11 Plus preparation timeline

When Should 11 Plus Preparation Start?

Start school and deadline research in Year 4 or early Year 5. In many English selective areas, Year 5 is the key administrative period; targeted practice should follow only once the test and your child’s needs are clear.

Editorial

Lead authorRobin GibbonsFounder & CEO·Latimer Tuition
Reviewed byHeather LatimerTutor Matching & Customer Service·Latimer Tuition
Published16 July 2026
Last reviewed16 July 2026

Current answer

When should 11 Plus preparation start?

When deciding when to start 11 Plus preparation, separate planning from intensive practice. For many families considering English selective schools, use Year 4 or early Year 5 to decide which schools are realistic, read their published admissions information and note every registration, evidence and application date. Once the actual assessment is known, introduce gentle familiarisation and increase practice only where it has a clear purpose.

There is no single UK-wide 11 Plus exam or universally correct starting age. The answer depends on the schools being considered, the local or school-run entry process, the child’s current foundations and how they respond to extra work.

Year 5 is often the important administrative period in English selective areas. For September 2027 entry, for example, Bexley registration opened in March 2026, Redbridge in May and Kent in June. A family that waits until Year 6 to investigate may therefore have missed a registration or adjustment deadline, even where the child never needed months of formal preparation.

A calm working rule is: start the school and deadline research early; start focused test practice only when the school list, assessment and child’s needs are clear. Timings differ by UK nation, area and school.

Too early, about right or too late?

The year group alone does not decide whether preparation is well timed. Look instead at process clarity, workload and the child’s response.

Starting school research in Year 4 is not inherently early. Starting intensive work before there is a clear reason for it may be.

Signal	Too early	About right	Too late
Schools and assessment	Intensive practice begins before the likely schools or assessment are known.	The shortlist and relevant assessment are clear enough for practice to be specific.	The family discovers the assessment only just before the test, or prepares for the wrong format.
Administration	Forms and dates have not been checked because the focus is entirely on practice.	Registration, evidence, test, result and school-application dates are in one calendar.	Registration, adjustment or application deadlines have passed.
Practice	Test-heavy work starts years ahead without a defined need.	Work is short, purposeful and adjusted after feedback.	Panic cramming replaces a realistic plan.
Child response	Sleep, schoolwork, confidence or ordinary free time is being displaced; the child is anxious or resistant.	The child understands the purpose, recovers after mistakes and keeps a normal balance.	The child first meets unfamiliar instructions or timing under immediate pressure.
Best next step	Reduce intensity and confirm what is actually required.	Continue at the lightest level that meets the identified need.	Check eligibility and remaining deadlines first, then prioritise familiarisation and a few genuine gaps.

Check these before you set a preparation timetable

Work backwards from the actual school shortlist and its earliest requirement. This is a practical planning list, not a national admissions checklist.

Confirm the school shortlist

Decide which schools are genuinely being considered. Include realistic alternatives rather than building the whole plan around one selective outcome.
Identify the school type

Check whether each option is a state selective school or an independent school. Applications to private and independent schools are made directly to the school and may follow different dates and assessments.
Find who administers the test

Establish whether the local authority, a school, a group of schools or another named body manages registration. Do not assume a child is entered automatically.
Record the complete date sequence

Note test registration, any evidence deadline, the test date, results, the secondary-school application deadline and any supplementary form.
Read catchment and oversubscription rules

Qualifying in a test may only make a child eligible to be considered. Distance, catchment, score ranking or other published criteria may still decide who receives a place.
Plan reasonable-adjustment requests early

Where SEND or disability-related adjustments may be needed, check the required evidence and involve the school or SENCO where appropriate. The local deadline can be months before the test.
Check for possible test clashes

Families considering more than one area or school group may find that test dates overlap. Plan from the earliest and most restrictive date in the shortlist.
Use the correct familiarisation materials

Start with materials published or named by the relevant authority or school so the child learns the instructions and question styles for the assessment they will actually take.

