Your complete guide to the 2026/27 entry cycle for all eight Birmingham grammar schools
Book a Free ConsultationThe King Edward VI 11+ works through a shared consortium test: all eight Birmingham grammar schools arranged by the KEF — Five Ways, Aston, Camp Hill Boys, Camp Hill Girls, Handsworth Girls, KE Handsworth Grammar for Boys, Bishop Vesey's, and Sutton Coldfield Grammar for Girls — use the same West Midlands Grammar Schools Entrance Test, sat on a single day in September. Your child registers once, sits one exam, and that result is used by every school you list on your Common Application Form. The exam is provided by GL Assessment, covers English comprehension, verbal reasoning, mathematics, and non-verbal and spatial reasoning across two papers each approximately 50-60 minutes long, and scores are age-standardised. For the 2026/27 admissions cycle, registration closed at 4pm on Friday 26 June 2026 and the test took place on Saturday 12 September 2026; families receive the test score by Friday 16 October 2026, before the local authority preference form is due on Saturday 31 October 2026, and offers go out on 1 March 2027. This guide covers everything families need to know: which schools are in the consortium, how many places each school confirms, what the exam tests, how scores are used, and how to prepare effectively.
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Checked October 2026
The King Edward VI Foundation's results-and-offers page shows each March cut-off score beside the score offered by September after waiting list offers. For 2027 entry the qualifying score is 205 and the priority score 224; scores reach parents by Friday 16 October 2026 and offers are made on 1 March 2027.
The King Edward VI Foundation (KEF) is a group of Birmingham schools, independent and academy, selective and comprehensive, whose roots go back to the establishment of King Edward’s School, Birmingham in 1552. Today the Foundation arranges the entrance test for eight selective grammar schools in Birmingham: the six King Edward VI grammar schools (Five Ways, Aston, Camp Hill Boys, Camp Hill Girls, Handsworth Girls and Handsworth Grammar Boys), plus Bishop Vesey's Grammar School for Boys (Sutton Coldfield) and Sutton Coldfield Grammar School for Girls.
All eight schools participate in the West Midlands Grammar Schools group, a consortium of 19 selective schools spread across Birmingham, Warwickshire, Shropshire, Walsall, and Wolverhampton — including Queen Mary's Grammar School in Walsall. Every school in the group uses the identical entrance test, provided by GL Assessment. The practical benefit for families is significant: rather than registering for and sitting separate tests for each target school, your child sits one exam and you simply list your preferred schools in rank order on the Common Application Form. The same standardised score is then used by each school when allocating places.
The consortium approach also means that if your child is aiming for a KE VI school alongside a school in Warwickshire or Walsall, there is no additional exam burden. Registration was handled via the West Midlands Grammar Schools website and has now closed: late registrations are not allowed. The registration window for 2027 entry opened on Tuesday 5 May 2026 and closed at 4pm on Friday 26 June 2026.
Each of the eight Birmingham grammar schools has its own character, specialisms, and admissions geography, but all share the same entrance exam. Understanding the differences helps families decide which schools to list on their application and in what order. The table below profiles each school with its type, location, and Year 7 places where the school's own admissions policy or page confirms them.
| School | Type | Location | Year 7 Places |
|---|---|---|---|
| KE VI Five Ways | Co-educational | Bartley Green | 180 |
| KE VI Camp Hill Boys | Boys | Kings Heath | Not confirmed |
| KE VI Camp Hill Girls | Girls | Kings Heath | Not confirmed |
| KE VI Aston | Boys | Aston | Not confirmed |
| KE VI Handsworth Girls | Girls | Handsworth | 192 |
| KE VI Handsworth Grammar for Boys | Boys | Handsworth | 150 |
| Bishop Vesey's Grammar School | Boys | Sutton Coldfield | 192 |
| Sutton Coldfield Grammar for Girls | Girls | Sutton Coldfield | Not confirmed |
Source: Bishop Vesey's, Handsworth Girls and Five Ways (listed as proposed) September 2027 policies; Handsworth Grammar Boys page; others not confirmed, retrieved 3 October 2026.
Places: Bishop Vesey's Grammar School and King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls are each confirmed at 192, and King Edward VI Five Ways School is at 180 (per its proposed admissions arrangements for 2027); King Edward VI Handsworth Grammar School for Boys states 150 intended admissions each year at age 11; the other schools' places are not confirmed here. Verify current figures directly with each school or via Birmingham City Council admissions guidance.
King Edward VI Five Ways is the only co-educational school among the eight. It is located in Bartley Green in the south-west of Birmingham. The Camp Hill schools — Boys and Girls — are based in Kings Heath in south Birmingham . King Edward VI Aston serves boys in north-east Birmingham . King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls serves girls in north-west Birmingham.
