Colyton Grammar School 11+ guide

Applying to Colyton Grammar School for September 2028? This guide covers the Colyton Grammar School entrance test, the qualifying score, how Year 7 places are allocated and the key dates for September 2028 entry.

Colyton Grammar School 11+ at a glance

• School type: co-educational grammar school
• Location: Colyford, Devon
• Admissions contact: admissions@colytongrammar.com
• Number of places in Year 7: 155 (2025-entry figure — Colyton Grammar School confirms each year's admission number in its determined arrangements, published the spring before entry.)
• Qualifying score: Colyton Grammar School hasn't published a qualifying standard for 2028 entry.
• 11+ test: Colyton Grammar School entrance test (three papers on the same day: English, maths and writing)

Source: Colyton Grammar School 'Joining Our School' admissions page; test provider and format: Quest Assessments parent guidance page for the Colyton 11+. Last checked October 2026.

Key dates for September 2028 entry

Colyton confirms its own dates each year. For 2027 entry, the registration portal opened on 31 March 2026 and closed on 31 July 2026, and the test took place on Saturday 12 September 2026. The registration and test windows below follow that pattern; the Quest Assessments parent guidance page for the Colyton 11+ lists the registration closing date and assessment date as to be confirmed, and gives mid-October 2027 for results. We'll update this page as soon as the school publishes its 2028-entry dates.

How to apply to Colyton Grammar School

Colyton Grammar School is selective, so your child needs to sit the 11+ test to be considered for a place.

You register directly with Colyton Grammar School through its online registration portal, linked from the school's 'Joining Our School' page while registration is open.

Once you have your child's result, you apply by naming Colyton Grammar School on your common application form, which goes to your home local authority. For September 2028 entry the deadline is Sunday 31 October 2027. As it falls on a Sunday, you may find it easier to submit your form in the days before.

Reaching the qualifying score makes your child eligible, but it doesn't guarantee a place. If more qualifying children apply than there are places, the school uses its oversubscription criteria, set out further down this page.

What will my child be tested on?

Colyton runs its own entrance test, which is provided by Quest Assessments, one of several companies that set 11+ tests for schools. The school says the test includes English, maths and extended writing, and does not include verbal or non-verbal reasoning.

Your child sits three paper assessments on the same day, and they're non-adaptive, so the questions don't change depending on how your child answers. The papers are English (40 minutes, 50 questions), mathematics (40 minutes, 60 questions) and writing (20 minutes, one prompt). All questions in the English and maths papers are multiple choice, usually with five options (A to E). The English and maths papers use an OMR (Optical Mark Recognition) answer sheet, where your child draws a horizontal line through the chosen box.

The questions draw on the Key Stage 2 national curriculum. The school links free 11+ familiarisation material from its 'Joining Our School' page and notes that there are no commercially available practice papers.

All questions about the Colyton 11+, including registration, results, venues and special arrangements, go to the school at admissions@colytongrammar.com. The CEM Select Evaluate test mentioned on the school's site is only for in-year places in Years 7 and 8, not for September Year 7 entry.

Colyton Grammar School is named on the Quest Assessments parent guidance page for the Colyton 11+, which sets out the test format and links to the official familiarisation materials. Read our guide to the Quest Admissions exam for what the test looks like and how it's marked.

The table below shows what each paper covers.

How are places allocated at Colyton Grammar School?

If more children reach the qualifying standard than there are Year 7 places, Colyton Grammar School offers places using the oversubscription criteria in its admission arrangements. The full order is set out in the school's Year 7 Admissions Policy, linked from its 'Joining Our School' page (colytongrammar.com/95/joining-our-school-3). We'll add the list here once we've confirmed it against the school's current policy.

Does Colyton Grammar School have a catchment area?

The school describes itself as a selective co-educational academy responsible for its own testing and admission criteria. Colyton Grammar School's admission arrangements set out whether a priority area applies and how home-to-school distance is measured; we'll add the detail here once we've confirmed it against the 2028-entry arrangements.

The arrangements also set out how ties are settled between children with an equal claim to a place; we'll add the detail here once we've confirmed it against the 2028-entry arrangements.

If you don't live close to the school, it's worth thinking about how your child will get there every day. How long will the journey take? What transport options are available? Will they be travelling independently or with support?

A longer or more complex journey can affect your child's daily routine, including how much time they have for homework, rest and after-school activities. It's a good idea to think about how manageable the school run will be and whether it will work for your family day to day.

How can I help my child prepare for the Colyton 11+?

Quest Assessments publishes official familiarisation materials for the test, and that is where families should start. Atom is not an authorised source for this test and has no access to its content. The guidance below is about building the skills the test draws on.

The curriculum doesn't change

The test draws on the Key Stage 2 curriculum, which is the same material every 11+ test is built from. Atom Home covers that curriculum with over 100,000 teacher-written practice questions across English, maths, verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning, so the work a child does is useful whichever test they end up sitting.

Find the gaps early

Atom's progress insights show which topics and question types a child finds hardest, so revision goes where it's actually needed rather than across everything equally.

Practise the conditions, not the questions

Atom's mock tests are built to give children practice working to time, reading an answer sheet and holding their nerve for a full paper. Each one returns a Standardised Age Score and a breakdown of where accuracy dropped under timed conditions.