11 Plus Exams Birmingham

Entry Procedures for Birmingham Grammar Schools
Grammar Schools in Birmingham
Admissions Procedures (Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School and Sutton Coldfield Grammar School)
Entrance Test (Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School and Sutton Coldfield Grammar School)
Allocation of Places
Key Dates
Verbal Reasoning Recommended Papers
Non-Verbal Reasoning Recommended Papers
Mathematics Recommended Papers
Tutors
List of Birmingham Grammar Schools

Entry Procedures for Birmingham Grammar Schools

Parents must apply separately on the Birmingham City Council’s preference form indicating the preferred grammar school and must also apply separately for their child to sit the 11 plus entrance exam.
The preference form will be available from your child’s primary school and should be returned to the primary school or to the Birmingham City Council (BCC), Directorate of Children, Young People and Families, Admissions and Appeals, Margaret Street, B3 3BU if you live outside Birmingham. The deadline for returning the preference form is 29 September 2006.

The application for the 11 plus entrance test is available from the schools and must sent to the be returned to the Birmingham City Council and NOT the primary school The deadline for return is strictly 16.15pm 29 September 2006.

Grammar Schools in Birmingham

There are nine grammar schools in Birmingham. Admissions procedure for Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School and Sutton Coldfield Grammar School for Girls is administered by the Birmingham local authority and details are given below. The other seven grammar schools listed below administer their own selective tests and you will need to obtain any further information from the schools directly:-

Handsworth Grammar School

The tests at Handsworth Grammar School are held on 11 November 2006.

The tests comprise the following and are all in the standard style: –

Verbal Reasoning – 1 hour
English – 30 minutes
Maths standard – 30 minutes

Verbal Reasoning is the key test and the results of English and Maths will only be taken into account if your child does not meet the requisite mark for the Verbal Reasoning.

Queen Marys Grammar School

The tests at Queen Mary’s Grammar school is held on 6 December 2006.

The tests are understood to be 50 minutes each and are both multiple choice by NFER.

Verbal Reasoning
Non Verbal Reasoning

A detailed information pack is available from the school directly.

The King Edward VI Grammar Schools

The tests at the five King Edward VI Schools will be held on Saturday 4th November 2006.

Little detailed information is available about the tests but the schools will provide sample papers once you have registered your to take their child, usually by the time of the open day.

There are two tests of 45 minutes and include the following :

Verbal Reasoning
Non Verbal Reasoning
Maths
Reading Comprehension

The papers will be divided into smaller, individually timed sections and answers will be in test booklets. Most questions will be multiple choice. The results will be standardised to take account of differences in age.

A range of publications designed to assist preparation for school admission tests are available from leading bookshops. Suitable practice papers are multiple choice style tests that cover Verbal Reasoning, Non Verbal Reasoning. Maths and Reading Comprehension.

For further details of admissions to the King Edward VI Schools visit the website of the Admissions Officer’s:

www.kingedwardthesixth.org

Admissions Procedures (Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School and Sutton Coldfield Grammar School)

Admission for Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School and Sutton Coldfield Grammar School is administered by Birmingham local authority. All l application forms received will be acknowledged within five working days and parents will be informed of the date and venue for the selective entrance tests.

The venues are not allocated on a geographical basis. Places available at the these grammar schools are filled first and then will be allocated places at other test centres.

The tests for both schools are the same and will be held on 14 October 2006.

In the event that your child was unable due to valid medical or religious grounds to sit the test then a supplementary tests will be held in November. These will only be available for those who provide proof of illness on the day of the original tests or who are able to provide evidence of special circumstances such as religious grounds

If your child is unwell on the day of the test do consider whether attendance is appropriate as once your child has stated the test now no allowance can be made for bad performance or re-sitting the test. You should telephone the test centre if your child will be absent.

It will be assumed that absentees have withdrawn from the tests unless a written explanation is then sent with a medical certificate to the Admissions and Appeals Section by 19 October 2006 at the latest. Failure to attend at the appointed time and place without prior arrangement or evidence of sickness will prevent the possibility of the tests being taken at a later date.

Open days, for parents wishing to visit the schools before choosing to enter the tests, will be held on in September 2006 (see below).

The 11 Plus Entrance Test (Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School and Sutton Coldfield Grammar School)

The tests written by National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) will consist of three separate papers and are designed to identify the most able candidates. Child of average ability will find them very difficult.