At King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Boys, no offers were made from the general category (category 5) for 2025 entry, because not all category 4 applicants were offered a place. Only children who reach the qualifying score are considered for a place. Families applying from outside Birmingham should be aware that the same test serves every grammar school in the West Midlands Grammar Schools group, and that the Admissions Office may ask for further information where a home address is not within a reasonable commutable distance of the schools.
The West Midlands Grammar Schools Entrance Test is provided by GL Assessment and consists of two papers, each approximately 50-60 minutes long. Both papers are divided into individually timed sections. All questions throughout both papers are multiple choice, and answers are recorded on a separate answer sheet that is scanned and marked electronically. There is no writing component and no extended answer questions.
The test covers four content areas, weighted as follows:
Because English and verbal reasoning jointly account for 50% of the mark, a child who is strong in language can offset only moderate maths performance. Conversely, strong mathematicians who underperform on comprehension or verbal sections may fall below the qualifying threshold despite their numerical ability. This weighting is an important factor when planning a preparation programme. Our 11+ tuition specialists advise families on subject weighting as part of every preparation plan.
The scores for each section are age-standardised. This takes account of differences in age, so younger children are not disadvantaged compared with children in the same cohort who could be almost a year older. The King Edward VI Foundation publishes the qualifying score and the priority score on its website.
The 2026/27 admissions cycle — for children entering Year 7 in September 2027 — follows a fixed timeline. Missing the registration window can mean a child cannot sit the test for that entry year: registration for 2027 entry closed at 4pm on Friday 26 June 2026 and, per Birmingham City Council, late registrations are not allowed; the Five Ways and Handsworth Girls policies allow testing after the deadline only in exceptional circumstances, with places considered after the main round of allocations in March 2027. The dates below are the published dates for the 2027 entry cycle; the first four have already passed and the last three are still ahead.
Only children born between 1 September 2015 and 31 August 2016 are eligible to sit the 2026 test for September 2027 entry. Passing the test does not guarantee a place — it makes your child eligible to be considered. Once results are issued, schools use admissions criteria to rank eligible applicants and allocate places. A child who achieved the qualifying score is placed automatically on the waiting list for any school ranked higher on the preference form than the one offered on 1 March 2027.
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The scores for each section are standardised to take into account differences in age. The King Edward VI Foundation publishes the qualifying score and priority score on its results-and-offers page.
For 2027 entry, the King Edward VI Foundation confirms the qualifying score at 205 and the priority score at 224. The qualifying score is the minimum standard required for eligibility. The priority score is a higher threshold that gives additional weight to in-catchment applicants in the oversubscription criteria. Children who do not reach the qualifying score cannot receive a place, regardless of any other factor.
In practice, at the most competitive schools, even children who achieve the qualifying score may not receive offers because eligible applicants far exceed available places. At Camp Hill School for Boys, general-category applicants needed a score of 254 in March for 2026 entry (242 by September, after waiting list offers) and 260 in March for 2024 entry (250 by September); at Camp Hill School for Girls the equivalent figure was 255 in March for 2026 entry (242 by September). Aiming for a score well above the qualifying threshold is therefore the most reliable strategy, particularly if your child does not live within a school's catchment area.
At King Edward VI Five Ways School, the proposed admissions arrangements for September 2027 offer places to children who achieve the qualifying score in this order: looked after and previously looked after children; children attracting the Pupil Premium who live within the catchment area; children attracting the Pupil Premium who live outside it, until 25% of places have been offered; children achieving the priority score and living within the catchment area (older sibling first, then distance); and all other children who achieved the qualifying score, ranked by test score. The King Edward VI Foundation says Pupil Premium priority needed the primary-school form uploaded at test registration, that children who become registered for Pupil Premium after the test date of 12 September 2026 are not considered for Pupil Premium places, and that pupils eligible only under expanded free school meals do not attract the Pupil Premium. Understanding where your child is likely to fall in this ordering helps you gauge the strength of each application. At Five Ways, the catchment is defined by electoral wards, including Bartley Green, Northfield and Harborne in Birmingham and Abbey, Bristnall and Old Warley in Sandwell. Other KE VI schools have their own catchment definitions.
For a detailed explanation of how grammar schools resolve tied scores and borderline cases, read our blog: How Grammar Schools Decide Between Equal-Scoring Children.
Effective preparation for the West Midlands Grammar Schools Entrance Test requires a structured, multi-subject approach that begins well before the September exam date. Starting preparation in Year 4 or early Year 5 gives children time to build foundational knowledge before transitioning to timed exam practice in Year 5 and full mock exam conditions in Year 6. Children who begin later can still prepare well, but a compressed timeline requires more intensive input and careful prioritisation of weak areas.
English comprehension and verbal reasoning account for 50% of the mark and deserve proportionate attention. Reading widely — novels, newspapers, non-fiction — is the most effective long-term investment. For verbal reasoning, children need to become fluent with question types including word analogies, letter sequences, coded words, missing words in sentences, and antonyms and synonyms. These are pattern-recognition skills that respond well to regular, varied practice.
