King Edward VI Handsworth Grammar School for Boys 11+ guide

About King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls

King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls is a grammar school founded in 1883. The school is both proud of its tradition and forward-thinking. It aims to prepare students to meet the challenges of a fast-paced and ever-changing world.

An extensive programme of building work has been carried out at KEVI Handsworth School for Girls in recent years. New facilities include specialist classrooms, specialist suites for design and technology, science labs, sports facilities, and a new library.

KEVI Handsworth School for Girls is rated outstanding by Ofsted, and was named 'Best School in the West Midlands' by the Birmingham Mail in 2018.

How to apply to King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls

King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls is a selective state school. This means that your child will need to take the 11 plus exam to be eligible for a place in Year 7.

King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls is a member of the West Midlands Grammar Schools partnership. The partnership consists of 19 schools across Birmingham, Warwickshire, Shropshire, Walsall and Wolverhampton. All 19 schools share the same entrance test. This means that your child will only need to take the test once – even if you’re applying to multiple schools in the partnership.

The registration portal for the West Midlands Grammar Schools Entrance Test opens on Tuesday 7th May 2024 and closes at 4pm Friday 28th June 2024. After registration, your child will be invited to take the 11 plus exam at one of the participating schools. They will be allocated a test venue and a slot to take the test between Saturday 14th September and Monday 16th September. You’ll then receive your child’s results on Friday 18th October.

To apply to King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls, 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 King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls below.

How does place allocation work at King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls?

Your child’s marks in the West Midlands Grammar Schools Entrance Test are weighted for each section:

• English and verbal reasoning: 50%

• Non-verbal reasoning: 25%

• Maths: 25%

These weighted scores are age-standardised to ensure that younger children aren’t disadvantaged.

King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls will then set a qualifying score. This isn’t always decided until after the entrance test takes place. As a guide, the minimum qualifying score for entry to King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls in 2024 was 232.

If the number of children who have achieved the qualifying score exceeds the number of places available, King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls applies oversubscription criteria. Children are prioritised for places in the following order:

1. Looked-After or previously Looked-After Children who achieve the qualifying score, ranked by test score and then by distance from the school.

2. Children who get free school meals, achieve the qualifying score, and live in the catchment area, ranked by distance from the school.

3. If fewer than 48 places are filled by children in category 2, places are offered to children who get free school meals, achieve the qualifying score and live outside the catchment area.

4. Children who achieve the priority score and live in the catchment area. Prioritised if they have a sibling at the school, then ranked by distance from the school.

5. Children who achieve the qualifying score, ranked by test score. Where scores are equal, priority is given to children with a sibling at the school, then ranked by distance from the school.

What is the catchment area for King Edward VI Handsworth School for Girls?

The catchment area consists of home addresses that are in these electoral wards:

• Birmingham: Alum Rock, Aston, Birchfield, Bromford & Hodge Hill, Castle Vale, Edgbaston, Erdington, Garretts Green, Glebe Farm & Tile Cross, Gravelly Hill, Handsworth, Handsworth Wood, Heartlands, Holyhead, Kingstanding, Ladywood, Lozells, Nechells, Newtown, North Edgbaston, Oscott, Perry Barr, Perry Common, Pype Hayes, Shard End, Sheldon, Soho & Jewellery Quarter, Stockland Green, Sutton Four Oaks, Sutton Mere Green, Sutton Reddicap, Sutton Roughley, Sutton Trinity, Sutton Vesey, Sutton Walmley & Minworth, Sutton Wylde Green, Ward End, Yardley East, Yardley West & Stechford.

• Sandwell: Smethwick, Soho & Victoria, St Paul’s, West Bromwich.

• Solihull: Castle Bromwich, Chelmsley Wood, Kingshurst & Fordbridge, Smith’s Wood.