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The Kent Test

Kent County Council’s test for its grammar schools, sat in September of Year 6: English and maths in one test, verbal and non-verbal reasoning in the other, all multiple choice. Quest Assessments sets it from 2027, and the council says the format and timing stay the same.

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At a glance

The test
The Kent Test
Set by
Quest Assessments from the 2027 test; KCC's pages do not name the provider of the September 2026 test
Subjects
English, maths, verbal reasoning, non-verbal reasoning
Answers
Multiple choice, on a separate answer sheet
Who sits it
16,462 children received Kent Test scores in 2026, of whom 8,820 were assessed suitable for grammar school and 7,642 for high school (KCC's 2026 Kent Test scores report). KCC says it normally tests about 17,000 children.

The papers

Two multiple-choice tests with a separate answer sheet, marked by computer. Test 1, English and maths (1 hour): each section is a 5-minute practice exercise then a 25-minute test; English is a comprehension plus questions on literacy skills such as spelling, grammar and punctuation, and maths follows the Key Stage 2 national curriculum. Test 2, reasoning (about 1 hour including practice): a verbal reasoning section and a non-verbal reasoning section of roughly the same length, the non-verbal split into short, separately timed sections. There is also a 40-minute writing task (including 10 minutes planning) that is not marked but may be used by the Headteacher Assessment panel.

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Dates, results and scores

When is the 11+ in Kent?

The 2027 test: not published yet. The 2026 test: Thursday 10 September 2026 in school for children at Kent primary schools; the weekend of Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 September 2026 at Kent test centres for children at schools outside Kent.

How do you register for the 11+ in Kent?

For the 2027 test (2028 entry): not published yet. For the 2026 test (2027 entry): Monday 1 June to midnight on Wednesday 1 July 2026, with Kent County Council, for children in Year 5 born between 1 September 2015 and 31 August 2016 and living in England (plus children of UK service personnel and Crown servants returning to the UK). Special arrangements requests also closed on 1 July 2026.

When do 11+ results come out in Kent?

For the 2026 test: Thursday 15 October 2026, by email to the address used to register (by first class post where no email was given); online applicants could also see the scores after 5pm. Offers on Monday 1 March 2027.

What score qualifies in Kent?

Three age-standardised scores (English, maths, reasoning), each from 69 to 141, and a total out of 423. In 2026 (2027 entry) a child needed a total of 345 or more, with no single score below 111, to be assessed suitable for grammar school. KCC says Kent grammar schools provide for about the top 25% of the ability range. Being assessed suitable does not guarantee a place: each school ranks applicants by its own oversubscription criteria, and some (particularly those most likely to take children from outside Kent) give priority to the highest scores.

Not confirmed yet

  • Provider of the September 2026 test: KCC's October 2026 update says it has appointed Quest Assessments 'for the Kent Test from 2027' and that the format, timing and Headteacher Assessments stay the same, and its familiarisation link goes to GL Assessment's 11+ site, but no KCC page read names the 2026 provider.
  • Registration and test dates for the test sat in September 2027 (2028 entry) are not yet published.
  • How many decisions the Headteacher Assessment panel changed in 2026 (the scores report shows some grammar-assessed children with totals below 345, but does not say why).

Check these on the official page: kent.gov.uk/education-and-children/schools/school-places/kent-test

Good to know

Reviews

Before decisions go out, the primary headteacher can refer an assessment decision they disagree with to the Headteacher Assessment Panel (HTA), a panel of local primary and secondary headteachers. It considers the test scores, recent work, the unmarked writing task and comments from the child's school, looking at the full range of work whichever scores are below the threshold, and changes a decision only if it is confident the child will be well placed in a grammar school. Parents cannot appeal the October decision itself, only appeal for a school place after offer day.

Late testing and moving to the area

Parents who missed registration for September 2027 entry are asked to email [email protected] with the child's name, date of birth, address and current school. A child who moves to Kent after the test and wants a Year 7 grammar place still has to be assessed, arranged through the grammar school: until the end of the first term of Year 7 the schools use the Kent Test, after that each school uses its own assessment.

Who runs admissions

Kent County Council runs the Kent Test and coordinates applications (up to four preferences; offers on Monday 1 March 2027, appeals lodged by Tuesday 13 April 2027). Each grammar school applies its own oversubscription criteria. The test is only valid for Kent grammar schools: Medway and Bexley have their own tests.

Grammar schools in Kent

Schools with a page of their own have their places, qualifying scores and priority areas, from their admissions policies.

SchoolTownTakes
Barton Court Grammar School websiteCanterburyMixed
Borden Grammar School websiteSittingbourneBoys
Chatham & Clarendon Grammar School websiteRamsgateMixed
Cranbrook School websiteCranbrookMixed
Dane Court Grammar School websiteBroadstairsMixed
Dartford Grammar School websiteDartfordBoys, mixed sixth form
Dartford Grammar School for Girls websiteDartfordGirls
Dover Grammar School for Boys websiteDoverBoys, mixed sixth form
Dover Grammar School for Girls websiteDoverGirls, mixed sixth form
Folkestone School for Girls websiteFolkestoneGirls
Gravesend Grammar School websiteGravesendBoys, mixed sixth form
The Harvey Grammar School websiteFolkestoneBoys
Highsted Grammar School websiteSittingbourneGirls
Highworth Grammar School websiteAshfordGirls, mixed sixth form
Invicta Grammar School websiteMaidstoneGirls
The Judd SchoolTonbridgeBoys, mixed sixth form
Maidstone Grammar School websiteMaidstoneBoys, mixed sixth form
Maidstone Grammar School for Girls websiteMaidstoneGirls, mixed sixth form
Mayfield Grammar School websiteGravesendGirls, mixed sixth form
The Norton Knatchbull School websiteAshfordBoys, mixed sixth form
Oakwood Park Grammar School websiteMaidstoneBoys, mixed sixth form
Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Faversham websiteFavershamMixed
Simon Langton Girls' Grammar School websiteCanterburyGirls, mixed sixth form
Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys websiteCanterburyBoys
Sir Roger Manwood's School websiteSandwichMixed
The Skinners' School websiteTunbridge WellsBoys
Tonbridge Grammar SchoolTonbridgeGirls, mixed sixth form
Tunbridge Wells Girls' Grammar School websiteTunbridge WellsGirls
Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys websiteTunbridge WellsBoys, mixed sixth form
Weald of Kent Grammar School websiteTonbridgeGirls, mixed sixth form
Wilmington Grammar School for Boys websiteDartfordBoys, mixed sixth form
Wilmington Grammar School for Girls websiteDartfordGirls, mixed sixth form

More on the 11+

Sources

Every fact here comes from the official pages below. Dates and scores change from year to year, so check them there before you rely on them.

Checked 2 November 2026.

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