Why Year 5 deadlines matter: current local examples

These selected official examples are for children starting secondary school in September 2027. They show why planning may be needed during Year 5; they are not a UK timetable and should be refreshed when the next admissions cycle is published.

Area	2027-entry registration window	Adjustment timing	What the example shows
Bexley	1–31 March 2026	Access-arrangement requests and supporting evidence were required during 1–31 March 2026.	The administrative window can close well before the summer. Late adjustment requests were not accepted.
Redbridge	1 May–15 June 2026	No adjustments were considered after 15 June 2026.	Catchment matters, and families considering tests in more than one area may need to plan for overlapping dates.
Kent	1 June–1 July 2026	Requests were not accepted after 1 July 2026.	Kent County Council states: “The test is only valid for Kent grammar schools.” One result should not be assumed to transfer elsewhere.

Decision caveat

The test and the school application are often two separate timelines

In England, a common sequence is:

register for the selective test;
submit any adjustment evidence;
sit the test and receive the outcome; and
submit the secondary-school application through the home local authority.

GOV.UK says secondary applications usually open on 1 September and must be submitted by 31 October. The Department for Education’s School Admissions Code requires admission authorities to take reasonable steps to tell parents the selection-test outcome before the closing date “on 31 October”, while making clear that this is not a guarantee of a selective place.

Qualifying therefore does not complete the application. The school must still be named on the application, and its published admissions and oversubscription criteria still apply.

When this advice is not enough

The sequence is England-specific and does not replace the current dates for the named school or authority. It also does not apply unchanged in Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales or independent-school admissions.

What to do instead

Put every required date for every shortlisted school into one calendar: registration, adjustment evidence, test, result, secondary application and any supplementary form. Work from the earliest date.

A calm preparation ladder

The Education Endowment Foundation’s wider homework evidence indicates that task quality and a clear purpose matter more than simply increasing the amount of time, and that impact may diminish as time rises. That evidence does not set an ideal 11 Plus timetable, but it supports a staged, purposeful approach.

Move up only as far as the child and the actual assessment require.

Research and shortlist

Identify the schools, current dates, published admissions criteria and the assessment each school uses. This can sensibly begin in Year 4 or early Year 5, before focused practice.
Maintain gentle foundations

Keep reading, vocabulary, number fluency and ordinary learning routines healthy. Foundation-building is not the same as constant entrance-test practice.
Add familiarisation

Once the relevant assessment is known, use its official information or sample materials to introduce instructions, layout and question styles without creating unnecessary pressure.
Target genuine gaps

Choose a small number of areas that actually need help. Use clear explanations, feedback and manageable practice rather than covering everything because it might appear.
Introduce timing only when useful

Timed work is most helpful after the child understands the question types. Add it gradually and only where time management is genuinely part of the assessment.
Adjust the pace

Reduce, pause or change the plan if sleep, confidence, schoolwork, family life or wellbeing is being affected. A longer plan is not automatically a better one.

Plan adjustment requests early

SEND or disability adjustments: start the administration earlier, not the pressure

In England, the School Admissions Code says selection tests must be accessible to children with special educational needs and disabilities, with regard to reasonable adjustments for disabled pupils. The form, evidence standard and deadline are set locally.

Current 2027-entry examples show why this administration may need to begin early: Bexley required parents to submit requests to schools during March 2026, Redbridge would not consider adjustments after 15 June, and Kent would not accept requests after 1 July.

Check the named authority or school’s process early and involve the child’s school or SENCO where appropriate. Earlier administration does not mean more or earlier academic practice, and a tutor cannot decide or guarantee adjustments.

Starting later than planned? Prioritise these four things

A late academic start is not the same as a missed administrative deadline. Work through these priorities in order rather than trying to compress a long programme into a few weeks.

Recommendation

1. Confirm eligibility and every remaining deadline

Before buying materials or increasing practice, establish whether test registration, adjustment requests and the school application are still possible. If a required deadline has passed, more practice cannot repair that administrative step.

