Independent School 11+ Entrance Exams: What Parents Need to Know
Last reviewed: 3 September 2026
For families considering independent senior schools, one of the first challenges is understanding what the “11+” actually means.
Unlike some grammar-school admissions routes, there is no single independent-school 11+ examination used by every school. One child may be preparing for the ISEB Pre-Tests, another for the London 11+ Consortium assessment, while another may sit tests designed by individual schools.
The subjects, format, timing and wider admissions process can therefore vary considerably.
Before deciding how much preparation a child needs, it helps to answer a more important question first:
What exactly are they preparing for?
This guide explains some of the main independent-school 11+ assessment routes, how they differ, and what families should consider when planning preparation.
Important: Independent schools set their own admissions requirements and these can change. Families should always check the latest information published by each target school before making application or preparation decisions.
Is there one independent-school 11+ exam?
No.
The term 11+ is commonly used for entrance assessments taken around Year 6 for admission to selective secondary education, but independent schools are free to determine their own admissions arrangements.
Depending on the schools a family is considering, the process may involve:
ISEB Pre-Tests;
the London 11+ Consortium assessment;
school-specific English and Mathematics papers;
verbal or non-verbal reasoning;
creative or extended writing;
interviews;
references from the child’s current school;
or a combination of several elements.
This is why beginning with a generic 11+ practice pack is not always the most useful first step.
A clearer approach is:
Identify the target schools → understand their admissions process → establish the child’s current level → prepare the relevant skills.
2026–27 admissions snapshot
The independent-school admissions cycle for September 2027 entry is now underway.
ISEB Pre-Tests
Registration for the 2026–27 ISEB Pre-Tests session opened in June 2026, and live testing began on 1 September 2026.
Testing continues through the academic year, but the relevant senior schools determine when they require applicants to sit the tests. Families should therefore check deadlines directly with each school rather than relying only on the overall ISEB testing window.
London 11+ Consortium
For September 2027 entry:
6 November 2026 — registration deadline;
27 November 2026 — first assessment date;
1 December 2026 — second assessment date;
3 December 2026 — third assessment date;
12 February 2027 — offer date.
Candidates sit the Consortium assessment once, even where they are applying to more than one member school.
Families considering schools outside these routes should check each individual school’s published admissions timetable.
What are the ISEB Pre-Tests?
The ISEB Pre-Tests, sometimes referred to simply as “the ISEB”, are online entrance assessments used by a number of independent senior schools.
They may be used for Year 7 entry or, in some schools, as an earlier part of the admissions process for later Year 9 entry.
Children complete four tests:
English;
Mathematics;
Verbal Reasoning;
Non-Verbal Reasoning.
All four tests are online, multiple-choice and adaptive.
What does “adaptive” mean?
An adaptive assessment changes the level of subsequent questions according to how the pupil is performing during the test.
This means two children may not receive exactly the same sequence of questions.
Rather than expecting every candidate to work through one fixed paper, the system adjusts the level of challenge as the assessment progresses.
Children cannot return to previous questions once they have answered them, so becoming comfortable with the online format and making careful decisions before moving on are useful skills.
How long are the ISEB Pre-Tests?
The standard test times are:
English — 40 minutes
Mathematics — 40 minutes
Non-Verbal Reasoning — 30 minutes
Verbal Reasoning — 25 minutes
The total standard assessment time is 2 hours and 15 minutes.
The tests may be completed together or split across separate sessions, depending on the arrangements made by the relevant schools and test centre.
What does the ISEB assess?
The English and Mathematics sections are designed around knowledge and skills children develop through the school curriculum.
English
Children may encounter reading comprehension, grammar and spelling questions.
Strong preparation therefore involves more than learning isolated grammar rules. Regular reading, understanding unfamiliar texts, vocabulary development and careful interpretation of language are all valuable.
Mathematics
Questions assess mathematical knowledge as well as the ability to apply it to problems.
Secure number knowledge, calculation fluency and confidence when approaching unfamiliar problems are therefore important foundations.
Verbal Reasoning
Verbal Reasoning assesses language-based thinking, including vocabulary, understanding relationships between words, reasoning and logic.
Non-Verbal Reasoning
Non-Verbal Reasoning focuses more heavily on visual and spatial reasoning, pattern recognition and logical relationships.
These question styles may be unfamiliar to children who have not encountered them before, so appropriate familiarisation can be helpful.
What is the London 11+ Consortium?
