Reading School

• The Reading School 11 Plus entrance exam consists of three elements: English, Maths and Creative Writing. All 3 elements will be tested on one day in September and all tests will take place at Reading School.

A Familiarisation booklet will be available in May 2021.

• You need to register your child for the Reading School Admission Test by completing the online registration form on the school admissions website.
• The purpose of registration is for your child to take the entrance test, not apply for a place at Reading School. Based on the results, you will still need to provide your child’s school preferences to your local authority on the Common Application Form (CAF).
• Online registration for the 2021 exam will open on Saturday 1st May 2021 and close on  at midnight on Wednesday 30th June 2021.

It is extremely challenging to secure entry to Reading School, with over 7 boys applying for every place and less than 42.9% of those achieving a qualifying score (108 or above) likely to gain admission.*

The qualifying score of Reading School pupils who sat the entrance exam in 2020 for entry in 2021 is 108 (excluding those on pupil premium, service premium, or a child in care or previously in care and residing in Reading School’s designated area).

Even if your son achieves and exceeds the qualifying score, he is not guaranteed a space. The exam is highly competitive, with places offered to the highest scoring candidates.  If the number of students that meet or exceed the the qualifying score is higher than the admission number for 2021 (150), the school’s oversubscription criteria is applied. In other words, places are allocated in order priority based on the criteria set by the school. Reading School’s criteria differs slightly between day places and boarding places, but in both cases, first priority is give to pupils in care or previously in care, followed by pupils whose permanent address is in Reading School’s designated area and who are in receipt of Pupil Premium or Service Premium.  Please see the school’s admission policy for further information.

In the 2020 exam, 350 students achieved Reading School’s qualifying score of 108 or above (compared with 338 in 2019), with only 150 places available, including 138 day places and 12 boarding places. The highest scoring candidate in the 2020 exam achieved a standardised score of 127.07 (compared with 128.5 in the 2019 exam).  Reading School does not publish the lowest qualifying score of a child that was admitted until a year after the exam. The lowest qualifying score of a child that was admitted in September 2020 was 112.33 for day places (compared to 112.43 in 2019) and 108.54 for boarding places (compared to 109.07 in 2019). This does not include candidates who qualified in categories 1 to 3 of the oversubscription criteria, such as those in care or in receipt of pupil premium.

For pupils in care or previously in care (categories 1 and 2), or pupils with a permanent address in Reading School’s designated area and in receipt of Pupil Premium or Service Premium (category 3), the qualifying score for September 2020 was 103.00.  This means that pupils that achieved the qualifying score of 103 or above will be offered a place at Reading School before categories 4 and 5 are applied.

* For September 2021 entry, 1,076 boys applied to Reading School, including 826 who sat the test at the school and 250 that sat the test at another venue and requested that their results were shared with Reading School.  That is more than 7 boys applying for each of the 150 spaces available.  Only 350 of the 1,076 boys that applied achieved the qualifying score of 108.  Therefore, as some pupils may be admitted from categories 1, 2 or 3 with a qualifying score of 103, we can assume that less than 42.9% (i.e. less than 150) of the 350 boys that achieved the qualifying score of 108 will secure a 2021 place at Reading School.

Reading School has indicated that the 2021 results will be announced in the middle of October 2021.

• If you wish your child to be considered for entry to Reading School, you are required to name the school on the Common Application Form (CAF).
• Common Application Forms open online on Wednesday 1st September 2021 and you will have until the end of 31st October 2021 to submit it to your Local Authority.
• School places for September 2022 will be confirmed on 1st March 2022.
• In whichever year you are applying, you can name up to 6 schools on your CAF.
• If you live outside Reading, you must apply through your own Local Authority – even if your child currently attends a Reading primary school.