A selective boys grammar school in Reading, Berkshire, serving ages 11-18 with a sixth form and around 1,129 pupils on roll.
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At a glance
Reading School is a selective boys' day and boarding grammar school in Berkshire, educating about 1,129 pupils from 11 to 18. Few state schools have a history as deep: the school traces its foundation to 1125 and marked its 900th anniversary with the same emphasis it places on modern school life - scholarship, service and social impact.
The official values are excellence, integrity, leadership and community, and they sit inside the school's distinctive curriculum language, The Reading Way. The aim is not just examination success, though the outcomes are very strong, but a broader formation through intellectual, sporting, artistic and cultural life. Public outcomes are strong: Outstanding Ofsted, 100% grade 5+ in English and maths, and 62.9% AAB or better at A level.
Boarding makes Reading different from most grammar schools. Weekly and sixth-form boarding give students access to boarding houses, senior kitchens, common rooms and wider site facilities, while school life also includes music, drama, sport, student leadership and enrichment. The sixth form takes a substantial number of new students, so Year 12 is not simply a continuation of the lower school.
Year 7 entry has 138 places and uses English and mathematics assessment with age-standardised scoring. Families also need to pay close attention to the school's designated-area and admissions-policy evidence, because sitting the entrance process is only one part of the application. The latest applications record lists 448 applications and 146 offers, making the published admissions details important in practice.
Latest 2025/26 KS4 measures compared with Reading and England.
Recent published Attainment 8 scores compared with Reading and England.
Latest 2024/25 Year 11 destination mix compared with Reading and England.
Whole-school roll of 1,138 pupils; 1,129 had a recorded ethnic group.
A school admission appeal follows a refusal of a place. Use the school's current timetable and your refusal letter for the deadline. A test review, if available, has separate rules.
Applies to: Day applicants claiming a priority-postcode or catchment category.
Applies to: Families returning from abroad to a previous catchment home under the published exception.
Priority-postcode and wider catchment categories require the child’s main home to be in the relevant area on the July 2026 entrance-test day and still there on National Offer Day 2027. Out-of-catchment candidates and later movers have their creativity element assessed only if places remain after 1 March 2027.
The previous catchment-home exception requires the family to return by 31 October 2026 and provide documentary confirmation. Qualifying Crown-servant and Armed Forces applications have separate provisions.
An eligible score does not guarantee an offer. Day places are allocated through the published oversubscription criteria, including catchment, premium, social/welfare and sporting-aptitude routes.
Catchment is used as an oversubscription priority for day places. Eligible day applicants living in the published postcode catchment are considered before eligible non-catchment day applicants, after the higher-priority care, premium, social/welfare and sporting-aptitude categories.
Looked-after and previously looked-after children
Day applicants in care, previously in care, or previously in care outside England can be considered with a score up to 5 marks below the eligible score.
Pupil or Service Premium within catchment
Eligible Pupil Premium or Service Premium day applicants living within the catchment area can be considered with a score up to 5 marks below the eligible score.
Social or welfare need
Applicants with an approved social or welfare need are prioritised under the published day-applicant criteria.
Sporting aptitude
Up to 15 places are available for applicants who meet the sporting aptitude threshold and live within the catchment area or apply for boarding, ranked by sporting aptitude performance.
Catchment applicants
Remaining eligible day applicants whose permanent home address is within the catchment area are prioritised before non-catchment day applicants.
Non-catchment applicants
Eligible day applicants whose permanent home address is outside the catchment area are considered after catchment applicants.
Official exam resources
No released past entrance-test papers are currently verified here. The resources below are labelled by type.
Free parent account
Create a free parent account to open the official papers, sample questions and guidance listed here.
Open day
25 March 2026
PastOnline registration opens
27 March 2026
PastRegistration closes
midnight on Sunday 17 May 2026
PastEvidence deadline
31 May 2026
PastEvidence deadline for Pupil Premium, Service Premium, SEN and EHCP evidence.
Sporting aptitude assessment
12 July 2026
PastSEN applicant test date
15 July 2026
PastDay and boarding applicant test date
16 July 2026
PastOut-of-catchment day applicant test date
25 September 2026
PastEntrance test results
Mid-October 2026
CAF deadline
31 October 2026
PastNational Offer Day
1 March 2027
Acceptance deadline
12 March 2027
Residence start date
On the applicable July 2026 test day: 15 July for special arrangements or 16 July for the main sitting
Continuous residence until
Continuing from the applicable July entrance-test day
Address evidence deadline
Within seven days of an address-verification request
Address-change notification deadline
Within two weeks of moving
Move-in deadline
31 October 2026
PastRelocation evidence deadline
Timing not published
Read the Year 7 information
Check the Year 7 entry information before registering so designated-area evidence, testing, and application steps are clear.