The London 11+ Consortium is a group of independent girls’ schools in London that share a common assessment process for Year 7 entry.
Rather than requiring applicants to sit a different entrance examination for every Consortium school, candidates complete the shared assessment once and the results can be used by the Consortium schools to which they have applied.
The current assessment is designed to consider not only conventional English and Mathematics skills, but also reasoning, problem-solving and the ability to work with unfamiliar information.
For September 2027 entry, the assessment lasts 100 minutes, with a break in the middle.
What is tested in the London 11+ Consortium assessment?
The assessment contains six components:
Mathematics — 20 minutes
Non-Verbal Reasoning — 10 minutes
English — 20 minutes
Verbal Reasoning — 10 minutes
Problem Solving — 15 minutes
Creative Comprehension — 25 minutes
A break of up to 30 minutes takes place after the Verbal Reasoning section.
The Mathematics, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning sections are adaptive.
The English, Problem Solving and Creative Comprehension sections are non-adaptive, meaning candidates sitting on the same assessment date encounter the same questions in those sections.
What makes the Consortium assessment different?
One particularly useful distinction is its emphasis on applying knowledge rather than simply reproducing familiar question types.
Mathematics
The mathematical content is based on the Year 5 National Curriculum, with challenge introduced through the depth and style of questions rather than through requiring Year 6 content.
English
The English section includes comprehension alongside spelling and grammar in context.
There is no extended writing component within the shared Consortium test.
Reasoning
Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning assess patterns, language, logic and critical thinking.
Problem Solving
Children may need to combine words and numbers to solve multi-step problems.
Creative Comprehension
Candidates work with information presented in different forms and may need to draw connections between several sources to reach an answer.
This means preparation should not focus only on repeating highly familiar question templates.
Being comfortable thinking independently, interpreting unfamiliar information and applying existing knowledge can be just as important.
Is the entrance test the whole independent-school admissions process?
Not necessarily.
Independent-school admissions may consider more than examination performance.
For example, the London 11+ Consortium process also includes school references and interviews conducted according to the arrangements of the individual member schools.
Other independent schools may use their own combinations of:
entrance assessments;
school reports or references;
interviews;
creative writing;
group activities;
auditions or other specialist assessments where relevant.
Families should therefore avoid treating “11+ preparation” as synonymous with preparing for one written examination.
The wider admissions process matters too.
What about independent schools that do not use ISEB or the London Consortium?
Many schools have their own admissions arrangements.
One school may assess English and Mathematics through traditional written papers. Another may include reasoning. Others may place greater emphasis on writing, interview performance or the child’s current school reference.
Even where two schools assess similar subjects, the question style, expected level and timing may differ.
Before beginning school-specific preparation, families should check:
Which assessment does the school use?
Which subjects or skills are assessed?
Is the assessment online or paper-based?
Is it adaptive or fixed?
Is extended writing required?
Does the school conduct interviews?
Are references or current-school reports considered?
What are the registration and assessment deadlines?
Creating a simple table of target schools and their requirements can make the preparation process considerably clearer.
How is independent-school 11+ preparation different from grammar-school preparation?
There is some overlap.
Strong English and Mathematics foundations are valuable across many selective entrance routes. Reading comprehension, vocabulary, calculation fluency, reasoning, accuracy and the ability to work independently are widely useful skills.
The difference is that the exact assessment route matters.
A child preparing for a grammar-school examination consisting primarily of fixed multiple-choice English and Mathematics papers may need a different preparation plan from a child sitting adaptive ISEB tests across four subjects.
Likewise, a child applying to a school with written papers and an interview may need support that goes beyond online multiple-choice practice.
This is why preparation should gradually become more targeted as the application stage approaches.
What skills are useful across independent-school entrance?
Although every admissions route is different, several foundations are valuable across many assessments.
Strong reading habits
Regular reading supports:
comprehension;
vocabulary;
inference;
grammar awareness;
concentration;
confidence with unfamiliar texts.
Children should become accustomed not simply to reading a passage, but to explaining what it means and finding evidence for an interpretation.
Secure Mathematics foundations
Children benefit from:
confident arithmetic;
number sense;
efficient written and mental methods;
problem-solving;
recognising mathematical relationships;
applying familiar knowledge in unfamiliar contexts.
Speed becomes more useful once the underlying understanding is secure.
Flexible reasoning
Verbal and non-verbal questions often require children to notice relationships, identify patterns and test possibilities.
