11 Plus Exams Forum

Hello everyone,
Does anyone know if a parent can register a child to sit 11plus exams, but without the child actually moving to the grammar school if successful?
Sounds a bit wrong, allow me to explain please.
We are currently living abroad and may not be returning over the next 5-8 years, our older son just finished year 5 at a school that follows British curriculum and has been reviewed quite positively by ISI recently.
We intend to send him to a boarding school roughly at the age of 13 but would very much like to know how he compares to his peers academically speaking and more than than, how his current school is actually doing. It would also give us some indication of his weeker areas and of the sort of tuition we will need to source for him over the next 2-3 years!
The research I have done so far seems to indicate that the only option for us to getting him assessed outside his current school would be an entrance exam for an independent school.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

You should sit him for QE boys in Barnet that has no catchment area. It is the top state school in the country and will give you a clear idea how he is compared to his peers. You can register online, we know somebody living in Singapore who sat. There are other schools like Tiffin boys that have no catchment area that you could also sit, Clement Danes in Chorleywood as well. Much cheaper than sitting indys and also much harder to get in so will give you a better idea. DG

Yes that's right. They can sit the entrance test and definitely do not have to either put the school down on a school choice form, or accept a place. No strings attached!

Don't forget though that every school tests children in different ways so there is no "definitive result" that places your child absolutely accurately relative to others. It will not necessarily give you the other answers you are needing either . Maybe a tutor who does distance tutoring for the entrance exams for the boarding schools you are interested in would actually be of more use to you?

I think also you would have to visit England on the right day to do one of the state school entrance tests. It probably really is not worth it.

Thank you ladies, this is quite a bit of information for us to work with. Most grateful