Open admissions informationRegister for the entrance process
For September 2026 entry, registration opened on 1 April 2025 and closed at midday on 13 June 2025.
Open admissions informationComplete the entrance process
Entrance arrangements run through the autumn entry timetable; allocated sessions and any aptitude assessments follow the admissions information.
Open admissions pageSubmit the Common Application Form
For September 2026 entry, the CAF deadline was 31 October 2025 and National Offer Day was 2 March 2026.
Open admissions informationLatest inspection: 21 November 2023
Local rivals appear first, followed by nearby alternatives where the journey and admissions route are still comparable.
Nearby option within a reasonable travel distance
Same wider selective region with a comparable travel distance
Same wider selective region with a comparable travel distance
Same wider selective region with a comparable travel distance
Closest comparable alternatives with a similar academic profile, so parents can weigh local fit and results together.
Similar Attainment 8 and Progress 8
Similar Attainment 8 and Progress 8
Similar Attainment 8 and Progress 8
Best Grammar Schools in Reading
Compare 2 Reading grammar schools for 2026: GCSE ranking table, Ofsted, 11+ admissions, catchment or distance rules, competition, and school profiles.
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Best Grammar Schools in the UK
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Best Grammar Schools by A-level Results
Explore the best grammar schools by A-level results in the UK, ranked by the published share of students achieving AAB or better at A level.
Best Grammar Schools in Reading
Compare 2 Reading grammar schools for 2026: GCSE ranking table, Ofsted, 11+ admissions, catchment or distance rules, competition, and school profiles.
Best Boys' Grammar Schools in the UK
Explore the best boys grammar schools in the UK with a national ranking parents can filter by county and Ofsted before comparing schools by route and journey.
Best Grammar Schools in the UK
Explore the best grammar schools in the UK with a national ranking that can be filtered by county, school type, and Ofsted before moving into local admissions detail.
Best Grammar Schools by A-level Results
Explore the best grammar schools by A-level results in the UK, ranked by the published share of students achieving AAB or better at A level.
Guide
Slough and Reading grammar school appeals
Slough and Reading grammar school appeals for 2027 entry: Herschel, Langley, St Bernard’s, Upton Court, Reading School and Kendrick appeal routes and evidence.
Guide
What Is a Grammar School?
Grammar schools are state secondary schools with academic selection. Here is what that means for admission, school life and your child.
FAQ
For September 2027 entry, Reading School uses Future Stories Community Enterprise (FSCE). Check the named test and any alternative or later-stage requirements in the admissions policy.
1. Read the Year 7 information: Check the Year 7 entry information before registering so designated-area evidence, testing, and application steps are clear. 2. Register for the entrance process: For September 2026 entry, registration opened on 1 April 2025 and closed at midday on 13 June 2025. 3. Complete the entrance process: Entrance arrangements run through the autumn entry timetable; allocated sessions and any aptitude assessments follow the admissions information. 4. Submit the Common Application Form: For September 2026 entry, the CAF deadline was 31 October 2025 and National Offer Day was 2 March 2026.
Open day: 25 March 2026. Online registration opens: 27 March 2026. Registration closes: midnight on Sunday 17 May 2026. Evidence deadline: 31 May 2026. Sporting aptitude assessment: 12 July 2026. SEN applicant test date: 15 July 2026. Day and boarding applicant test date: 16 July 2026. Out-of-catchment day applicant test date: 25 September 2026. Entrance test results: Mid-October 2026. CAF deadline: 31 October 2026. National Offer Day: 1 March 2027. Acceptance deadline: 12 March 2027. Residence start date: On the applicable July 2026 test day: 15 July for special arrangements or 16 July for the main sitting. Continuous residence until: Continuing from the applicable July entrance-test day. Address evidence deadline: Within seven days of an address-verification request. Address-change notification deadline: Within two weeks of moving. Move-in deadline: 31 October 2026. Relocation evidence deadline: Timing not published
Reading School is currently rated Outstanding following the latest published inspection dated 21 November 2023.
