UK Education Guide
When to start preparing for UK school entry
The 7+/8+, 11+, 13+ and 16+ entry points, and how many months before the September start the schools in our guide close registration, worked out from their own admissions pages.
← All guidesLast checked: Oct 2026
UK schools run on their own calendars. Below: where each entry point sits in a child's school years, how far ahead the schools in our guide close registration (counted from their own admissions pages), and what to do at each stage.
The entry points and your child's age
7+ / 8+
7+ and 8+: entry into Year 3 and Year 4 at some independent schools. Each school sets its own process.
7+ and 8+ preparation11+
Year 7. Loughborough Grammar School's record says the child must be 11 by 1 September of the year of entry.
11+ entrance preparation13+
Year 9. The same school's record says 13 by 1 September of the year of entry. Candidates are often assessed earlier, in Year 6, 7 or 8, depending on the school.
13+ entrance preparation16+
Year 12 (Sixth Form), typically age 16 or 17 per Clifton College's record.
16+ sixth-form entrance preparation
When schools in our guide close registration
Months between a school's stated registration closing date and 1 September of the entry year. Only records that give a closing date and an entry year (or a position in the school years, such as "30 September of Year 6") are counted; where a record lists several dates, the earliest is used.
| Entry point | Closes earliest (months before) | Median | Closes latest | Schools counted (N) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11+ | 15 | 10 | 9 | 10(of 26 schools with a 11+ record) |
| 13+ | 37 | 35 | 8 | 12(of 28 schools with a 13+ record) |
| 16+ | 13 | 11 | 10 | 10(of 26 schools with a 16+ record) |
- 7+ and 8+ are not in the table: none of the school records in our entry data covers them.
- A few schools close registration in the autumn of the year before entry, others years earlier, and some state no date. A small number of schools per entry point means the figures are a guide, not a rule. Dates change every year.
What to do, and when
Generic steps. Tailor them to each school's own dated page.
- 1
2 years before entry
Make a shortlist and read each school's admissions page. Note which schools ask for registration this early; the table shows that some do. Register where a school invites it.
- 2
1 year before entry
Confirm every registration is in before its closing date. Check the assessment type each school uses (ISEB Common Pre-Test, the school's own test, a county test). Start preparing for that test type, in English, maths and reasoning.
- 3
6 months before the assessment
Practise under test conditions, prepare for the interview (several schools in our data interview candidates), and arrange the school reference some schools request.
Each school's own page is the source
Dates here are summaries. Open the school's profile for its own dated admissions page, and confirm with the school before relying on a date.
Profiles checked: 13 Oct 2026 to 14 Oct 2026
- Eton College
- Harrow School
- Tonbridge School
- Westminster School
- Marlborough College
- Winchester College
- Epsom College
- Dulwich College
- Cheltenham Ladies' College
- Wycombe Abbey
- The Perse School
- St Albans High School for Girls
- Pate's Grammar School
- Bablake School
- North London Collegiate School
- Abingdon School
- Leicester Grammar School
- Stockport Grammar School
- Rugby School
- Benenden School
- Brighton College
This guide is general information, not legal or immigration advice. Rules, fees and dates change: always check the official source (GOV.UK, the exam board or the school), or ask us.
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