If your child is in Year 4 or Year 5 and you're weighing up a West Midlands grammar school, the good news is that the system is simpler than it used to be. Since 2023, all 19 grammar schools across Birmingham and the Black Country use one shared entrance test, set by GL Assessment. Sit it once, and the result is considered by every school you apply to.
This guide walks through what that test contains, how the score is worked out, which schools take part, and the timeline you need to keep in mind for September entry.
One test, all 19 schools
Before 2023, families often faced different papers for different schools. Today there is a single unified GL Assessment test. Your child registers once, sits the exam in September of Year 6, and the same standardised score is passed to each grammar school on your application. That means you prepare for one format, not five.
It also means the bar is consistent. The schools differ in their cut-off scores and catchment rules, but the exam your child faces is the same one everywhere.
What's actually in the exam
The GL test covers four areas, with roughly 80 questions in total, sat under timed conditions. Each area rewards a different skill:
- English comprehension: reading a passage and answering inference, vocabulary and retrieval questions.
- Verbal reasoning: word puzzles, letter sequences, codes and analogies that test logic through language.
- Mathematics: arithmetic, problem-solving and multi-step questions pitched a little above the Year 5 curriculum.
- Non-verbal reasoning: pattern, rotation, sequence and folding questions that use shapes rather than words.
Non-verbal reasoning is the section that worries parents most and children least. Because it doesn't depend on vocabulary, it's often where a well-prepared child can make up ground, which is exactly why our practice papers give it a full, properly timed section rather than an afterthought.
- Four sections: English, verbal reasoning, maths, non-verbal reasoning
- Around 80 questions, each section separately timed
- One test shared across all 19 grammar schools
- Sat in September of Year 6
How the standardised score works
This is the part most parents find confusing, so here's the plain version. Your child's marks are converted into a standardised score. The conversion does two things: it puts every child on the same scale regardless of which paper they sat, and it applies an age adjustment.
That age adjustment matters. A child born in late August can be almost a full year younger than a September-born classmate sitting the same exam. The partnership confirms that scores for each section are standardised to take account of age, so younger children are not disadvantaged. Date of birth genuinely affects the final figure.
The sections are also not weighted equally. The published weighting is 50% for English and verbal reasoning, 25% for non-verbal reasoning and 25% for mathematics, so comprehension and verbal work carry half the result on their own.
The West Midlands does not use the national scale. If you have read elsewhere that the 11+ is built around a mean of 100, with entry at 111 or above, that is the generic national GL model and it does not apply here. This region runs on a completely different scale, and the numbers that decide a place are set by the schools themselves. For 2027 entry the King Edward VI Foundation set a qualifying score of 205 and a priority score of 224.
| Threshold | 2027 entry figure | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Qualifying score | 205 | The minimum standardised score needed to be considered for a Foundation grammar school place. Below it, an application is not ranked. |
| Priority score | 224 | A higher threshold. Reaching it and living inside the school's catchment places an applicant in a dedicated, higher-ranked category. |
Both figures come from the Foundation's published results and offers page. They are reset every year once results are in, so treat 205 and 224 as the 2026 benchmark and check the official page again for the current cycle. Schools outside the Foundation publish their own cut-offs and catchment rules on top.
The most reassuring thing to understand: because scores are standardised, a harder paper doesn't disadvantage your child. Everyone is measured against the same yardstick. Our mark scheme applies the age adjustment automatically the moment you enter a date of birth, so you see the real, comparable figure rather than a raw count.
See where your child stands today
Timed sections in the GL Assessment format, marked instantly, with a topic-by-topic breakdown. No sign-up to start.
The 19 grammar schools
The 19 schools span Birmingham, Sutton Coldfield, Walsall, Wolverhampton and the wider Black Country. The largest single group is the King Edward VI Foundation, including Aston, Camp Hill (boys and girls), Five Ways and Handsworth, which shares an admissions framework and prioritises pupil-premium applicants meeting the qualifying score.
Alongside the Foundation sit stand-alone schools such as Bishop Vesey's Grammar, Sutton Coldfield Grammar School for Girls, Handsworth Grammar and the Wolverhampton and Walsall grammars. Each publishes its own catchment map and cut-off, so it's worth listing your realistic options before results arrive, then ordering your preferences by both score and distance.
Key dates for 2027 entry
The timeline runs on the local authority calendar, but the shape is the same every year:
- Spring to summer of Year 5: registration windows open. This is the deadline you cannot miss: miss it and your child can't sit the test.
- September of Year 6: the exam is sat, usually on a Saturday morning.
- October: standardised scores are released to families.
- 31 October: the national secondary school application deadline. You list your preferences using the score you've received.
- 1 March: National Offer Day.
Always confirm the exact registration dates on your local authority's admissions pages, as they shift by a week or two each cycle, and the registration deadline is the one that catches families out.
When & how to start preparing
The question I'm asked most. My honest answer after 20+ years: a steady start in Year 5 beats a frantic Year 6. You want familiarity with all four sections and comfortable timing, not exhaustion.
A realistic rhythm looks like this:
- Early Year 5: build the foundations: reading widely, solid times tables, and a first look at verbal and non-verbal question types.
- Later Year 5: introduce full, timed sections so the clock stops being a shock.
- Year 6 to September: work through complete mock papers under exam conditions, reviewing every mistake rather than just marking it.
The single most useful thing you can do is practise under real timing on papers written for this exact format, not generic national papers that don't match the West Midlands sections. That's the entire reason GrammarPath exists.
Frequently asked questions
How many grammar schools are there in the West Midlands?
Nineteen, across Birmingham, Walsall, Wolverhampton, Shropshire and Warwickshire. Since 2023 they have shared a single entrance test set by GL Assessment, so a child sits it once and the result is considered by every partnership school named on the registration and preference forms.
What score do you need to pass the West Midlands 11+?
There is no single pass mark, because the partnership shares the test but not the threshold. The King Edward VI Foundation set a qualifying score of 205 and a priority score of 224 for 2026 entry at its Birmingham schools, while Queen Mary's Grammar School in Walsall published a minimum qualifying score of 180 for September 2026 entry. Each school or foundation resets its figures annually.
What is in the West Midlands 11+ test?
Two papers covering four areas: verbal reasoning, non-verbal and spatial reasoning, English, and mathematics. English and verbal reasoning together carry 50% of the marks, with 25% for non-verbal reasoning and 25% for mathematics. Each paper is split into individually timed sections and a child cannot return to an earlier one.
When is the West Midlands 11+ test taken?
In September, at the start of Year 6. Registration opens in early May of Year 5 and closes in late June, and it is separate from the local authority preference form, which is due by 31 October. Missing the June registration deadline means the test cannot be sat at all.
Is the West Midlands 11+ scored like the national GL test?
No, and this is the most common error parents meet online. Results across the partnership use an age-weighted standardisation around a median of 200, not the generic national GL model of a mean of 100 with entry around 111. A parent working from the national model will misjudge every figure they are given.
When should my child start preparing for the 11+?
A steady start in Year 5 beats a frantic Year 6. Build foundations early in Year 5 with wide reading, secure times tables and a first look at the reasoning question types, introduce timed sections later in the year, then work through complete papers under exam conditions through to September.