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Borden Grammar School 11+ guide

By Atom | Feb 19, 2024, 4:51 PM

Borden Grammar School, Kent

Thinking about applying to Borden Grammar School? Find out everything you need to know about admissions and how to prepare your child for success in the Kent Test.

Key information about Borden Grammar School

  • Address: Borden Grammar School, Avenue of Remembrance, Sittingbourne, Kent ME10 4DB

  • Number of pupils: approx 900

  • Admissions contact: [email protected]

  • Number of places in Year 7: 150

  • 11+ exam: Kent Test

  • Catchment area: Borden Grammar School operates a catchment area to prioritise children who live closer to the school. This is referred to as the 'traditional school areas':

  • Postcode areas ME9, ME10, ME11 and ME12.

  • Postcode areas ME8 and ME13

Dates for your diary

  • 11+ registration opens: early June 2024

  • 11+ registration closes: early July 2024

  • 11+ exam date: early September 2024

  • 11+ results released: mid-October 2024

  • Secondary school application deadline: 31st October 2024

  • School allocations: 3rd March 2025

About Borden Grammar School

Borden Grammar School, located in Sittingbourne, Kent, is a selective state school. It's a boys-only for children aged 11 to 16 and has a mixed sixth form. The school takes pride in its students, known for their honesty and friendliness. Teachers actively use their expertise to stretch, support, and challenge the students. Borden consistently gets a 'good' rating from Ofsted. The latest rating was in November 2021, emphasising the school's strong teaching quality. The school also has an excellent reputation for its pastoral care of pupils.

How to apply to Borden Grammar School

Borden Grammar School is a selective school. This means that your child will need to take the 11 plus exam to be eligible for a place. In Kent, the 11 plus is known as the Kent Test.

Registration for the 2024 Kent Test opens in early June 2024 and closes in early July 2024. The exam will take place in September 2024 and you’ll receive your child’s results in mid-October. You can then use these results to decide whether to apply for a place at Borden Grammar School.

To apply, you’ll need to name the school as one of your preferred schools on the secondary school common application form. This will be available on your home council website from early September and must be submitted by Thursday 31st October 2024.

Remember – passing the 11 plus doesn’t guarantee that your child will be allocated a place at your preferred school. Many grammar schools are often oversubscribed with qualified children. Schools and their admissions authorities work through admissions criteria to prioritise children for places. We’ve included the admissions criteria for Borden Grammar School below.

What subjects are on the Kent Test?

Children applying to Borden Grammar School take the Kent Test. This consists of two multiple-choice papers which are supplied by GL Assessment.

One paper lasts one hour and assesses English and maths. These questions are based on the Key Stage 2 national curriculum.

The other paper lasts one hour and tests verbal reasoning, non-verbal reasoning and spatial reasoning. These subjects are not taught at school, so your child might be unfamiliar with these styles of questions.

Guide to the Kent Test

Find out everything you need to know in our complete guide to the Kent Test. Plus, get access to free 11 plus resources to help your child feel confident for their exam!

Learn more
Verbal reasoning paper

How does place allocation work at Borden Grammar School?

Your child will get three standardised scores in the Kent Test – one each for English, maths and reasoning. They will also get one total (aggregate) score. Children need a total score of 332 or higher and no single score lower than 107 to qualify for a place at a Kent grammar school.

If more than 150 children applying to Borden Grammar School achieve these scores, the school applies oversubscription criteria. Children are prioritised for places in the following order:

  1. Children in Local Authority Care

  2. Up to 15% of places are reserved for children in postcodes ME9, ME10, ME11 and ME12 who have been eligible for Free School Meals during Years 3–6

  3. Children who have a sibling (who they live with) currently attending the school

  4. Children with medical, health, social and special access reasons

  5. Children living within the school catchment area

Borden Grammar School operates a catchment area to prioritise children who live closer to the school. This is referred to as the 'traditional school areas':

  • Postcode areas ME9, ME10, ME11 and ME12. These areas are prioritised

  • Postcode areas ME8 and ME13

Atom’s top tips for Kent Test preparation

The Kent Test is designed to select local children working at the top ability range in their year group. Here are our top tips to help you and your child feel confident for exam day!

Bitesize learning

It’s important to build a good knowledge base before the Kent Test. Using a ‘little and often’ approach when learning is key – our brains encode new information more effectively when dealing with smaller ‘chunks’ of information. For children aged 10–11, child psychologists recommend regular study sessions of 20–30 minutes.

Atom Home makes learning a more enjoyable process for your child. They'll explore exciting worlds full of interactive questions, earning coins to spend in the Atom shop. Atom adapts to your child, showing them questions at just the right level of difficulty to keep them motivated.

A maths learning journey on Atom Home

Read widely

In the Kent Test, your child will need to analyse and interpret written information. Regular reading is a great way to build these skills.

Encourage them to read books from different genres and by a diverse range of authors. Increasing the variety of your child’s reading will help them understand different styles, tones and purposes. Meanwhile, reading a little every day will help widen their vocabulary, sharpen their analytical thinking, and enhance their imagination.

Refine exam technique

When your child feels confident with the topics they’ve learnt in Year 5, they’ll be ready to put their knowledge to the test.

Practice tests can help your child develop problem-solving skills and build confidence working under test conditions. They’re also a great way to consolidate learning and highlight knowledge gaps for further improvement.

With Atom Home, you'll unlock online mock tests and printable practice papers. Enjoy automatic marking and progress tracking with the online tests, and help your child get familiar with the real exam experience with printable practice papers.

A Kent Test reasoning mock test question on Atom home

Celebrate progress

Setting regular, achievable goals and celebrating your child’s progress – no matter how big or small – will help keep their motivation high.

Make sure to encourage a growth mindset. This means celebrating effort, as well as achievement! When your child makes mistakes or struggles to understand a particular topic, help them understand that they’ll improve through practice. Regular praise will help your child improve their resilience when tackling new and challenging topics.

Tailored preparation for the Kent Test

Wish you could give your child a roadmap to success in the Kent Test? You can. Atom Home has everything you need to get prepared, in one package.

You don't need a tutor to get into your top-choice grammar school. You just need Atom. We’ll create a tailored plan for your child and support them along their fun revision journey.

  • Online and printable Kent Test practice papers

  • 90,000+ adaptive questions

  • 500+ hours of on-demand video lessons

  • Automatic marking and instant progress data

Navigate the Kent Test with confidence.

Start your free trial today. Our local admissions specialists will get to work on your child’s plan. Relax, Kent Test prep is sorted.

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