the SET only, with no second stage test. The SET has two multiple choice papers: English and Mathematics. These tests will measure a student’s academic aptitude and ability to excel in a grammar school environment.

If you are applying to other schools outside Sutton and live close enough to travel to them and meet their eligibility criteria, you might need to take other entrance tests. Grammar schools outside the Sutton area will have their own entrance exams with different assessment formats and success criteria. If there is a clash of dates you will very likely need to make a decision which test you want to sit, as you will not be able to sit both.

The Sutton Selective Eligibility Test (SET) is an entrance assessment for specific schools in Sutton. It is taken by students in Year 6 who are looking for entry into Year 7. The test has two stages and both stages are divided into two sections: Maths and English. Both stages of the test assess both academic ability and problem-solving skills. The Maths sections include questions on areas such as arithmetic, algebra, and geometry, while the English section assesses areas such as comprehension, grammar, and vocabulary.

As the SET is used by a number of different schools, the pass mark for the stage one test is not fixed and varies not only from year to year but also from school to school. Each school will set their own threshold above which a student can gain access to the stage two test. The stage two test operates within the same boundaries and the pass mark, upon which children are offered a place, varies from school to school.

The SET is, by its name and nature, selective. This means it is challenging and designed to select pupils based on academic ability in Maths and English. With careful preparation, children who are already in the top 25% of their cohort at their current primary school should be able to access the test.

The stage one test is designed to select the brightest pupils to continue through to stage two. There is not necessarily such a thing as a “good” score, but it might be wise to aim for a success rate of around 75-80% in any mock tests completed. The standardised score for the stage one tests consists of the Maths and English marks added together and then divided by two. For the second stage, the pass mark is based on the combined standardised scores of all four tests (stage one and stage two); the four standardised scores are then weighted in the ratio 2:2:3:3, an age allowance is added, and the total is then rounded to the nearest four marks to give the final score

Yes, the pass mark for the SET does differ between schools within the Sutton consortium. Schools set their own threshold score depending on two things: the number of candidates and the number of available places.

This will, by the very nature of changing populations, academic ability and numbers of applicants, vary from year to year. If students pass the stage one test their results are not released to parents, but if they do not pass, parents can request their standardised score.

To register for the Sutton Selective Eligibility Test (SET), there are links on the website of all the participating schools (Greenshaw High School, Nonsuch High School for Girls, Sutton Grammar School, Wallington County Grammar School, Wallington High School for Girls and Wilson’s School). This is a link to the registration portal, and is only open during the registration period (usually May to August).  Parents or guardians complete an online form, providing information: the applicant’s details, contact information and any SEN. Late applications are not allowed, so check the dates for the registration period carefully. If your child requires access arrangements they must apply slightly earlier, with a deadline of June.

The first stage of the SET exam is held in mid-September every year. Children take the test at the start of Year 6, the year before they want to join their new school in Year 7. The test is sat at an allocated centre depending on gender. Girls are allocated either Nonsuch High School for Girls, Wallington High School for Girls or Greenshaw High School. Boys are allocated either Sutton Grammar School, Wallington County Grammar School or Wilson’s School. Boy/Girl twins or siblings are allocated Sutton Grammar School.

First stage SET results are released the week after the exam, by the end of September. Children who are successful in this first stage must then sit the second stage entrance test, taking place in the first week of October.

The SET exam is formulated by the SET consortium of selective schools in Sutton.

The first stage of the Sutton Selective Eligibility Test (SET) lasts around two hours. The exam is divided into two 45-minute sections of English and Maths with a short toilet and rest break in between. The second stage papers are slightly longer, lasting around one hour each.

Both stages of the SET exam consist of English and Mathematics only. There is no assessment of verbal or non-verbal reasoning. The first stage is multiple choice and the second stage is longer answers. The English section assesses reading comprehension, grammar, and vocabulary, while the Mathematics section covers Key Stage 2 curriculum topics, plus some extension tasks.

The number of questions in the first stage SET varies rom year to year, but candidates can generally expect around 50 questions in each section, with around one minute per mark. The second stage will have fewer questions but the expected answers are longer in length, so expect around two or three minutes per mark.