Selective schools

There are some changes to the method of testing used for the 11 plus admissions testing at Ripon Grammar School.

For testing in September 2026, the 11 plus tests will consist of a verbal skills test and a non-verbal reasoning with mathematics test, as follows:

1. Verbal Skills: This paper combines Key Stage 2 reading comprehension and spelling test with verbal reasoning questions. All questions are multiple choice.

   The new paper replaces the Verbal Reasoning paper which has been used in previous tests and which used only verbal reasoning questions without the KS2 English comprehension element.
   
   The Verbal Skills test is in two parts:

   • English - consists of a passage to read and then answer questions about it. Approximately 14 questions. Followed by some exercises in spelling and grammar, consisting of approximately 12 questions
   • Verbal Reasoning questions - consisting of approximately 32 questions
      

2. Non-Verbal Reasoning (NVR) with mathematics: This paper combines sections on non-verbal reasoning and Key Stage 2 mathematics. All questions are multiple choice.

   The new paper replaces the non-verbal reasoning paper which has been used in previous tests and which used only non-verbal reasoning questions without the KS2 mathematics element.    

   The test is in three sections:

   • two non-verbal reasoning sections of 20 questions in each section. Instructions are given with practice questions before the timed sections
   • the mathematics section has approximately 25 questions. There are no practice questions for this section

The test material will continue to be provided and marked by GL Assessment. Parents are encouraged to ensure that their child is familiar with the types of questions set on these two papers. 

By combining elements of verbal and non-verbal reasoning, the papers will continue to test academic potential irrespective of schooling and background. By adding a new Key Stage 2 element, the tests will also respond to the teaching and learning which is conducted in your child’s school.

If your child is transferring from primary to secondary school in September 2027, the entrance test will be held on a Saturday in September 2026 at Ripon Grammar School. Date to be confirmed.

Key dates

On the test day, your child will take two tests.

Testing until September 2026

There will be two tests:

1. A Verbal Reasoning (VR) test, lasting 50 minutes. This is a continuous 50-minute paper, of 80 multiple choice questions, followed by a short rest break.
2. A Non-Verbal Reasoning (NVR) test, that consists of four sections. There are 20 multiple choice questions per section, with ten minutes to complete each section. At the beginning of each section, children are provided with brief instructions before continuing straight onto the following section. When a section has been completed and the time allowed has elapsed, your child cannot go back to answer questions on previous sections.

Testing from September 2026

From September 2026 the test will consist of two tests:

1. Verbal Skills.  
2. Non-Verbal Reasoning (NVR) and Mathematics.

For further details about the test read our changes to the Ripon Grammar School section.

It is essential that your child attempts to complete all the questions within the time allowed to give them the best possible chance of success. The time element is part of the test.

The entrance tests are designed to identify whether your child can think a problem through, and to assess their academic potential. The test papers are produced, marked and standardised by GL Assessment. 

Appropriately recruited and trained invigilators supervise and administer the tests.

Details, such as when your child should arrive and what they should bring with them, will be included in an information letter which will be provided prior to the test.

GL Assessment have produced familiarisation booklets which include examples to indicate the range of skills required to complete the assessment and the manner in which questions are answered. The booklets are not definitive and the inclusion of any question types does not guarantee that they will be found in the actual test that will be taken. 

GL Assessment also offer free practice material on their website.

You may request special arrangements for your child to complete the entrance test if they have a disability or require special resources, such as those that are put in place by the primary school. This request will be considered by the access arrangements panel.

You will be asked to outline your child’s disability and/or describe the special resources needed to enable them to sit the test.

You should discuss the need for any possible special arrangements with your child’s current headteacher as a report is requested from them. You will be required to supply detailed medical evidence to support your request, which, together with the headteacher’s report, will allow the access arrangements panel to consider the matter in full.

All requests for special arrangements must be received before the closing date for entrance test applications. Failure to notify us and provide the required evidence by midnight on that date will result in the tests taking place in April the following year.

Where all the required evidence is received and the panel are able to make a decision you will be informed whether the request has been agreed, in writing, by the end of July. You will also be notified of the date of the test. Testing under access arrangements may not take place on the test day in September.

If no special arrangements are agreed your child will be invited to sit the test on the test day in September.

Our test procedures are compliant with the requirements of the Equality Act 2010.

Ripon Grammar School offer a small number of additional places - usually 9 day places and 4 reserved boarding places - for entry into Year 9, following the successful completion of the three 13+ entrance tests in mathematics, English and science. Selection tests take place on the first Saturday in February each year, for entry the following September. Find more information on the Ripon Grammar School website.

To be considered for a place at Ripon Grammar School, all children will need to have completed the selection tests and to have met the required standard of education.

After the admission of children, with an education health care plan and the school is named in their education health care plan, where there are more applications than places available for a day place at the school, the oversubscription criteria listed below will be applied.

The admission authority will consider all preferences - first, second, third, fourth and fifth - that a particular school receives equally. Children in a higher priority group will be offered a place ahead of children in a lower priority group. Where more than one preference can be met, the local authority will offer the highest ranked preference.