Mathematics is tested in individually timed sections, so pace matters. Children should be confident with fractions, percentages, ratio and proportion, written multiplication and division, basic algebra including simple equations, properties of 2D and 3D shapes, area and perimeter, data interpretation, and problem-solving in unfamiliar contexts. Speed matters: the timed section format means hesitation on any cluster of questions risks running out of time. Mental arithmetic fluency is therefore as important as conceptual understanding. Weekly timed arithmetic drills, starting from Year 4, are one of the most reliable ways to build the speed needed in Year 6.
Non-verbal and spatial reasoning is frequently underestimated by families. Because it does not correspond to a school curriculum subject, some children arrive at exam preparation with no prior exposure to this question type. Given that it contributes 25% of the total mark, weak non-verbal reasoning can prevent an otherwise strong candidate from reaching the qualifying score. The good news is that regular, focused practice makes these question types familiar.
Mock exams under timed conditions are an important part of preparation. Working through full papers with a stopwatch builds the stamina and time management skills children need on exam day, when the format and pace can feel unfamiliar. Reviewing wrong answers carefully — understanding why an answer was incorrect, not just what the right answer was — accelerates improvement far more than simply completing more papers without analysis.
Managing exam day is a preparation area that is often overlooked until too late. Children who have practised under timed conditions, used a pencil and eraser on a multiple-choice answer sheet, and sat full mock papers with strangers present are likely to feel more at ease on the day. Anxiety on the morning of the test will be reduced if the exam format genuinely feels familiar rather than merely understood in theory.
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Reviewed October 2026: dates, figures and rules checked against the King Edward VI Foundation's results-and-offers, entrance-test, timeline and pupil premium pages, Birmingham City Council's grammar schools pages, the West Midlands Grammar Schools test page and the Five Ways, Handsworth Girls and Bishop Vesey's 2027 admissions policies.
The King Edward VI Foundation arranges the entrance test for all eight selective grammar schools in Birmingham: the six King Edward VI grammar schools (Five Ways, Aston, Camp Hill Boys, Camp Hill Girls, Handsworth Girls and Handsworth Grammar Boys), plus Bishop Vesey's Grammar School for Boys (Sutton Coldfield) and Sutton Coldfield Grammar School for Girls. All eight are part of the wider West Midlands Grammar Schools group of 19 selective schools and share a single entrance test provided by GL Assessment. Your child registers and sits only one exam regardless of how many schools you list.
The exam consists of two papers, each approximately 50-60 minutes long, divided into individually timed sections. All questions are multiple choice. The four content areas assessed are English comprehension, verbal reasoning, mathematics, and non-verbal and spatial reasoning. Scores are weighted: English comprehension and verbal reasoning together account for 50% of the total, while mathematics and non-verbal/spatial reasoning each contribute 25%. After marking, the scores for each section are standardised to take into account differences in age, so that younger children within the year group are not disadvantaged relative to older peers.
For 2027 entry (the 2026/27 admissions cycle), registration opened on Tuesday 5 May 2026 and closed at 4pm on Friday 26 June 2026. The test took place on Saturday 12 September 2026, and parents receive the test score by Friday 16 October 2026. Children who reach the qualifying score can then name a King Edward VI school on their local authority preference form (the Common Application Form), which must be submitted by the national closing date of Saturday 31 October 2026; a child who does not reach it is not considered for a place, so the school should not be listed. Secondary school offers are made by local authorities on National Offer Day, Monday 1 March 2027.
The Foundation publishes two thresholds for each entry year. The qualifying score is the minimum standard for eligibility — for 2027 entry, the King Edward VI Foundation confirms this at 205. Above this sits the priority score (224 for 2027 entry), which carries additional weight in oversubscription criteria for children within a school's catchment area. However, eligibility alone does not guarantee a place: at popular schools such as Camp Hill School for Boys, general-category offers needed a score of 254 in March for 2026 entry (242 by September, after waiting list offers).
Children from outside the catchment area may apply and receive offers, but the catchment area matters once the school is oversubscribed. For King Edward VI Five Ways School, children who achieve the priority score and live within the defined catchment area are prioritised over out-of-catchment applicants who achieved the same priority score. For children who only reach the qualifying score, places are allocated by test score regardless of catchment; where scores are equal, an older sibling at the school comes first, then distance from the school.
Leading Tuition's specialist 11+ tutors provide personalised, one-to-one preparation for all eight Birmingham grammar schools using the KEF entrance test. Our tutors are familiar with the West Midlands Grammar Schools Entrance Test format and weight Maths, English comprehension, verbal reasoning, and non-verbal reasoning in line with the actual exam proportions. We track progress week by week, run timed mock exams under test conditions, and focus on the subject areas most likely to lift a borderline candidate into the competitive scoring range. Book a free consultation to discuss a preparation plan for your child.
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