Recommendation

2. Get the official familiarisation information

Use materials published or named by the relevant school or authority. Find out which instructions and question styles are genuinely unfamiliar to the child.

Recommendation

3. Choose a small number of priority gaps

Focus on the areas that will make the clearest difference to understanding. Short, purposeful work with feedback is more defensible than broad panic cramming.

Recommendation

4. Protect sleep, schoolwork and confidence

Set a realistic scope, keep ordinary routines and stop adding work when pressure is becoming counterproductive. No preparation plan can guarantee a score or school place.

Is the pace right for your child?

Timing should respond to the child, not only the calendar. YoungMinds lists anxiety, irritability, sleep difficulties, concentration problems and feeling unwell among the ways exam stress can appear. Its reminder is simple: “your mental health is important too.”

These signs are not a diagnosis. They are reasons to listen, reduce pressure and use appropriate support rather than treating every difficulty as a need for more practice.

The pace may be manageable when…

The child understands why they are practising, can recover after mistakes, keeps up with normal schoolwork and still has ordinary sleep, play and family time.

Reduce or reconsider the plan when…

There is persistent anxiety, irritability, sleep difficulty, feeling unwell, marked resistance or a clear decline in concentration and confidence.

Review the task before adding time

Ask whether the work matches the actual assessment, has a clear purpose and produces useful feedback. More minutes do not automatically mean better preparation.

Keep the decision child-specific

Gentle familiarisation may suit a child who is comfortable and curious. Early intensive work may be inappropriate for a child who is already anxious, tired, resistant or overloaded.

Decision caveat

UK differences and independent schools

The practical detail in this guide is mainly about English selective-school admissions, but the UK does not have one shared 11 Plus system.

England: local selective tests and the secondary-school application are often separate. Use the current dates and admissions criteria for every named school or authority.
Northern Ireland: post-primary transfer has its own timetable and each school’s criteria determine how entrance-assessment results or special provisions are used. In the 2026 cycle, Year 8 applications opened on 27 January, closed on 19 February and outcomes were issued on 9 May. The Education Authority advises listing at least four schools, “including at least one non-grammar”.
Scotland: current mygov.scot guidance centres on council allocation, catchment schools and placing requests. An English grammar-school timetable should not be transferred automatically.
Wales: this guide does not set a national Welsh 11 Plus timetable. Use current Welsh admissions guidance and the published process for any selective or independent school being considered.
Independent schools: applications are made directly to the school. Each school sets its own Year 7 dates, assessment and requirements.

When this advice is not enough

The family is applying across more than one nation, across state and independent schools, or to schools using different tests or registration systems.

What to do instead

Build a school-by-school calendar and follow the earliest registration, evidence or application date. Do not assume that a registration or result transfers between schools or areas.

A calm first conversation

A low-pressure way to introduce preparation

When this applies

Use this wording after the schools and assessment have been checked and you are ready to explore a manageable first step. You want to introduce a small amount of familiarisation without presenting a long programme or tutoring as inevitable.

Suggested wording

We’re looking at a few schools that use an entrance test. Let’s try a small set of example questions together so we can see what feels familiar and what might need help. This is not about getting everything right today. We’ll keep it manageable and decide together what support, if any, would be useful.

Why this helps

It gives the child context, limits the first task and leaves room to change the plan in response to confidence, workload and genuine need.

Key terms in plain English

These terms are often used together, but they describe different parts of the admissions and preparation process.

11 Plus / 11+

A common name for selective entrance testing used by some grammar and other selective schools. It is not one national UK exam; the test, registration and admissions process vary by area and school.

Selective school

A school permitted to use academic ability or an entrance test as part of its admissions criteria. The legal position and permitted selection differ by nation and school type.

Grammar school

In England, a designated selective school permitted to admit pupils by reference to academic ability, subject to its published admission arrangements.

Admission authority

The organisation responsible for setting and applying a school’s admission arrangements. Depending on the school, this may be a local authority, governing body or academy trust.

Oversubscription criteria

The published rules used to rank eligible applicants when a school receives more applications than it has places.