These skills can be developed through suitable reasoning activities without turning every study session into a timed examination.
Independent problem-solving
Selective assessments increasingly ask children to do more than recognise a rehearsed question type.
A useful habit is learning to pause and ask:
What information have I been given?
What am I being asked to find?
Which information matters?
What strategy could work?
Does my answer make sense?
Clear communication
Where interviews or writing form part of the admissions process, children need opportunities to express ideas naturally and confidently.
The goal should not be to memorise impressive answers.
It should be to help a child listen carefully, think independently and communicate what they genuinely mean.
How much preparation does my child need?
There is no universal answer.
The appropriate level of preparation depends on:
the child’s current academic level;
their year group;
the target schools;
the assessments involved;
the amount of time available;
their confidence and learning habits;
areas that already feel secure;
areas requiring more support.
A child in Year 3 or early Year 4 may benefit most from strengthening English and Mathematics foundations and developing a consistent learning routine.
Later, preparation can become more closely aligned with target-school requirements.
This distinction is important:
Starting early does not have to mean starting intensely.
Children should have time to learn, make mistakes and develop confidence before every task becomes a measure of examination performance.
Should my child complete lots of practice tests?
Not necessarily.
Practice papers and familiarisation materials can be valuable when used for a clear purpose.
They can help children:
become familiar with question formats;
practise working independently;
develop timing;
identify gaps;
become more comfortable with an online or multiple-choice environment.
But completing more papers does not automatically produce better preparation.
A practice test is most useful when families and teachers understand what the result is telling them.
Was an answer wrong because the child did not know the underlying concept?
Did they misunderstand the wording?
Did they rush?
Did they run out of time?
Was the question format unfamiliar?
The answer determines what should happen next.
Do children need intensive preparation for every independent-school assessment?
No.
Indeed, some assessment providers explicitly discourage excessive preparation.
The London 11+ Consortium recommends familiarisation with its published materials but states that intensive preparation is not necessary for its assessment. It places emphasis on skills children develop through school, including reading, Year 5 Mathematics and independent thinking.
ISEB likewise provides official familiarisation and preparation resources for families.
The useful principle is therefore not:
“How much can my child practise?”
but:
“What preparation will genuinely help my child understand the format, strengthen the right skills and approach the assessment confidently?”
Where should families begin?
If you are considering independent schools, begin with the schools rather than the test papers.
Step 1: Make a target-school list
Even a provisional list helps identify whether the family is dealing with ISEB, the London Consortium or individual-school assessments.
Step 2: Check the latest admissions information
Look for:
registration deadlines;
assessment dates;
subjects;
test format;
interview arrangements;
references;
access-arrangement requirements.
Step 3: Consider your child’s current starting point
Identify what already feels secure and where additional support may be useful.
Step 4: Build the foundations first
English, Mathematics, reasoning and independent learning habits develop over time.
Step 5: Introduce assessment-specific preparation gradually
As the relevant test approaches, familiarisation, timing and school-specific practice can become more prominent.
This creates a preparation route shaped around the child and their actual admissions journey rather than around a generic idea of “the 11+”.
Not sure where your child should begin?
Asterclass offers an 11+ Readiness Check to help families consider their child’s current stage and identify an appropriate starting point.
The result is intended as general guidance rather than a formal academic assessment or prediction of admissions outcomes.
A more considered route to 11+ preparation
Independent-school admissions can initially seem complicated because there is no single examination format to prepare for.
But the variety becomes easier to navigate once families separate the process into three questions:
Where are we applying?
What does that school actually assess?
What does our child need at this stage?
For younger learners, the answer may simply be to strengthen core skills and establish a consistent learning routine.
For children closer to an entrance assessment, preparation may need to become more targeted through tuition, reasoning work, interview support, writing practice or test familiarisation according to the schools involved.
Asterclass supports families through:
structured online foundation learning;
focused small-group teaching;
tailored 1-to-1 preparation;
target-school and admissions guidance.
Official information sources
Independent Schools Examinations Board (ISEB): Common Pre-Tests information for families
Independent Schools Examinations Board (ISEB): Pre-Tests Admissions Toolkit
London 11+ Consortium: 2027 Entry information, Code of Practice and FAQs
Asterclass Academy is an independent education provider. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or acting on behalf of ISEB, the London 11+ Consortium or any school referred to in this guide. Information is provided for general guidance and should always be checked against the relevant examination body and individual schools’ current admissions information.
