Grammar school application timeline: key dates for 2027 entry
If your child is going into Year 6 this September, they are in the 2027 entry cycle: sitting the 11+ in autumn 2026 for a place in September 2027. The admissions calendar is unforgiving, several deadlines fall before the results arrive, and one of them (test registration) passes before most families have started thinking about any of this.
Here is the whole cycle in one place. Exact dates vary by area and school, so treat this as the map and confirm each date against your local authority and each target school.
The cycle at a glance
| When | What happens |
|---|---|
| Spring to summer 2026 (Year 5) | Test registration opens and closes |
| September 2026 (early Year 6) | The 11+ is sat |
| Mid October 2026 | Results arrive |
| 31 October 2026 | National deadline for the secondary school application (CAF) |
| 1 March 2027 | National Offer Day |
| Spring 2027 | Waiting lists and appeals |
Test registration: the deadline that catches people out
You register your child for the 11+ directly with the school or the testing consortium, and this is completely separate from the school application you make later through the council.
Most areas open registration around May of Year 5 and close it between June and early July. A few stay open into early September. If registration has closed, there is usually no late entry, and with it goes any realistic route to a place.
If you are reading this in the summer before Year 6 and have not registered, check every target school's admissions page today. Some areas will still be open.
September 2026: test day
Most grammar school tests are sat in the first three weeks of September, often on a Saturday, either at the school itself or at your child's primary. The test content is Maths, English, Verbal and Non-verbal Reasoning in most areas.
Two children rarely have identical timetables: if you are applying to schools in different areas, expect different test dates, and check they do not clash.
31 October 2026: the Common Application Form
Every family in England applies for secondary school through their own local authority's Common Application Form (CAF), listing up to six schools in order of preference, by 31 October.
Most areas return 11+ results in mid October, before the CAF deadline, precisely so you can decide whether to list a grammar school with your eyes open. Two points that save people from mistakes:
- List a realistic non-selective school too. A qualifying score does not guarantee a place, so a CAF filled only with grammar schools is a gamble. There is a separate guide to building the school list.
- Preference order is confidential. Schools never see where you ranked them, so put the school you actually want first.
1 March 2027: National Offer Day
Offers land on 1 March through the council's admissions portal and by email. You get exactly one offer: the highest preference on your list that can take your child.
Accept the offer by the stated deadline even if you plan to chase a different school through a waiting list or appeal. Accepting does not weaken either route, and declining without a confirmed alternative leaves you with nothing.
After offer day: waiting lists and appeals
Missed out on a preferred school? Two routes run in parallel:
- Waiting lists are ordered by the school's oversubscription criteria, not by when you joined, and they move most in the first weeks after offer day as families holding multiple options let go.
- Appeals go to an independent panel, usually heard in spring and early summer. For grammar schools, appeals mostly argue either that the test result did not reflect the child's ability (with supporting evidence) or that the admission arrangements were not applied correctly.
Neither route is a long shot in general: waiting lists in particular resolve a lot of places every year.
What to do now
If the test is this September: registration is the urgent item, then a steady daily practice routine through the summer, moving to timed papers in the final weeks. If your child is younger, the best move is unhurried skill-building. Either way, the calendar above is the whole game: nothing on it is difficult, but all of it is dated.