Reasonable adjustments

Changes made so a disabled child can access a selection test. The relevant authority may require supporting evidence and a request by an earlier local deadline.

Familiarisation

Light, specific exposure to the instructions, question styles or format used by the relevant school or authority, rather than years of general test drilling.

Independent-school application

An application made directly to a private or independent school under that school’s own Year 7 admissions and assessment process, rather than through the local council’s state-school application process.

Sources and further reading

The dated local examples below relate to the stated admissions cycle. National guidance, local procedures and annual deadlines should be reviewed whenever the page is refreshed.

GOV.UK — School admissions: Choosing schools

Official guidance; accessed 16 July 2026.

Open source
GOV.UK — School admissions: Admission criteria

Official guidance; accessed 16 July 2026.

Open source
Department for Education — School Admissions Code 2021

England; last updated 11 March 2022; accessed 16 July 2026.

Open source
GOV.UK — School admissions: How to apply

Official guidance; accessed 16 July 2026.

Open source
London Borough of Bexley — About the Bexley Selection Test

2026 test information for September 2027 entry; accessed 16 July 2026.

Open source
Kent County Council — Register for the Kent Test

2026 test information for September 2027 entry; accessed 16 July 2026.

Open source
London Borough of Redbridge — Redbridge 11 plus

2026 test information for September 2027 entry; accessed 16 July 2026.

Open source
Education Authority Northern Ireland — Admissions Key Dates

2026 post-primary cycle; accessed 16 July 2026.

Open source
Education Authority Northern Ireland — Applying for a Post Primary Year 8 Place

Parent guidance; accessed 16 July 2026.

Open source
mygov.scot — Choosing a school for your child

Last updated 11 March 2026; accessed 16 July 2026.

Open source
Education Endowment Foundation — Homework

Research summary; accessed 16 July 2026.

Open source
Education Endowment Foundation — Parental engagement

Research summary; accessed 16 July 2026.

Open source
YoungMinds — Exam stress

Recognised-charity guidance; accessed 16 July 2026.

Open source

Related guidance

More guidance from this section

More guidance from this part of the Ed Centre that may help with the same decision, stage or next step.

Related guidance

7 Plus Exam Guide for Parents: What Schools Assess and How to Prepare

Understand Year 3 entry, the different ways schools assess young applicants, and how to prepare calmly while keeping child and school fit at the centre of the decision.

Related guidance

11 Plus Exam Guide for Parents

Understand what the 11 plus exam is, what may be tested, how registration works, and what to check locally before you plan preparation.

Related guidance

ISEB Pre-Test guide for parents

The official ISEB Common Pre-Tests explained: what children face, how they differ from Common Entrance, what schools decide and how to prepare without unnecessary pressure.

Support and clarity

Frequently asked questions

Straight answers to the questions people ask most often.

What age should a child start 11 Plus preparation?

There is no universal age. A practical default is to research schools, admissions criteria and deadlines in Year 4 or early Year 5, then add targeted familiarisation only when the actual assessment and the child’s needs are clear. This is a planning framework, not a guaranteed formula.

Should 11 Plus preparation start in Year 4 or Year 5?

Year 4 can be useful for calm school research and ordinary literacy and numeracy foundations. Year 5 often matters most for registration, evidence and planning deadlines in English selective areas. The right time for structured practice depends on the shortlist, assessment and child rather than the year label alone.

Can 11 Plus preparation start too early?

Yes, but early research is not the problem. Preparation may be too early when intensive, test-heavy work begins before the relevant assessment is known, or when it displaces sleep, schoolwork, confidence and ordinary free time. Keep work specific, purposeful and responsive to the child.

Is it too late to start preparing for the 11 Plus?

First confirm that test registration, eligibility, adjustment and school-application deadlines are still open. If they are, use official familiarisation materials, identify a small number of priority gaps and avoid panic cramming. A late start does not justify a promise that a child will catch up or secure a place.

How long should a child prepare for the 11 Plus?

