John Hampden Grammar School
John Hampden Grammar School in High Wycombe is a boys’ grammar school with 180 Year 7 places, taking boys through the Buckinghamshire Secondary Transfer Test. A score of 121 qualifies, places then go by its priority areas, and in March 2026 every qualified boy in Priority Area A, which covers High Wycombe, was offered a place.
At a glance
- Where
- High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire
- Takes
- Boys
- Year 7 places
- 180
- Applicants
- 865 for 2026 entry, about 4.8 for each place. This counts the times the school was named as a preference, not the number who sat the test.
Applicants figures aren’t counted the same way at every school, so they don’t compare from one school to another.
Admissions
The test
the Buckinghamshire Secondary Transfer Test (GL Assessment), run by Buckinghamshire Council for The Buckinghamshire Grammar Schools (TBGS)
What qualifies
A Secondary Transfer Test Score (STTS) of 121 or more, or being deemed qualified at a Selection Review. Qualified boys are not ranked by score, except for 12 ring-fenced places for catchment boys who are looked after or on pupil or service premium and score 113 to 120.
Who gets priority
Looked-after and previously looked-after boys; 12 places for catchment boys who are looked after or on pupil or service premium scoring 113 to 120; qualified catchment boys on pupil or service premium; catchment boys with a brother at the school; catchment boys with a sister at Wycombe High School; sons of staff; Priority Area A (High Wycombe, part of South Buckinghamshire and some outlying villages); Priority Area B (part of South Buckinghamshire and Maidenhead); exceptional medical or social need; then all others, each rule by distance. In March 2026 every qualified boy in Priority Area A got a place and Priority Area B places went to 11.494 miles.
Registering
Children at state-funded Buckinghamshire primary schools were registered automatically (parents could withdraw them by 2 June); all others registered online with Buckinghamshire Council from 1 May (10am) to 2 June 2026 (3pm). The practice test was on 8 September and the Secondary Transfer Test on 10 September 2026, in school for Buckinghamshire and partner primary pupils and at a grammar school or other venue for everyone else; results came out on 9 October 2026. Families then named the school on their home council's secondary application by 31 October 2026.
Open events
Dates of the 2026 Year 7 open events were not found on the school's website. The Sixth Form Open Evening is on Thursday 12 November 2026 (5.30pm to 8pm), with a taster day for external applicants on Tuesday 29 June 2027.
Good to know
Boys only; the sixth form admits boys (30 external Year 12 places), though a small number of girls from another school may join particular A level classes. Catchment and priority-area rules use the address lived at on 1 September 2026, boys claiming a sister at Wycombe High School must send the school's form with proof of enrolment by 30 November 2026, and appeals are managed by Buckinghamshire Council. The applicants figure is how many times the school was named as a preference for September 2026 entry (259 as first preference, 184 offers), from DfE school-level data.
Not confirmed yet
- Dates of the 2026 Year 7 open evening or open mornings: the school calendar shows only events still to come and the letters and bulletins pages need a login.
Check these on the official page: johnhampden.reactfiles.co.uk/uploads/document/Admissions-Policy-2027.docx-2.pdf
The 11+ in Buckinghamshire
The papers, registration, test dates, results and how qualifying works for every school there.
With Exam Prep, Thena sets practice papers in your child’s test’s style and goes over every mistake with them on her board: £49 a month with the Solo plan.
More on the 11+
Sources
Every fact here comes from the official pages below. Admissions rules change each year, so check them there before you rely on them.
- jhgs.bucks.sch.uk
- jhgs.bucks.sch.uk/986/2027-admissions
- jhgs.bucks.sch.uk/837/2026-admissions
- jhgs.bucks.sch.uk/1024/admissions
- jhgs.bucks.sch.uk/64/school-calendar
- johnhampden.reactfiles.co.uk/uploads/document/Admissions-Policy-2027.docx-2.pdf
- johnhampden.reactfiles.co.uk/uploads/key_information/Admissions-Policy-2026.pdf
- buckinghamshire.gov.uk/schools-libraries-and-parks/school-admissions-and-appeals/guides-and-policies/guide-to-grammar-schools-and-the-secondary-school-transfer-test-11-plus
- buckinghamshire.gov.uk/schools-libraries-and-parks/school-admissions-and-appeals/guides-and-policies/guide-to-grammar-schools-and-the-secondary-school-transfer-test-11-plus/timeline-for-entry-in-2025
- buckinghamshire.gov.uk/schools-libraries-and-parks/school-admissions-and-appeals/guides-and-policies/guide-to-grammar-schools-and-the-secondary-school-transfer-test-11-plus/would-you-like-your-child-to-take-the-secondary-transfer-test
- buckinghamshire.gov.uk/schools-libraries-and-parks/school-admissions-and-appeals/guides-and-policies/guide-to-grammar-schools-and-the-secondary-school-transfer-test-11-plus/registration
- buckinghamshire.gov.uk/schools-libraries-and-parks/school-admissions-and-appeals/guides-and-policies/guide-to-grammar-schools-and-the-secondary-school-transfer-test-11-plus/test-dates-for-secondary-transfer-test
- buckinghamshire.gov.uk/schools-libraries-and-parks/school-admissions-and-appeals/guides-and-policies/guide-to-grammar-schools-and-the-secondary-school-transfer-test-11-plus/marking-the-secondary-transfer-test
- buckinghamshire.gov.uk/schools-libraries-and-parks/school-admissions-and-appeals/guides-and-policies/school-place-allocation-statistics
- buckinghamshire.gov.uk/documents/40617/Allocation_Profile_2026_-_FINAL_V2.xlsx
- thebucksgrammarschools.org
- thebucksgrammarschools.org/test-data
- thebucksgrammarschools.org/_files/ugd/ab3fe9_1e146044d05840c4850da56587346cc8.pdf
- thebucksgrammarschools.org/_files/ugd/ab3fe9_220078a139ec44efad9e6521ed36c523.pdf
- explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/primary-and-secondary-school-applications-and-offers/2026-27/explore
- content.explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/api/releases/0bf4f9cf-721d-44e3-8473-266c87e17e00/files/42d0d4e4-9604-413a-8275-00b829ffbdcb
Checked 2 November 2026.
Practice in the style of their test
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