St George's College, Weybridge 11+ entry guide

Considering St George's College, Weybridge for your child? We’ve collated everything you need to know about 11+ entry. Learn how to apply, what’s on the entrance exam, and how to help your child prepare for success.

Key information for St George's College, Weybridge

• Address: St George's College, Weybridge, Weybridge Road, Addlestone, Surrey, KT15 2QS
• Age range and gender: boys and girls aged 11–18
• Type of school: independent day
• Number of students: 1,000+
• Admissions contact: [email protected]
• 11+ open days: September and April
• 11+ selection criteria: CEM test, English and maths papers, interview, school reference
• Financial assistance: means-tested bursaries
• 11+ scholarships: academic, art, music, drama, sport

About St George's College, Weybridge

St George's College, Weybridge is an independent day school for boys and girls aged 11 - 18. It is part of the larger St George’s school, which is located in Surrey. It is the only Josephite Catholic school in the UK. The school’s ethos is built on Catholic and Josephite traditions and values.

The school offers a ‘perfectly balanced education’. It seeks not only to develop academic success in each pupil, but to identify and nurture their individual talents. The school has impressive facilities and small class sizes. The facilities at St George’s College are constantly being enhanced, ensuring they’re the best-of-the-best. On the school site are 13 science labs, a large Design & Technology suite and an Activity Centre. The school is set in 100 acres of parkland.

Academic results are consistently high. This is despite the fact that the school purposefully does not take part in national league tables. St George’s is the only school in the country to assign two tutors to each tutor group. This delivers more personalised attention, allowing students to thrive. Digital teaching and learning are emphasised in the classroom, preparing students for the modern world around them.

Dates for your diary

• Registration closes: October in Year 6
• Entrance exams and interview: December in Year 6
• Offers of places: February in Year 6

St George's College, Weybridge 11+ entrance exam

All children applying for 11+ entry to St George's College take the CEM Select exam. This is a computer assessment designed by the Centre of Evaluation and Monitoring (CEM). Schools use the exam to get an idea of a child’s academic potential and ability.

The CEM Select exam has a time limit of one hour and is split into six sections. This is a non-adaptive test, so all children see the same questions in the same order. Question types include multiple-choice, drag and drop, and auto-complete.

The core sections in the test are comprehension, missing words, numerical ability and pictures. These sections are often supplemented with one or two more sections which test verbal reasoning.

• Comprehension: the reading comprehension section is one of the longest in the test. Your child will need to read a passage of fiction or non-fiction text, and answer questions to assess their understanding of the text and the extent of their vocabulary.
• Missing words: your child will see two passages of text, one after the other. Both contain missing words. They will need to work out the missing words in each passage.
• Numerical ability: this section of the test assesses your child’s maths skills and knowledge. These questions are aligned to the Key Stage 2 maths curriculum.
• Pictures: the pictures section assesses non-verbal reasoning. For each question, your child will need to choose a picture to complete a set.

St George’s College entrance exam also includes papers in English and maths. The English paper assesses extended writing, comprehension and technical skills. An interview with a senior member of staff also takes place on this day.

Atom’s top tips for applying to St George's College

St George's College is a selective school, and competition for places can be high. Here are our top tips to help your child prepare for the selection process.

Bitesize learning

It’s important to build a good knowledge base before school entrance exams. Your child should have a good understanding of the content they’ve been taught at school before testing their knowledge with practice tests.

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.

With Atom Home, you don’t need to worry about creating a study schedule. When you enter your target schools, you’ll get a bespoke learning plan tailored to your schools’ entrance exams. Know exactly what your child needs to do each week to confidently pass.

Read widely

Entrance exams test children’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.

Looking for reading inspiration? Check out our Key Stage 2 reading list.

Hone curiosity

Selective schools are often looking for children who are interested in learning. You can help by supporting your child’s broader learning, their intellectual curiosity, and their passion for developing an understanding of the world.

Talk to your child about the world we live in and inspire an interest in current affairs with age-appropriate journalism. It’s also a good idea to make sure they’re benefitting from a rich variety of experiences, such as visiting libraries, museums and galleries.

Refine exam technique

When your child feels confident with their knowledge of the exam topics, they’ll be ready to put their knowledge to the test.

Mock tests can help your child develop problem-solving skills and refine exam technique. They’re also a great way to consolidate learning, while highlighting any knowledge gaps they might want to tackle before exam day.

When you set St George's College as a target school on Atom Home, your child will get CEM Select mock tests as part of their learning plan. Know what to expect on exam day.

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.