The three papers are:

Non-Verbal Reasoning – 35 mins (see below for recommend papers)
Verbal Reasoning – 30 mins plus a practice paper (see below for recommend papers)
Mathematics – 50 mins. There is no practice paper. (see below for recommend papers)

Standardisation of Scores

Once the test papers have been marked, the raw scores are sent NFER to be age standardised, producing the final score. Standardised scores are more useful measures than raw scores because adjustments are made to take allowance of different ages. Candidates eligible are born between 1 September in one year and 31 August of the following year, which means that some children are 12 months apart in age. Almost invariably older pupils achieve slightly higher raw scores than younger pupils and standardised scores are obtained in a way that takes the age into account. Therefore an older pupils high raw score may result in a lower standardised score.

Allocation of Places

Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School

The school does not have a catchment area and entrance is based solely on the scores gained whether or not candidates live in Birmingham. There are 124 places. Where there is oversubscription more than one pupil with the same score preference will be given to firstly, children in public care, and secondly to the candidate or candidates who live nearer the school.

Sutton Coldfield Grammar School for Girls

Sutton Coldfield Grammar School for Girls does not have a residence requirement and entry to this school is solely as a result of scores gained in the tests whether or not candidates live in Birmingham. Candidates not offered places but who have obtained a qualifying score (318) will be put on a waiting list in descending score order. Where there is oversubscription and more than one pupils of the same score preference will be given to firstly, children in public care, and secondly to the candidate who have siblings in the school and thirdly to candidates who live nearer the school.

Key Dates: (Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School and Sutton Coldfield Grammar School)

20 September 2006 (6.30-9pm)	Open Day Sutton Coldfield Grammar
21 September 2006 (11.00am)	Open Day Sutton Coldfield Grammar
21 September 2006 (5pm to 9pm)	Open Day Bishop Vesey’s Grammar
22 September 2006 (10am to 11 am)	Open Day Bishop Vesey’s Grammar
29 September 2006	Preference form to be returned to Primary School or Birmingham City Council
29 September 2006	Application to sit the 11 plus entrance to be returned to Birmingham City Council
14 October 2006	11 Plus Entrance Tests Held
1 March 2007	Results posted to parents
22 March 2007	Deadline for filing appeals

Verbal Reasoning Recommended Papers

The familiarisation pack is:
NFER Nelson Verbal Reasoning Multiple Choice Practice Papers

NFER only publish four verbal reasoning familiarisation papers therefore these papers should be used sparingly and it would be prudent to save some of these for the final build up of the examinations. This pack contains all four.

Children usually show the greatest improvement between the first and second or first and third verbal reasoning papers they attempt.
The verbal reasoning questions test intelligence, speed and accuracy through a series of questions based on vocabulary, sequences, patterns and decoding.

These exams are based on 15 types of verbal reasoning questions

You can see get a feel for these types of questions by looking at the interactive Eleven Plus Exams Verbal Reasoning Volume 1 CD demo and reviewing the first 15 types.

Essentially verbal reasoning exams breakdown to two key tasks: mastering the techniques for these question types and possessing a strong vocabulary, rumoured to be around 2,500 to 3,000 words.

Practice material comes in all shapes and forms: practice papers, e-papers (pay and download 11plus practice papers), interactive CDs, lessons in the post, websites that coach your child online. Though final examination is a pencil and paper examination many children respond to other forms, such as the interactive CDs. Ultimately your objective as parents is to master techniques and build the vocabulary for this exam.

Our recommended pack for verbal reasoning would include:

NFER Verbal Reasoning Multiple Choice Practice Papers
Vocabulary list from The Tutors (FREE)
IPS Verbal Reasoning Method and Technique Guide (in this book types HIKNOS not critical)
Verbal Reasoning CDs (in Volume 1 types 16-21 not critical)
Dynamite Educational Series
Athey Educational Verbal Reasoning Practice Packs 1-3 Multiple Choice
AFN Publications

There is a lot of practice material available in verbal reasoning, most of it relevant in that it build up your child’s mental agility and more critically their vocabulary.

Non-Verbal Reasoning Recommended Papers

This paper will be split into two parts and includes times for a practice page before each half of the test.