Group one

This group includes looked after children and all previously looked after children for whom the school has been expressed as a preference. Children who appear to the admissions authority to have been in state care outside of England and cease to be in state care as a result of being adopted.

This applies to all looked-after children, including those who are in the care of another local authority or being provided with accommodation by a local authority in the exercise of their social services function at the time of making an application. Previously looked after children are children who were looked after, but ceased to be so because they were adopted or became subject to a child arrangement order or special guardianship order. In the case of previously looked after children, a copy of the relevant documentation will be required in support of the application. This includes children who were adopted under the Adoption Act 1976 and children who were adopted under the Adopted & Children's Act 2002. Child Arrangements Orders replace residence orders and any residence order in force prior to 22 April 2014 is deemed to be a Child Arrangements Order. 

A child is regarded as being in state care outside of England if they were accommodated by a public authority, a religious organisation or any another provider of care whose sole purpose is to benefit society.

Group two

This group includes children the authority considers have special social or medical reasons for admission.

We will only consider applications on social or medical grounds if they are supported by a professional recommendation from a doctor, social worker, or other appropriate professional. The supporting evidence should set out the particular social or medical reasons why the school in question is the only school and the difficulties that would be caused if the child had to attend another school. Panels of professionally qualified people will consider all applications made under priority group two. Find more information in our application form guidance.

Group three

This group includes children living within the catchment area of the school.

If there are not enough places for all the children in this priority group, we will give first in accordance with the tie break.

Group four

This group includes children of staff at the school.

Priority in this oversubscription criteria is given in either or both of the following circumstances: 

• a) where a member of staff has been employed at the school for more than two years at the time when the admission to the school is made, and/or 
• b) the member of staff has been recruited to fill a demonstrable skill shortage.

Group five

This group includes children living outside the catchment normal area of the school.

If there are not enough places for all the children in this priority group, we will give first in accordance with the tie break.

Tie Break for day places at Ripon Grammar School

If there are not enough places for all the children in one of the priority groups, we will give priority first to those with a sibling at the school at the time of admission and then to those living nearest the school. In all cases sibling refers to brother or sister, half brother or sister, adopted brother or sister, step-brother or sister, or the child of the parent/carer’s partner where the child for whom the school place is sought is living in the same family unit at the same address as that sibling.

If within a priority group there are not enough places for all those with a sibling at the school at the time of admission, we will give priority to those children with a sibling living nearest the school.

All distance measurements are based on the nearest route recognised by our electronic mapping system from a child's home address to school. The measurement is made from a fixed point within the dwelling, as identified by ordnance survey, to the nearest school entrance using footpaths and roads. The routes measured to determine the allocation of school places will be those recognised by the electronic mapping system used by the admissions team, and no other mapping system.

If the distance tie-break is not sufficient to distinguish between applicants in a particular priority group, a random allocation will be used.

You should name the school on your application form and submit this to your home local authority by the closing date for applying for a secondary school place.

It is your responsibility to make sure you are also familiar with the wider applications process and deadlines involved. 

Each year, there are up to 14 boarding places available in year 7 at Ripon Grammar School. Allocation of boarding places depends on your child reaching the cut-off mark and being deemed suitable for boarding using the information on the 'suitability for boarding' form.

It is possible to apply for both a day place and boarding places, however, these are considered as separate preferences. For example, you could list:

• a Ripon Grammar School day place as your first preference
• a Ripon Grammar School weekly boarding place as your second preference
• a Ripon Grammar School termly boarding place as your third preference

If you live outside North Yorkshire, please email the school admissions team at schooladmissions@northyorks.gov.uk to confirm the type of place you would like to apply for. If you would prefer a boarding place, please confirm if this is weekly, termly or both.

Please note: if you are offered a boarding, place, you cannot convert this into a day place.

Visit the Ripon Grammar School website boarding admissions page for the suitability for boarding form. You must complete this form and return it to the school.

The suitability for boarding form is used to make sure that the school can meet your child’s boarding needs. This does not secure the offer of a place - this is done through the entrance test and admissions process.

If you are considering a boarding place for your child and need more information about boarding at Ripon Grammar School, please email admissions@ripongrammar.com to organise a visit to view the boarding facilities and to meet boarding staff prior to applying.

If there are more applications than boarding places available, priority is given as follows:

1. Looked after children previously looked after children and children who appear to have been in state care outside of England.
2. Children of members of the UK Armed Forces who qualify for Ministry of Defence financial assistance with the cost of boarding school fees.
3. Children with a 'boarding need'. Children with a boarding needs include:
   • children at risk or with an unstable home environment and children of service personnel who have died while serving or who have been discharged as a result of attributable injury
   • children of key workers and Crown Servants working abroad, for example, the children of charity workers, people working for voluntary service organisations, the diplomatic service or the European Union, teachers, law enforcement officers and medical staff working abroad whose work dictates that they spend much of the year overseas
4. Applications for termly boarding.
5. Applications for weekly boarding.

Tie break

If there are not enough places for all the children in one of these priority groups, we will give priority first to those with a sibling at the school in the September of year of entry, who live the furthest from the school.

