THE PARENT GUIDEBOOK
Grammar schools,
clearly explained.
From your first 11+ question to choosing a school.
Clear, useful guides for every stage.
What would you like help with?
A good place to startA guide for every stage
35 guides
What is a grammar school?
How selective schools work and what to consider for your child.
What is the 11+?
The exam, the subjects and how it fits into applying for a grammar school.
Your 11+ timeline
What happens when, from early research to registration, results and offer day.
Choosing the right school
Look beyond results to admissions rules, school life and the daily journey.
How admissions work
Registration, entrance tests and applying for a place, step by step.
How catchment areas work
Understand priority areas, distance rules and what your address means for an application.
Putting schools in CAF order
How to order preferences on your Common Application Form without second-guessing the system.
Making sense of 11+ scores
Raw marks, age standardisation and the difference between a score and a rank.
What to ask at an open day
Questions about teaching, school life and the details a prospectus cannot tell you.
Your Year 4 checklist
Start with local schools, travel and the admissions terms worth knowing.
Your Year 5 checklist
Check school policies, registration dates and test arrangements before applying.
Comparing grammar schools
Compare admissions, travel and school fit alongside academic results.
How many schools should you apply for?
Balance test registrations, CAF preferences, travel and backup options.
Reading an admissions policy
Find the rules on eligibility, priority, distance and how places are allocated.
Applying from outside catchment
How address, distance and score affect applications from outside the local area.
Checking the school journey
Judge the daily commute before committing to a school further from home.
What does super-selective mean?
How score-ranked admissions differ from schools that give priority to local families.
Understanding 11+ pass marks
Qualifying scores, ranked places and why a pass does not always lead to an offer.
What score does your child need?
Understand qualifying scores, school cut-offs and the other rules that affect an offer.
Offer day and waiting lists
Understand your offer and the options if your preferred school has no place.
The School Admissions Code
The rules behind admissions policies, waiting lists and school-place decisions.
School appeals, explained
Deadlines, evidence and what an appeal panel considers after a refused place.
Preparing for an appeal hearing
The records to gather, evidence to prepare and what happens at the hearing.
Bexley reviews and appeals
Headteacher reviews, school applications and appeals after a Bexley result.
Buckinghamshire: review or appeal?
The difference between a selection review and a school admission appeal.
CSSE results and school appeals
Official appeal routes for Essex and Southend schools after a refused place.
Kent Test results and appeals
Your options after a non-grammar assessment or a result without a school place.
Medway results and appeals
Understand the test outcome and how to appeal a refused school place.
Slough and Reading appeals
Find the official appeal process for consortium schools, Reading School and Kendrick.
Sutton SET results and appeals
How test results connect to your application and each school’s appeal process.
West Midlands results and appeals
School-specific appeal routes after the shared West Midlands entrance test.
Grammar schools in London
Compare local test routes, school choices and journeys across London.
Grammar schools in Kent
Explore the school clusters, from Dartford and Tonbridge to East Kent.
Grammar schools in Essex
Compare local schools and understand the separate CSSE and CCHS routes.
Grammar schools in Sutton
Understand the local schools and the separate test routes for boys and girls.
Written for parents, with links to official sources. How we review our guides