Kent Test (11+)
If you want to apply for a Year 7 place at a Kent Grammar School, you can register your child for the Kent Test. The test assesses whether grammar school is a suitable option for your child.
Registration closes on 1st July 2025 and results are released on 16th October 2025.
Your child will take the test in Year 6 of primary school.
The Kent Test dates for 2025 are:
- 11th September 2025 for children attending Kent primary schools
- 13th & 14th September 2025 for children who go to school outside of Kent
What do the tests look like?
The tests are multiple-choice with a separate answer sheet. They are marked by an automated marking machine.
The first test will be an English and Maths paper and will take 1 hour. Each section will involve a 5 minute practice exercise followed by a 25 minute test. The English section will involve a comprehension exercise as well as some additional questions drawn from a set designed to test literacy skills.
The second test will be a reasoning paper. It will take about 1 hour, including the practice sections and questions. It will contain a verbal reasoning section and a non-verbal reasoning section of roughly the same length. The non-verbal reasoning will be split into short sections, administered and timed individually.
There will also be a writing exercise which will not be marked, but may be used by a local headteacher panel as part of the headteacher assessment stage of the process. 40 minutes will be allowed for the writing task, including 10 minutes planning time.
The Kent Test familiarisation booklet gives a description of the different parts of the test and advice on approaching the types of questions asked.