The Maths paper covers Key Stage 2 content (the Year 6 national curriculum), with some extension questions that go beyond the standard Year 6 syllabus. Topics include arithmetic, fractions, decimals, percentages, geometry, measurement, and basic algebra. The questions are multiple-choice, with four options per question.
The Verbal Reasoning paper covers word puzzles, codes, logical sequences, and English vocabulary. Topics include synonyms, antonyms, analogies, hidden words, letter patterns, and number patterns. The questions are multiple-choice with four options per question.
The Non-Verbal Reasoning paper covers pattern matching, spatial reasoning, and visual logic. Topics include shape sequences, rotation, reflection, code matching, and 3D visualisation. The questions are multiple-choice with four options per question.
Each paper is 50 to 60 minutes long, with the full test taking about 4 hours including breaks. The papers are administered at the child's primary school or at a designated test centre, and the test is taken once per child. There is no opportunity to retake the test in the same academic year.
11-Plus exam dates and registration 2026
The 2026 Kent Test is scheduled for Thursday 10 September 2026, with results sent to parents in mid-October. The registration window opens in June 2026 and closes in early July, with the exact date published on the Kent County Council website each spring.
Registration is done online through the Kent County Council admissions portal, with parents needing to provide the child's name, date of birth, current primary school, and home address. Children who are not currently attending a Kent primary school can still register, but the process is handled through the KCC admissions team directly.
Late applications are not accepted under any circumstances, so parents should register by the first week of July to avoid missing the deadline. The KCC website shows a real-time count of applications received, and the portal typically closes at midnight on the published deadline date.
After the test in September, results are sent by post to the child's home address in mid-October. The result letter shows the standardised score for each of the four papers, the aggregate score, and whether the child has met the pass threshold for any of the Kent grammar schools. Parents then list their preferred schools through the KCC secondary school application portal, with the deadline usually in late October.
Pass marks and how scoring works in Kent
Kent uses a standardised score system for the 11-Plus, with a maximum of 140 per subject and a pass threshold that varies by school and year. The county-wide pass mark is typically around 380 to 420 in aggregate across the four papers, with the most selective schools requiring closer to 430 or higher.
The standardised score accounts for the child's age within the Year 6 cohort, so a younger child who scores the same raw mark as an older child will receive a slightly higher standardised score. This is designed to make the test fair for summer-born children who are nearly a year younger than their autumn-born classmates.
Each grammar school sets its own pass threshold based on the school's admissions policy. Super-selective schools like Dartford Grammar School and Wilmington Grammar School set higher thresholds, while less selective schools set thresholds closer to the county average. Parents should check each school's individual admissions policy for the exact threshold.
If a child does not meet the pass threshold for their preferred school, the child can still be considered for a place at a less selective grammar school, depending on availability. The KCC allocation system ranks all children by aggregate score and allocates places in order of preference until each school is full.
A 12 to 18 month prep plan for parents
Most tutors and grammar schools recommend 12 to 18 months of preparation starting in Year 5, with a steady 4 to 6 hours per week of focused practice. Children who start in Year 4 or earlier tend to burn out before the September test date, while children who start in the summer before Year 6 usually do not have enough time to cover the full syllabus.
A typical 12-month prep plan starts in September of Year 5 with a baseline assessment to identify the child's strengths and weaknesses across the four subjects. From October to December, the focus is on English and Maths, with 1 to 2 hours per week on each subject. From January to March of Year 6, the focus shifts to Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning, with 1 to 2 hours per week on each.
From April to June of Year 6, the focus is on practice papers and timed conditions. Most prep providers recommend 1 to 2 full practice papers per week, with a 50 to 60 minute timed session for each. The summer before the September test should be a consolidation period with 1 to 2 papers per week and light revision, not intensive new content.
For parents who cannot afford tuition, free resources include the GL Assessment sample papers on the official website, the BBC Bitesize Key Stage 2 English and Maths resources, and a small number of free practice papers published by individual tutors. Online subscription services like Atom Learning and 11 Plus Guide cost 20 to 30 pounds per month and are a more affordable alternative to in-person tuition.
Common mistakes to avoid in 11-Plus prep
The first mistake is starting too early. Children who start formal 11-Plus prep in Year 3 or Year 4 often develop test anxiety and lose interest in school by the time the test arrives. The right start is September of Year 5, with light touch practice before then.
The second mistake is over-focusing on one subject. Children who spend 80 percent of their prep time on Maths or English often score well on those subjects but fall behind on Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning, which are the most coachable subjects in the 12 to 18 month window. Balance the four subjects from the start.
The third mistake is neglecting reading for pleasure. Children who read widely score noticeably higher on the English and Verbal Reasoning papers than children who do not. Set a target of 30 minutes of independent reading per day from Year 4 onwards, and avoid making the reading list purely 11-Plus focused.
The fourth mistake is taking the test without a mock exam. Most children benefit from at least 6 to 8 full timed practice papers in the two months before the test. Children who have not done a full timed paper under exam conditions often run out of time on the real test, which costs them easy marks in the final third of each paper.
The fifth mistake is ignoring the Kent County Council admissions process. The test is only one part of the application: the school preference list, the faith criteria (for faith schools), and the medical and social criteria all need to be addressed in the KCC application. Start the KCC process in June, not September.
Bottom line
The UK 11-Plus exam in 2026 is the GL Assessment Kent Test, taken on Thursday 10 September 2026, with results in mid-October. The test covers English, Maths, Verbal Reasoning, and Non-Verbal Reasoning, with a county-wide pass mark of around 380 to 420 standardised in aggregate.
Start prep in September of Year 5, run for 12 to 18 months, with 4 to 6 hours per week of focused practice across all four subjects. Use the GL Assessment sample papers as the primary resource, supplement with BBC Bitesize for English and Maths, and run 6 to 8 full timed mock papers in the two months before the test.
Register online through the Kent County Council portal in June, with the deadline in early July. Check each school's individual admissions policy for the exact pass threshold, and apply through the KCC secondary school application portal in late October after the test results arrive.
Fazlur Rahman
