Grammar Schools in Wiltshire

Both schools have different registration dates, with Bishop Wordsworth’s School’s registration period opening in April and closing in June, and South Wilts Grammar School’s registration period opening in June and closing in September. It is a good idea to check the specific dates of registration on the school’s website.

The Wiltshire 11 Plus is linked to two schools: Bishop Wordsworth’s School and South Wilts Grammar School. Both these schools use the exam as part of their admission criteria but they also have separate admissions criteria which they will apply in the event of over-subscription. Both schools have a catchment area and prioritise siblings and staff children, albeit in slightly different order.

There are two schools which use this exam, but the exams are slightly different: Bishop Wordsworth’s School and South Wilts Grammar School. Make sure you register for the correct school based on the gender of your child.

The results of the Wiltshire 11 Plus come out shortly after the exam, in time for the Common Application Form (CAF) to be submitted by parents which names their schools of choice for their child. Normally the 11 Plus exams will take place in mid to late September, and with the CAF deadline being the end of October, the results will come out in time for parents to know whether or not their child has been assessed as of grammar school standard, and therefore whether they can name one of the two grammar schools on the CAF.

The Wiltshire 11 Plus test has two different dates, with the exams for Bishop Wordsworth’s School normally taking place a week after those for South Wilts Grammar School. It is important to check the specific dates on the school’s websites, although these will usually be sent to parents who have registered.

Each paper on the Wiltshire 11 Plus exam typically lasts between 45 minutes and one hour. If boys are applying to Bishop Wordsworth’s School they will take two papers, so the exam will last around two hours with a short break in between the papers. Girls applying to South Wilts Grammar School take one extra paper, so three in total. This means that the exam for the girls is slightly longer, at around three hours with a short break in between each paper.

Again this depends to which school the child is applying. Girls applying to South Wilts Grammar School will take papers in Maths, English and Verbal Reasoning. These three separate papers are focused specifically on these three topics. Whilst Maths and English may be familiar to children, Verbal Reasoning is usually a new subject so that paper must be prepared for carefully. Boys applying to Bishop Wordsworth’s School must take two papers, one focused on verbal skills and one on non-verbal skills. These papers are a mix of questions and include non-verbal reasoning as an additional subject; again, this is unlikely to have been taught in schools so these sections will need careful preparation.

The Wiltshire 11 Plus test is written by GL Assessment. GL Assessment is a nationwide provider of 11 Plus tests. They provide familiarisation papers for parents and children on their website which form part of useful preparation for the exams. The papers are taken on answer sheets but marked by computer. The schools may also run familiarisation tests so do check directly with them.

Normally children are expected to take around 30 to 45 seconds for a reasoning (both verbal and non-verbal) question and around 1 minute for a Maths or English question. This means that depending on the paper, there may be anything from fifty to eighty questions in one paper. It is important to practise timings of individual sections and subjects.

On National Secondary Schools Offer Day, which is in March, parents will be sent the name of the school to which their child has been allocated and offered a place. It is possible to appeal this decision but in general the child will have to have been assessed as of grammar school standard in order to do this. As the papers are marked by computer, it is not possible to question the marking.

The pass mark for the Wiltshire 11 Plus examination will change each year depending on the admissions criteria and the published admissions number for each school. Schools will use this, combined with the test data, to decide a pass mark beyond which children are considered to be of grammar school standard. Both grammars in Wiltshire have slightly different admission criteria so it is worth checking the school’s website, where the information is usually to be found under ‘Admissions Policy’.

The Wiltshire 11 Plus test is a challenging test because all 11 plus tests are designed to discover the top 25% or so of applicants, and make offers to them based on academic ability. Both grammar schools in Wiltshire which use the 11 plus have a variety of questions in their examination, and both involve reasoning, which is unlikely to have been taught in schools.

A good Wiltshire 11 Plus test score is one which means the child either met or exceeded the pass mark needed for entry to either the boys’ or girls’ grammar school. This would have to be in the top 25% of applicants, but is more likely to be in the top 15%. Therefore, children doing practice tests should aim for 85% as they draw closer to the test date.

Yes, the Wiltshire 11 Plus pass mark does differ between the two schools as they have different admissions criteria and a different test. In addition, it will very much depend how many children apply that year, which can be down to a number of factors including the birth rate and the number of children moving in and out of the area.

Schools that are highly sought after will have higher scores for entry. Both grammar schools in Wiltshire are oversubscribed, so this will mean that children have to achieve a higher score to be considered for entry.

Schools which have lower numbers of children applying will have lower scores; this is true all over the country. In Wiltshire there are only two grammar schools so in some ways the picture is clearer and easier to understand. Historical data is available on the school websites and should be read in conjunction with the admissions policy and your child’s school reports, making ti easier for parents to make an informed decision whether or not to apply.