SWH consortium 11 plus: 2024 entry guide

Looking for information about the 11 plus for selective schools in South West Hertfordshire? If your child is due to start secondary school in September 2024, we've collated everything you need to know here. Keep reading to learn what to expect from the South West Herts application process and how to prepare for the exam.

Music aptitude test

The first stage music test is a written test consisting of 60 questions in four sections, played on a CD. It takes about 45 minutes in total and is held in the afternoon after school.

The questions assess your child's understanding of pitch, melody, rhythm and texture:

• Pitch – 20 questions: pupils listen to two sounds and have to indicate whether the second sound is the same as the first, or whether it is higher or lower. Some of the pitches are less than a semitone apart.

• Melody – 10 questions: pupils listen to two tunes consisting of five notes. They have to decide whether the second tune is the same as the first or if one of the notes has been altered. If there is a change, they need to identify which note has been altered, by giving the number of the note.

• Texture – 20 questions: pupils listen to a chord and must decide whether each chord has two, three or four notes.

• Rhythm – 10 questions: pupils listen to two patterns of notes and have to decide whether the second pattern is the same as, or different from, the first, and where any difference occurs. Each rhythm is four beats in length.

Your child's first stage music test results will be available on Thursday 14th September. Children who are successful in the first stage music test are invited to the second stage which takes place the following week. In the second stage, your child must play or sing a piece of their choice for examiners. Marks are awarded for accuracy, musicality and musical communication, from a total score out of 45.

More details can be found here.

Sports test

The sports test is for Queens' School only and is arranged by the school itself. The test covers core movement skills selected from the Council of European Physical Fitness:

• Sit-ups (30 seconds)

• Endurance run (8 minutes)

• Shuttle run (speed and agility)

• Sit and reach (flexibility)

• Standing broad jump (explosive strength)

• Plate tapping (speed of limb movement)

• Flamingo test (balance)

As there are a large number of applicants for this test, the school states that only children with exceptional sports aptitude and who live within Queens' School catchment area should apply (WD3-WD7, WD17-WD19, WD23–WD25, AL2 (south of M25), HA6, HA5 3**, HA5 4**, HA3 6**, HA7 3**, HA7 4**).

More details can be found here.

What is the pass mark for SWH 11 plus?

There is no single pass mark for the academic test. Instead, the scores are ranked and the highest-scoring children are eligible for consideration. Schools define their own cut-off scores each year after the tests are marked, based on their unique admissions criteria and the performance of the cohort.

Achieving the cut-off score doesn't guarantee a place at the school of your choice, as schools could still be oversubscribed with qualified candidates. We always recommend researching the admission policies for your target schools, looking at their oversubscription criterion and their catchment area.

For example, many schools are more likely to admit a lower-scoring pupil in their priority zones than a higher-scoring child who lives further away. Other criteria are applied, such as whether a child has a sibling at the school or a parent who works at the school, if they have an Education, Health and Care plan, or if they are a Looked After Child.

Children's 11 plus scores are standardised to even out any age disadvantage for children born later in the year.

The schools publish the lowest scores which have achieved entry in recent years. Treat these as a general guide only, because it isn't possible to predict the performance of each year's cohort or how many children will be offered places under priority criteria.