Buckinghamshire 11 Plus

Buckinghamshire School Allocation Profiles Page 2

Buckinghamshire 12+ and 13+ Tests Page 3

Buckinghamshire (Bucks) is one of the last remaining Counties where education is fully selective. There are 13 grammar schools and 21 upper schools in the County. Admission into Year 7 at all schools is managed centrally by Buckinghamshire County Council (BCC). There is also a Free School that opened in Winslow in September 2013, the Sir Thomas Fremantle Secondary School. The school’s admissions are also handled by BCC.

Buckinghamshire operates an “opt out” system for the 11+, whereby children at Bucks state primary schools are automatically entered for the test unless their parents actively withdraw them from taking it. Children at private schools within the county and those attending schools outside Buckinghamshire must actively apply to take the test.

Many private schools in the county and some large schools outside the county administer the Bucks 11 plus on behalf of Bucks CC. These are known as “Partner Schools”. The children receive the application form for the test and the CAF (school application form) via their school, the tests take place in the school and the results are provided via the school in exactly the same way as for children attending Bucks state schools.

Approximately 30% of children qualify for a grammar school place each year, and around a further 5% are deemed qualified after a successful Review or Appeal against non-qualification. School places are allocated by distance from school gates with defined catchment areas that receive priority.

Online registration for testing opens in early May each year and closes at the end of June. (See below for exact dates for the current round of admissions.)

If your child attends a primary school in Buckinghamshire; they will sit a Preparation Test at their school in order to become familiar with the Transfer Test; they are slightly shorter than the real test and take about 35 minutes each. Children attending other schools are invited to take the Preparation Test at one of the grammar schools.

To assess your chances of gaining a place at your preferred school you can view our summary of past Allocation Profiles (Distances).

Buckinghamshire is unusual in that it has retained the 12+ and 13+ tests for grammar school entry. Places are not reserved for candidates taking these tests, so availability depends on vacancies arising in each year group. The number of places available has declined significantly in recent years.

Important changes to Admissions 2019 onwards

For 2018 testing/2019 admission the Buckinghamshire Grammar Schools will be reverting to using GL Assessment as the supplier for the test, following 5 years of testing by Durham CEM. See the press release here

The schools have stated that the test will comprise verbal reasoning, numerical reasoning and non-verbal reasoning, and it will not therefore mean a return to the previous, discredited, GL test featuring the so-called “21 types of VR”. A further announcement will be made in November 2017 about the test content, but it is expected to be similar to current CEM content.

Further information about testing and admissions for 2019 will be published during the summer on the Bucks CC website here

Testing for 2018 admission

The test provider for the current round of admissions remains Durham CEM.

There are two 45 minute tests; each test will consist of a mixture of questions of the different topics in multiple choice format.
Both tests will consist of Verbal (which will include an English comprehension section), Numerical and Non-verbal reasoning.
The standard of the test will be according to the national curriculum in year 5 and will not be at a higher level as is the case with CEM tests in other regions.

Although not all CEM tests are the same, there are some similarities. Please see other areas already administering the CEM test for examples of the style of the test: Birmingham and Warwickshire

See details and example questions here
Questions and answers about the new test can be found here

Please also see this thread from our forum

Bucks 11 Plus Admissions Information for September 2018 entry

Help to boost your child’s exam performance and confidence. Book our CEM style mock exams

BOOK HERE

More information and advice can also be found in the Buckinghamshire section of the 11+ Forum

NEW CEM Practice Materials now available on our online shop

Bucks 11 Plus General School Information

Open evening information for all Bucks schools, including grammar schools, is published on the Buckinghamshire County Council website each year. Dates for grammar school open days and evenings for 2017 are shown below.

N.B. Chesham Grammar School was known as Chesham High School until September 2010.

Upper Schools in Buckinghamshire

All Buckinghamshire Upper Schools are co-educational.

• The Amersham School, Amersham
• The Aylesbury Vale Academy, Aylesbury, (formerly Quarrendon Upper School)
• The Beaconsfield School, Beaconsfield
• Buckingham School, Buckingham
• Burnham E-ACT Academy, Burnham
• The Chalfonts Community College, Chalfont St. Peter
• Chiltern Hills Academy, Chesham
• Cottesloe School, Wing
• Cressex Community School, High Wycombe
• The Grange School, Aylesbury
• Great Marlow School, Marlow
• The Highcrest Academy, High Wycombe
• Holmer Green Senior School, Holmer Green
• John Colet School, Wendover
• The Mandeville School
• The Misbourne School, Great Missenden
• Princes Risborough School, Princes Risborough
• Sir William Ramsay School, Hazlemere
• St Michael’s Catholic School
• Waddesdon CofE School, Waddesdon
• The Bourne End Academy, Bourne End

N.B. The Aylesbury Vale Academy was previously known as the Quarrendon School. Chiltern Hills Academy was previously called Chesham Park Community College. The Highcrest Academy was previously known as Highcrest Community School. The Bourne End Academy also known as the Wye Valley School, Burnham E-ACT Academy was previously known as Burnham Upper School.

Buckinghamshire School Allocation Profiles Page 2

Buckinghamshire 12+ and 13+ Tests Page 3

_{Information on this page was believed to be correct at the time of writing, but we would not necessarily be aware of subsequent changes unless someone brings them to our attention.
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_{Page updated on 25th June 2017}