Grammar Schools in the West Midlands

Parents who wish to register their child for the West Midlands 11 Plus (11+) should note that the registration period is only just over one month long, opening in May and closing in June. This is when their child is in Year 5, in the summer term. Primary schools should highlight this registration period to parents but it has to be done on a specific website (linked below) and so should be looked at carefully prior to the deadline.

The West Midlands region is home to a number of grammar schools, and these are listed here:

Birmingham: Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School, King Edward VI Aston School, King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Boys, King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Girls, King Edward VI Five Ways School, King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls, King Edward VI Handsworth Grammar School for Boys, Sutton Coldfield Grammar School for Girls

Shropshire: Haberdashers’ Adams Grammar School, Newport Girls’ High School

Walsall: Queen Mary’s High School, Queen Mary’s Grammar School

Warwickshire: Alcester Grammar School, King Edward VI School, Rugby High School for Girls, Stratford Girls’ Grammar School, Lawrence Sheriff School, Ashlawn School

Wolverhampton: Wolverhampton Girls’ High School

In the West Midlands, there are eighteen schools which are wholly selective and use the same 11 plus test, and one school which is partially selective. All these schools use the same test so children only have to sit one test even if they are looking to discover their eligibility to more than one grammar school.

Results for the West Midlands 11 Plus (11+) Entrance Test come out a few weeks after the test. The deadline is the end of October, because this is when families have to submit the Common Application Form to their local council, detailing their school preferences. Children who have been assessed as of grammar school standard can therefore submit grammar schools as an option on the form.

The West Midlands 11 Plus (11+) Entrance Test takes place in the middle of September. Depending on the local area, these dates may vary slightly by one or two days, usually Saturday to Monday. No test papers can be removed from the test centre, meaning there is no chance of disclosing any questions.

The West Midlands 11 Plus (11+) Entrance Test exam is approximately two hours long. However, this timeframe can vary slightly depending on the specific schools or consortiums conducting the exam. The assessment typically includes several components, designed to test a wide range of skills in a time-efficient manner. It is important to arrive at the examination centre punctually, as time management is crucial for both the organisers and the candidates.

The West Midlands 11 Plus (11+) Entrance Test contains four subjects: English, Mathematics, Verbal Reasoning, and Non-Verbal Reasoning (including spatial reasoning). Whilst Maths and English are taught in all schools, it is unlikely that children applying to sit the 11 plus test will have prior experience of reasoning. These sections of the test will need careful preparation.

In the West Midlands area, the 11 Plus (11+) Entrance Test is written and marked by GL Assessment. The papers are taken on paper using mark sheets and marked by computer, so there is no room for error. GL Assessment is one of the leading providers of 11 plus tests in the country.

The number of questions contained in the West Midlands 11 Plus (11+) Entrance Test does vary. There are two papers which cover all four subjects, meaning that each paper is divided into short sections. Broadly speaking, children should expect to spend around 30 to 45 seconds on reasoning questions and around 1 minute on English and Maths questions. Each paper lasts one hour, meaning there could be up to 100 questions in each paper.

The short answer is that appeals can be very challenging. Firstly, it is not possible to appeal the standardised score given by computer. The appeal must wait until the school place has actually been offered. If at this stage you feel that your child should have been offered a different school and can prove this using admissions criteria it may be possible to undergo an appeal, which will be made via the local council.

The West Midlands 11 Plus (11+) Entrance Test is run by a consortium of eighteen schools and therefore there is no standardised pass mark across the whole exam. However, individual schools will set their own baseline scores beyond which students will be considered to be of grammar school standard. This data is generally available on the school’s admissions policy. It is a good idea to practice achieving above 75% in practice tests, as this will put you in the top 25% of applicants.

The 11 Plus test is generally a very challenging test. The West Midlands test does not have separate subject papers, which arguably makes it harder than those which do have separate papers, as the child has to switch from one topic to another within both papers. There will be short sections of English, Maths, Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning in each paper.

A good score on the West Midlands 11 Plus test would be one that moves past the threshold pass mark required for entry; depending on which grammar school is being applied for, this threshold will change. Baseline scores for each of the schools vary between around 200 and 235, meaning if a student is aiming for a more challenging school they will need to achieve a higher mark.

Yes, the pass mark for the 11 Plus test does differ every year between schools in the West Midlands area. Each school has a different mark beyond which they will consider a child for grammar school entry. These vary significantly depending on how oversubscribed the school is, and what their published admissions number is.

Schools in the West Midlands which often present the highest baseline entry scores for the 11 Plus entrance test are those with strong academic reputations such as King Edward VI Camp Hill in Birmingham and Stratford Girls’ Grammar School. These schools often have a huge oversubscription issue, meaning they have to select students from the top 15% of applicants rather than the top 25%.

Conversely, some schools in the consortium will have lower entry points. These schools may be in less dense residential areas, and so have fewer applicants overall. The important thing to remember is to make sure your child fits the admissions criteria, as there may be a postcode area or a sibling policy which affects their application.