No high-quality evidence establishes one ideal duration or weekly workload for every child. Preparation should be long enough to understand the relevant format and address genuine gaps, but no longer or more intense than the child needs. Task quality, purpose and useful feedback matter more than simply increasing time.

When should parents request SEND or disability adjustments?

Start checking early because evidence and request deadlines can fall months before the test. Follow the named authority or school process and involve the child’s school or SENCO where appropriate. Earlier administration does not mean increasing the child’s academic workload.

Does one 11 Plus result work for different areas?

Do not assume that it does. Kent, for example, states that its test is valid only for Kent grammar schools. Each area or school group can have its own registration, assessment and admissions information, so a result or registration may not transfer.

Does every child need an 11 Plus tutor?

No. Tutoring is one optional form of support, not an admissions requirement or a guarantee. Decide after the assessment and the child’s specific needs are clear. Some children may benefit from targeted explanation, feedback, confidence or structure; others may use official materials and manageable home familiarisation.

Official guidance

1.
School admissions: Choosing schools
GOV.UK · Accessed 2026-07-16
School-choice and application guidance for England, including direct applications to private schools.
2.
School admissions: Admission criteria
GOV.UK · Accessed 2026-07-16
Official context for selective-school admission criteria and entrance examinations.
3.
School Admissions Code 2021
Department for Education · 2014-12-19 · Accessed 2026-07-16
Statutory England guidance on selection tests, accessibility, result timing and admissions criteria; last updated 11 March 2022.
4.
School admissions: How to apply
GOV.UK · Accessed 2026-07-16
England secondary-school application process and the usual 31 October deadline.
5.
About the Bexley Selection Test
London Borough of Bexley · Accessed 2026-07-16
Bexley registration and special-arrangement information for September 2027 entry.
6.
Register for the Kent Test
Kent County Council · Accessed 2026-07-16
Kent registration, testing and access-arrangement information for September 2027 entry.
7.
Redbridge 11 plus
London Borough of Redbridge · Accessed 2026-07-16
Redbridge registration, catchment, testing and adjustment information for September 2027 entry.
8.
Admissions Key Dates
Education Authority Northern Ireland · Accessed 2026-07-16
Cycle-specific dates for Northern Ireland post-primary admissions.
9.
Applying for a Post Primary Year 8 Place
Education Authority Northern Ireland · Accessed 2026-07-16
Northern Ireland guidance on school criteria, entrance assessments and building a balanced shortlist.
10.
Choosing a school for your child
mygov.scot · Accessed 2026-07-16
Scottish guidance on council allocation, catchment schools and placing requests.

Peer-reviewed research

1.
Homework
Education Endowment Foundation · Accessed 2026-07-16
Broader evidence on task quality, purpose, feedback and the limits of increasing study time.
2.
Parental engagement
Education Endowment Foundation · Accessed 2026-07-16
Broader evidence supporting practical, personalised parent support rather than pressure alone.

Internal pages

1.
Match Me With a Tutor
Latimer Tuition · Accessed 2026-07-16
2.
Find a Tutor
Latimer Tuition · Accessed 2026-07-16

Other sources

1.
Exam stress
YoungMinds · Accessed 2026-07-16
Recognised-charity guidance on possible signs of exam stress and protecting wellbeing.

When should 11 Plus preparation start?

1. Confirm eligibility and every remaining deadline

2. Get the official familiarisation information

3. Choose a small number of priority gaps

4. Protect sleep, schoolwork and confidence

The pace may be manageable when…

Reduce or reconsider the plan when…

Review the task before adding time

Keep the decision child-specific

A low-pressure way to introduce preparation

11 Plus / 11+

Selective school

Grammar school

Admission authority

Oversubscription criteria

Reasonable adjustments

Familiarisation

Independent-school application

Match me with a tutor

Find a tutor

More guidance from this section

7 Plus Exam Guide for Parents: What Schools Assess and How to Prepare

11 Plus Exam Guide for Parents

ISEB Pre-Test guide for parents

Frequently asked questions

Official guidance

Peer-reviewed research

Internal pages

Other sources