The familiarisation pack is:
NFER Nelson Non-Verbal Reasoning Multiple Choice Practice Papers

NFER only publish four Non-Verbal Reasoning familiarisation papers therefore these papers should be used sparingly and it would be prudent to save some of these for the final build up of the examinations. This pack contains all four.
Practice material comes in all shapes and forms: practice papers, e-papers (pay and download 11plus practice papers), interactive CDs (coming soon on this website), lessons in the post, websites that coach your child online. Though final examination is a pencil and paper examination.

Our recommended pack for Non-Verbal Reasoning would include:

Mathematics Recommended Papers

The Mathematics test, which is based on the National Curriculum, will not include any practice questions and will last for 50 minutes.

As with verbal reasoning and non verbal reasoning, the test is multiple choice and set by NFER (National Foundation for Educational Research). The questions typically ask the candidate to elect one answer from five options but they have sometimes sought two answers from five or six. The answer sheet is self-explanatory (supplied with familiarisation pack – see below) and requires the child to mark a horizontal pencil line, a bit like an A4 page version of the National Lottery slips. The answer sheets will be marked electronically.

The familiarisation pack is:

NFER 11 plus Mathematics Practice Papers Multiple Choice

NFER only publish four mathematics familiarisation papers therefore these papers should be used sparingly and it would be prudent to save some of these for the final build up of the examinations. This pack contains all four. Another reason for holding back on these papers is that if you are starting preparation early your child would not have covered the entire syllabus.

Essentially mathematics exams breakdown to two key tasks: covering the syllabus thoroughly so that your child is not phased by any question and being super efficient at mental arithmetic (thus agile).

Practice material comes in all shapes and forms: practice papers, e-papers (pay and download 11plus practice papers), interactive CDs, lessons in the post, websites that coach your child online. Though final examination is a pencil and paper examination many children respond to other forms, such as the interactive CDs. Ultimately your objective as parents is to cover the syllabus and build mental agility in mental arithmetic for this exam.

You can get an idea of the typical eleven plus mathematics syllabus from looking at this page .

Our recommended pack for mathematics would include:

NFER 11 plus Mathematics Practice Papers Multiple Choice

Peter Robson Maths for Practice and Revision Books 1-5 & Answer Book . These books represent exceptional value (at £2.95 each) in covering the syllabus and providing thousands of practice questions.
Bond Assessment 11Plus Practice Papers in Mathematics, Multiple Choice
Athey Educational Mathematics Packs 5 & 8
Scofield & Sims Mental Arithmetic Books
Learning Together Preparation for 11+/12+/Common Entrance Mathematics

Tutors

Parents usually employ a professional tutor for the preparation of these examinations however that is not strictly necessary. The fact that some parents do raises the bar for the others also attempting these 11 plus exams.

List of Birmingham Grammar Schools

School Name	Address	Telephone
Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School	Lichfield Road Sutton Coldfield B74 2NH	Tel 0121 250 5400 Fax 0121 250 542
Handsworth Grammar School	Grove Lane Handsworth Birmingham B21 9ET	Tel 0121 554 2794 Fax 0121 554 5404
King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Girls	Vicarage Road Kings Heath Birmingham B14 7QJ	Tel 0121 444 2150 Fax 0121 444 5123
King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Boys	Vicarage Road Kings Heath Birmingham B14 7QJ	Tel 0121 4443188 (Reception) Fax 0121 4412796
King Edward VI Aston School	Frederick Road Aston B6 6DJ	Tel 0121 327 1130 Fax 0121 328 7020
King Edward VI Five Ways School	Scottand Lane Bartley Green Birmingham B32 4BT	Tel 0121 475 3535 Fax 0121 477 8555
King Edward VI Handsworth school	Rose Hill Road Birmingham B21 9AR	Tel 0121 5542342 Fax 0121 5543879
Queens Mary’s Grammar School	Sutton Road Walsall WS1 2PG	Tel 01922 720696 Fax 01922 725932
Sutton Coldfield Grammar School for Girls	Jockey Road Sutton Coldfield B73 5PT	Tel 0121 354 1479 Fax 0121 354 9418

Further information

Whilst we take great care to ensure that the above general information is a true reflection of the current regime for 11 plus exams in Birmingham please check details with the individual School and the LEA:

Birmingham City Council

Schools Admissions & Appeals
Children, Young People and Families
Margaret Street
Birmingham
B3 3BU
Telephone0121 303 2432 / 2537 / 2547
Fax 0121 464 4593
www.bgfl.org/services/admissions/