In all cases, sibling refers to brother or sister and includes children who live as brother or sister in the same house including adopted brother or sister, where the child for whom the school place is sought is living in the same family unit at the same address as that sibling then to those living furthest from the school.

The published admission number for Ripon Grammar School is 117, this includes 14 boarding places. If the total number of boarding applications does not reach 14, the remaining places are allocated as day places. For any subsequent boarding applications priority would be given to these over a day application, until 14 boarding places have been allocated.

Where the number of boarding applications for pupils who have reached the prescribed academic standard exceeds the number of places available then a boarding waiting list will be created.

To apply for an in-year transfer to Ermysted’s Grammar School, you should contact the school directly to apply for testing and make an application for a school place to us. For more information on how to make an in-year application, please see our changing schools page.

In-year applications will be considered for any vacancies in Year 8 to 11 from September, and for any vacancies in Year 7 from January.

Assessment for entry into the school will be arranged using in-house tests in English, science and mathematics. For children moving into the catchment area, the school will arrange resting as soon as possible. For all other applications testing will only take place in:

• November for admission in January
• February for admission in April
• June for admission in September

Please visit the Ermysted's Grammar School website for more information.

Where a year group is full, reaching the required standard in the tests does not guarantee a place at the school. Where there are more applications than places available, priority will be given using the oversubscription criteria.

The tests can only be taken once in any academic year.

To apply for an in-year transfer to Skipton Girls’ High School, you should contact the school directly to apply for testing and make an application for a school place to us. For more information on how to make an in-year application, please see our changing schools page.

Assessment of suitability for the school for children who wish to start after the beginning of Year 7 is arranged using tests produced by the school in English and mathematics. These tests are based on national curriculum content appropriate to the age group.

Dates for testing are published on the Skipton Girls' High School website.

Where a year group is full, reaching the required standard in the tests does not guarantee a place at the school. Where there are more applications than places available, priority will be given using the oversubscription criteria.

The tests can only be taken once in any academic year.

To apply for an in-year transfer to Ripon Grammar School, you should contact the school admissions team for a test request form and make an application for a school place. For more information on how to make an in-year application, please see our changing schools page.

Children will be required to take curriculum-based tests in English, maths, science and proficiency of a modern foreign language. These tests are arranged by the school and normally take place at the school.

Your child can be tested only once for a particular year of entry and normally this will be within their chronological age group. We do not recommend that children transfer schools beyond year 10 due to potential differences in the exam boards and the curriculum.

Where a year group is full, reaching the required standard in the tests does not guarantee a place at the school. Where there are more applications than places available, priority will be given using the oversubscription criteria.

There are a number of boarding places reserved for each year group. In year 7 and 8, 14 boarding places are available and in year 9 an additional 4 boarding places are made available. If all of the boarding places are not filled, the remaining places are allocated as day places. For any subsequent applications priority would be given to boarding applications if boarding is undersubscribed.

If you submit a late application for the entrance test, your child will be unable to sit the test before National Offer Day. Late testing will take place in April the summer term before September admission.

The exceptions to this are:

• where a late application is made because of a serious illness that can be supported by medical evidence,
• where a family have moved into the catchment area for Ripon Grammar School

If you feel it would be inappropriate for your child to take the test due to illness, family bereavement or other serious issue which may affect your child's performance, you must:

• before the test day - contact the admissions team and confirm in writing the reason why your child will not be attending
• on the test day - contact the emergency number provided on your letter immediately - you will also be required to confirm the reason for their absence in writing by 5pm on the Monday after the test day

Following receipt of written confirmation, we will then arrange an alternative test day. This may delay your child's results being provided to you.

If your child is absent on the day of the test without notifying the admissions team or calling the emergency number, they will be withdrawn from testing and alternative arrangements will not be made.

By bringing your child to the test, you are confirming that they are fit and well and there are no serious issues which could prevent them achieving their full potential. If you are unsure whether your individual circumstances fall into this category, please seek advice from the school admissions team.

After the marks have been standardised to take into account your child's age, your child's verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning scores are added together to give a total score which is used to determine whether they have reached the cut-off mark.

The results of the Ripon Grammar selection tests are used to find the highest scoring 28% or as close as possible of the year 6 cohort who live in the Ripon area. The number of children this percentage figure identifies sets the cut-off mark and the standard which children must reach to be considered as suitable for entry into Ripon Grammar School.

This table shows what the cut-off marks for Ripon Grammar School have been in the last three years.

No. If your child reaches the cut-off mark, it does not guarantee they will be allocated a place if the school is oversubscribed. The normal oversubscription criteria will apply.

Coaching for the tests is not required. However, we cannot prevent this.

The standardised marks for 'off the shelf' test available in some shops are not comparable with the marks achieved in the tests designed for North Yorkshire.

The published admission number for Ripon Grammar School is 117, this includes 14 boarding places. If the total number of boarding applications does not reach 14, the remaining places are allocated as day places. For any subsequent boarding applications priority would be given to these over a day application, until 14 boarding places have been allocated.

Where the number of boarding applications for pupils who have reached the prescribed academic standard exceeds the number of places available then a boarding waiting list will be created.