There is something quietly unsettling about how little attention is paid to one of the most important choices a family can make during the elementary school years. The 11-plus exam, which pretty much decides if a kid gets into grammar school or not, has always been exceptionally important. But lately, the dates and due dates that go with it have changed in ways that make it easy to miss and hard to make up for.
Now, in May of Year 5, you can sign up for the 11+. That’s not Year 6, which is when most parents think the real stress starts. Years 5 and 6 are when kids are still ten years old and getting used to the idea that middle school is far away instead of right now. Redbridge, for example, let people sign up on May 1, 2026, and the deadline was 5 p.m. on June 15, 2026. No extra time. No time to apologize. And after that June deadline, no changes were made for special educational arrangements.
The test itself is on Friday, September 18, 2026, which is before most high school applications are even due. That order was chosen on purpose. Before parents send in their official school choices in October, grammar schools need test scores. So the 11+ basically speeds up the whole process of getting in. In September, you take the test. By October, you’ll have asked for a spot. Anyone who wasn’t paying attention in the spring will be punished by this sped-up timeline.
The same pattern can be seen in Plymouth. The September test window is used by both Plymouth High School for Girls and Devonport High School for Girls. Kids have to take the test before they can even try to get into either school. Quest Assessments makes the tests, which have an English section and a Math section. Each section is 40 minutes long and has 60 questions. There are two parts to each paper. An interesting thing is that a student can take the test at one school and then apply to go to another. A small but important amount of flexibility is hidden in a system that is mostly rigid.
A practice test is also given in July, which is the month before Year 6 starts for real. This is something that grammar schools in Plymouth do to help students get used to the room, the clock, and the format before the big day. It makes sense. It’s a whole different matter whether families know about it in time to use it.
People who are paying close attention to this process will notice how the change in the 11+ exam date favors families who are organized and take the test early while gently punishing everyone else. In Redbridge, the catchment area rule adds another layer. Before registering, families must make sure that their address is within the designated boundary. This may sound like a simple step, but it can be a real surprise for those who thought that living close to a school was enough.
It’s still not clear if enough councils and schools are doing their part to make these changes known. Open evenings are helpful. On April 30, 2026, the day before registration began, both Ilford County High School for Boys and Woodford County High School for Girls held open evenings. That timing is on purpose, and thanks for that. One evening, though, is a small window.
The 11+ process has never been easy. The new date doesn’t really make it worse; it just means that families have to start getting ready earlier than they had planned. That’s half the battle won at this point.
