City of London Freemen’s School Entrance Guide

Open days and events are a crucial part of the decision-making process when considering which school is right for your child. City of London Freemen's offers a good selection of events throughout the year including taster mornings and afternoons for children currently in Years 1 and 5 which allow them to spend time at the school and meet key staff and current pupils. The school also offers online appointments and discussions for those families unable to travel to the school.

You may find our guide on "What to look for when viewing a school" helpful.

Entrance at 7+ is the most popular route into City of London Freemen's and the stage at which the school accepts the most children. An application needs to be made when your child is in Year 2, towards the start of the academic year. The school will then invite you to assessments in the first or second week of December. These are focused on the National Curriculum. There are three papers: English, Maths and Non-verbal reasoning. The English paper is creative writing, as comprehension is tested during the interview (see below). The Maths and NVR papers are age-appropriate and the NVR will be a standardised test.

Entrance at 11+ is another popular route into City of London Freemen's and applications need to be made at the start of Year 6. Entrance assessments then take place in the Autumn term of Year 6, along with scholarship auditions (see below), meaning the process is completed very quickly and a decision is made by the end of the calendar year. There are three papers: English, Maths and Non-verbal reasoning. The school does not publish practice papers but these are likely to be based on standardised and national curriculum levels.

This is the first year at which boarding is offered so is also a very popular entry point. Applications are made at the start of Year 8 for entry into Year 9, and, as with other entry points, decisions are made quickly, including concerning scholarships. There are three papers: English, Maths and Non-verbal reasoning, and as with other entry points the school does not provide specimen papers.

Entry at the start of sixth form, or Year 12, is another popular entry point and offers boarding as an option. Rather than sitting entrance assessments, your child will be expected to be predicted (and to achieve) 8 or more GCSEs at grade 6 or above. This will be assessed alongside an interview and a report from your child's current school.

Interviews take place in the same month as the entrance assessments, meaning that the process is very concise, and therefore a decision is made quickly. The content of the interview will vary depending on the entry point and age of the child. 7+ interviews will include reading aloud, verbal comprehension skills and talking about hobbies and interests, whereas at 11+ and 13+ the interview is more likely to be focused on finding out about the child's academic and extra-curricular interests and activities and their opinions on current affairs. At 16+ the interview is likely to be a more mature discussion of future plans, current affairs, and academic interests.

Scholarships are available at 11+, 13+ and 16+, and bursaries at all these stages and additionally at 7+. It is worth nothing that the school only awards academic and music scholarships and that these are limited to a total fee remission of 5% only even if two scholarships are awarded. Following the entrance exams at 11+ and 13+, children are invited to sit academic scholarship papers, and decisions are made quickly. 16+ academic scholarship candidates will have extra assessments in critical thinking, writing and general knowledge, and an additional interview with the Head. Prospective music scholars must apply at the same time as their general application to Freemen's, and sit an audition which includes performance on two instruments if possible (one can be voice), aural tests and sight-reading. Music scholars are offered free instrumental tuition in one instrument.
Bursaries can be worth up to 100% fee remission - the school offers a detailed description on its website of its aims and objectives with the bursary process. This includes a home visit and a lifestyle assessment, which means bursaries are reserved for those children who will most benefit from them.