Canford School: 13 plus entry guide

About Canford School

Canford School is a private co-educational boarding school for 13–18-year-olds. Set in 300 acres of parkland near the market town of Wimborne Minster in Dorset, it combines an idyllic rural campus (ranked among the 'top ten most beautiful' by the Daily Telegraph) with first-class modern facilities, dynamic teaching and global thinking.

Beyond academic excellence, a Canford education is based around developing enquiring minds, encouraging debate and provoking creative thought. It was awarded Public School of the Year 2019 by Tatler, Boarding School of the Year 2018 by Independent School Parent magazine and was a finalist in the Senior School of the Year category in the 2020 TES Awards.

As a full boarding community, Canford does not offer flexi boarding options, but pupils can spend some Saturday nights at home if they want to. With a packed enrichment programme including film nights, beach trips and bake offs – alongside full use of the boat club, indoor 25m pool, gym, dance studio and nine-hole golf course – it's perhaps unsurprising that 80% of boarders choose to stay on any given weekend.

Canford School admissions process

1. Register and visit

Parents are encouraged to visit at an early stage and register with the school as soon as possible. Open days are held in April and October each year.

After visiting, you'll need to complete the registration form and pay the non-refundable fee of £200 to secure your child a place on the admissions list, known as the 'Headmaster's List'. Once your child is registered, the school will prompt you at each further stage.

The school recommends that you register before the end of Year 5. You and your child will then be invited to an 'explore day' at the start of Year 6, which includes fun activities for children as well as a parents' information session. The explore day is not part of the assessment process but is a good opportunity for you and your child to get a feel for the school and meet other prospective families.

2. Pre-assessment

• Stage 1: prep schools will arrange for children to sit the ISEB Common Pre-Test at their school. If your child doesn't attend a prep school, they can sit the test at Canford. You'll need to register directly with ISEB – the school will remind you when to do this.

• Stage 2: children who meet the required standard in Stage 1 will be invited to attend a Headmaster's List Day at Canford. This consists of a mixture of activities, tests, and informal interviews.

There are three possible outcomes of the pre-assessment:

• An unconditional place for a few of the very strongest applicants.

• A conditional place subject to passing Common Entrance or the Canford Entrance Test in Year 8.

• A waiting list place with the chance of a conditional place emerging as time goes on.

To increase flexibility for families, there are four timeline options for pre-assessment. Canford School recommends choosing the earliest option unless there is a particular reason not to do so.

• Option A: ISEB Common Pre Test in autumn of Year 6; Headmaster's List day in January/February of Year 6; outcome before Easter of Year 6.

• Option B: ISEB Common Pre Test in summer of Year 6; Headmaster's List day in October of Year 7; outcome in November of Year 7.

• Option C: ISEB Common Pre Test in autumn of Year 7; Headmaster's List day in January/February of Year 7; outcome in March of Year 7.

• Option D: ISEB Common Pre Test in spring of Year 7; Headmaster's List day in May of Year 7; outcome in May of Year 7.

You should still get in touch with the school if your child has missed these timelines, as the school can arrange late entrance tests and last minute places can become available.

How to prepare for entry to Canford School

Entry to Year 9 (13+) is significantly competitive, particularly for children seeking scholarships. Here are our top tips on how to best prepare your child for the selection process in Year 6.

Preparation is key: familiarisation with the question formats and known styles ahead of the exam is essential. Access to quality, unlimited practice material for the ISEB Common Pre-Test ensures confidence when tackling the exam.

Achieve mastery quickly: the ISEB Common Pre-Test assesses a huge amount of content. Atom's adaptive algorithm creates your child's personalised learning journey specific to your target schools, with over 90,000 expert, teacher-created resources to support your child to fully master each topic.

Access to instant support: learners need clarification to address any misconceptions and become truly secure in their understanding of a topic. Access to videos, help sheets and engaging examples for each question builds confidence and competence in all areas covered in the exam.

Engage with their progress: celebrate their improvements in their areas of challenge together! An accurate, ongoing assessment of your child’s strengths and development areas is instrumental for preparing efficiently. Atom's Parent Portal gives you data-driven insights into your child’s areas of strength and development.

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