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Thinking about applying to Dr Challoner's High School? Find out everything you need to know about admissions and how to prepare your child for success in the Buckinghamshire Secondary Transfer Test.
Key information about Dr Challoner's High School
Address: Dr Challoner’s High School, Cokes Lane, Little Chalfont, Buckinghamshire, HP7 9QB
Number of pupils: 1,250+
Admissions contact: [email protected]
Number of places in Year 7: 180
11+ exam: Buckinghamshire Secondary Transfer Test
Catchment area: Yes
Dates for your diary
11+ registration opens: Friday 3rd May 2024
11+ registration closes: Friday 14th June 2024
11+ exam date: Thursday 12th September 2024
11+ results released: Friday 11th October 2024
Secondary school application deadline: 31st October 2024
School allocations: 3rd March 2025
About Dr Challoner's High School
Dr Challoner's High School is a grammar school for girls aged 11 to 18 in Little Chalfont, Buckinghamshire. The school is committed to providing the best possible education for girls. It consistently ranks within the top 30 grammar schools in state school league tables. It is also top in Buckinghamshire for value-added academic progress.
Girls at Dr Challoner's High School are encouraged to be bold, joyful, and intellectually ambitious. The school promotes the joy of learning for its own sake whilst maintaining a tradition of excellence. It offers a broad curriculum that ranges from traditional subjects to graphics and textiles. Additionally, it covers computer science, philosophy, and healthy living.
Music plays a major role in school life. It has five choirs, two orchestras, a wind band and a variety of instrumental chamber ensembles all on offer. Girls at Dr Challoner's High School also have plenty of opportunities in other co-curricular areas. These include a thriving drama programme. Moreover, there are sports fixtures in basketball, cricket, cross country, football, hockey, netball, and swimming.
How to apply to Dr Challoner's High School
Dr Challoner's High 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 Buckinghamshire, the 11 plus is known as the Buckinghamshire Secondary Transfer Test.
All children who go to a primary school in Buckinghamshire are entered to take the test. This means that you will not need to register your child separately.
If your child goes to a primary school outside of Buckinghamshire, you’ll need to register them to take the test. Registration for the 2024 exam opens on Friday 3rd May 2024 and closes on Friday 14th June 2024.
The Buckinghamshire Secondary Transfer Test will take place on Thursday 12th September 2024. You’ll receive your child’s results on Friday 11th October 2024. You can then use these results to decide whether to apply for a place at Dr Challoner's High 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 entrance exam 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 Dr Challoner's High School below.
What subjects are on the Secondary Transfer Test?
The Secondary Transfer Test consists of two one-hour papers supplied by GL Assessment.
One paper tests verbal skills. This includes English comprehension, technical English, and verbal reasoning.
The other paper tests maths and non-verbal skills. This includes Key Stage 2 maths, non-verbal reasoning and spatial reasoning.
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How does place allocation work at Dr Challoner's High School?
Your child’s total score in the entrance exam will be age-standardised and weighted. Find out how this mark is worked out in our guide to the Buckinghamshire Secondary Transfer Test.
The qualifying mark for entry to Buckinghamshire grammar schools is 121. Children are not ranked beyond this point – places are then based on your target school’s admissions criteria.
If more than 180 children applying to Dr Challoner's High School achieve a score of 121 or higher, the school applies oversubscription criteria. Children are prioritised for places in the following order:
Looked after and previously looked after girls Girls in receipt of pupil premium who qualify and live in the school catchment area Up to 12 places (within the 180 places available) will be offered to girls who live in the catchment area, are in receipt of pupil premium or are looked after/previously looked after children, and have achieved a standardised score of at least 115 Daughters of staff who work at the school Girls living in the school catchment area Sisters of girls currently attending Dr Challoner's High School Girls who have exceptional medical or social needs that can only be met by the school All further places will then be offered in distance order, with those living closest to the school given priority
Dr Challoner's High School operates a catchment area to prioritise eligible children living close to the school. This includes the areas of Amersham, Chesham, Chalfont St Giles, Chalfont Common, Gerrards Cross, Great Missenden and Prestwood.
How can I help my child prepare for the Buckinghamshire Test?
The Buckinghamshire Secondary Transfer Test is designed to be challenging. Here are our top tips to help your child prepare for the exam in September 2024.
Bitesize learning
It’s important to build a good knowledge base before the 11 plus. 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.
Read widely
11 plus exams test your child’s ability to analyse and interpret written information. Regular reading is a great way to help your child 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.
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 Buckinghamshire Secondary Transfer Test
Wish you could give your child a roadmap to success in the Secondary Transfer Test? You can. Atom Home has everything you need to get prepared, in one package.
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Navigate the Buckinghamshire Secondary Transfer Test with confidence.
Start your free trial today. Our local admissions specialists will get to work on your child’s plan. Relax, Secondary Transfer Test prep is sorted.
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