Your 11+ timeline.Know what happens when.

The six stages most families go through

1. Year 4

   Explore schools and journeys

   Find out whether selective schools are an option locally. Visit where possible, keep reading enjoyable and understand the broad admissions route. Future entry-year policies may not yet be published.

2. Year 5

   Read policies and register

   Check the arrangements for your child’s Year 7 entry. Registration often opens during Year 5, but windows differ. Access-arrangement requests may have an earlier deadline.

3. Year 6 · autumn

   Sit the assessment

   Many tests take place near the start of Year 6. Follow the organiser’s exact timetable for invitations, second stages, illness and results. Some dates can fall before term begins.

4. Year 6 · by 31 October

   Submit school preferences

   Complete the CAF through your home local authority. List schools in genuine preference order and submit any required school forms separately.

5. Year 6 · March

   Receive and respond to the offer

   Secondary National Offer Day is 1 March, or the next working day. Read the response deadline and any waiting-list instructions.

6. Year 6 · summer

   Prepare for transition

   Return school forms, discuss support needs and attend induction. Recheck travel, uniform and the start-of-term arrangements.

This is the usual sequence in England, not a substitute for a named test calendar. Find your exam area before putting test dates in your diary.

What to check against the real calendar

A useful calendar entry includes the action, deadline, official link and confirmation reference. “Register for the test” and “send supporting evidence” are different entries. Keep submitted forms and emails where another adult can find them.

For a child in Year 5 during September 2026, the usual Year 7 start is September 2028, with testing usually in 2027. Do not copy the 2027-entry timetable for that child.

Where parents lose time

1. Using the wrong entry year

   A page headed 2027 entry normally concerns children starting secondary school in September 2027, not everyone taking a test during 2027.

2. Assuming the primary school registers everyone

   Automatic registration exists in some arrangements but is not a national rule. Confirm whether it applies to your child.

3. Missing an additional stage

   A first-stage result may be an invitation to another assessment. Read the result letter all the way through.

4. Waiting for an open day before reading the policy

   Registration can close before a convenient visit. School visits and applications need separate reminders.

A calmer 11+ workflow

Use one record per test route, plus a separate record for each school’s admission rules. Where schools share a test, check whether you must request score sharing or take another step for particular schools.

Review the calendar at the start of each half term and when an official email arrives. Keep preparation proportionate and preserve ordinary reading, play and sleep; more diary entries do not mean more study hours.

If a deadline has passed, contact the organiser promptly about its published late-registration or exceptional-circumstances process. Do not assume a late test or application will be accepted. Our Year 5 checklist sets out what to gather before the busiest period.