11-plus: Information for Birmingham

What is the 11-plus?

The 11-plus is an entrance examination used to determine a student’s suitability for admission into a grammar school.

Grammar schools in the UK require children to demonstrate their academic ability in the exam before offering places.

Grammar schools are renowned for their capacity to provide a far superior education compared to comprehensive schools.

Naturally, getting enrolled in a Grammar school can be a bit of a challenge.

The examination currently consists of four components:

• Verbal reasoning
• Non-verbal reasoning
• English
• Mathematics

When is the exam taken?

Your child may take the 11-plus examination at their primary school, typically at the beginning of Year 6. In some cases, children may also be able to take the exam towards the end of Year 5

However, it is not unusual to sit the exam in the school your child is applying to.

As a result, your child needs to be prepared to take the exam in an unknown environment. Take a look at our mock exams page to get a better idea of what to expect in the exam.

Are children prepared for the 11-plus exams in primary school?

While the 11-plus exam is a crucial step to secondary education for many, primary schools do not prepare children for the exam.

The reason for this is quite simple: the UK’s national curriculum does not include the 11-plus. Thus, primary school education may not be sufficient to gear students up for the exam.

When should children begin preparing for the 11-plus?

In most instances, children are able to excel at the 11-plus when they start studying and revising at least one full year before the exam.

This means most children are around nine at the time.

However, this is not a rule of thumb. The right age for children to begin preparations depends entirely on their abilities.

Why 11-Plus Private School?

Children and their parents alike may feel the 11-plus process is a stressful time. 11-Plus Private School is here to help you.

We are friendly and welcoming, with our goal being to guide you and your child through the exam.

We aim to provide every student we tutor with the best possible chance of passing the exam with flying colours.

Qualifying marks for entry into grammar schools in Birmingham

There are a number of Grammar schools in Birmingham that each have individual mark requirements in the 11-plus exam before places are awarded.

The number of available places and 11-plus qualifying scores for Birmingham schools in 2023 are as follows:

This data has been collected from the Grammar Schools in Birmingham website.