Bexley 11 Plus Selection Test and Grammar Schools

Bexley's September 2026 Selection Test was for September 2027 school entry. Results have been emailed. If you are applying now, the next step is the separate secondary school application, plus any supplementary form the school requires. A selective result is eligibility for consideration, not an ordinary school-place offer.

Current test provider and format

Bexley Council's test guide names Quest Assessments as provider. Use the council-linked Quest familiarisation resources for the relevant cycle. General reasoning practice should not be sold or treated as a reproduction of that test.

The published 2026 format has two timed multiple-choice booklets, approximately 50 minutes each plus instructions, taken in one session. Working goes in the test booklet; no separate rough paper is supplied. The session includes a break.

The total age-standardised score weights verbal ability and English comprehension at 50%, numerical reasoning at 25%, and non-verbal reasoning at 25%. The council describes numerical content as no higher than the end of Year 5. These weights describe scoring, not a rule to spend exactly half a child's study time on one subject. Choose practice from the child's needs and the published specification.

Do not carry a previous year's qualifying score into another cycle. Use the selective decision in your child's result email. Our standardised-score guide explains why a raw percentage and a standardised result are different things.

Four schools, four admission policies

The council's September 2027 directory lists:

• Beths Grammar School, boys: 192 Year 7 places.
• Bexley Grammar School, mixed: 210.
• Chislehurst and Sidcup Grammar School, mixed: 192.
• Townley Grammar School, girls: 224.

Those school-specific 2027 figures total 818 places. Each school's published 2027-28 arrangements also confirms its own intake: Beths' published admission number is 192, Bexley Grammar's agreed admission number is 210, Chislehurst and Sidcup states 192 intended admissions, and Townley's admission number is 224. For school-level admissions, use each school's published arrangement; 818 is the sum of those four figures, not an estimate of your child's chance of an offer.

Historical demand is also different from current probability. The test guide reports that 5,866 sat in 2025 and 2,070 were deemed selective. These are not the 2026 test results, not all of those families necessarily applied to the same schools, and a selective child may receive a higher preference elsewhere.

Examples of school-specific differences

Beths' 2027 policy prioritises eligible looked-after children, top-180 scorers, siblings and staff children before its up-to-12 Pupil Premium/free-school-meal category and distance criterion. Its sibling and premium supplementary forms are due 30 October 2026, earlier than the council application deadline. Check the full definitions and tie-breaks.

Beths' later criterion 8 is narrow: the boy must have been deemed selective in the Kent Test and be within five marks of the Bexley qualifying score, with confirmation supplied. It follows the preceding criteria and does not turn a Kent result into Bexley selectivity generally. Ask the school about the required evidence and form. Do not assume that passing Kent alone qualifies a child for this route.

Bexley Grammar's 2027 policy gives up to 12 selective Pupil Premium places, with its form and evidence due 31 October 2026, as well as the home-authority application naming the school. Other categories include looked-after children, top-180 scorers, siblings, staff children and distance. Read their order and definitions in the policy.

Townley's 2027 policy includes 20 Pupil Premium places at the qualifying score. If that category is not filled, it describes further premium consideration up to 2% below the selective score. It also has a separate further-allocation process if places remain after selective girls have been offered places. Neither is a general promise of admission below the threshold.

Chislehurst and Sidcup's 2027-28 policy sets intended admissions at 192. Its ordered criteria include looked-after children, up to 12 selective Pupil Premium places ranked by distance, top-180 scorers, siblings, staff children, then distance. Pupil Premium applicants must send the school's supplementary form by 31 October and also name the school on the Common Application Form. Read the policy for its definitions and tie-break rules. The council directory also confirms that the form is for Pupil Premium applicants only.

Which dates apply now?

The 2026 registration and test timetable was:

• Registration: 1 to 31 March 2026.
• Primary-school test centres: 2 to 10 September 2026.
• Grammar-school test centres: 7 to 10 September 2026.
• Results: email from 4pm on 2 October 2026.

These dates have passed. They do not establish the timetable for a test taken in 2027 for September 2028 entry. Check the council's next published cycle rather than assuming the same dates.

The normal birth range for the 2026 test was 1 September 2015 to 31 August 2016. The council directs families transferring outside the normal age group to contact Admissions; it is not an automatic bar on every child outside those dates.

For September 2027 school entry, Bexley residents' online school application closes at 11.59pm on 31 October 2026. Residents elsewhere apply through their home council. Bexley allows up to six preferences, considered under each school's criteria, and offers the highest preference available. Put schools in your genuine order and include suitable alternatives. Submit the application and save its confirmation (application guidance).

Reviews and offers

The headteacher review request window was 5 to 16 October 2026 and has closed. The panel considers requests in November, with outcomes to headteachers by 24 November. Families with a pending review should not wait to submit the secondary application; the council asks them to include a Bexley grammar preference so a successful review can be considered.

A review and an admission appeal are different processes. Follow the school's appeal guidance if it later refuses a place. National Offer Day is 1 March 2027. Our Bexley results next-steps guide covers the immediate application job.

Preparing for a future cycle

Start with the council's current cycle and the target schools' policies. Open the linked familiarisation resources before buying provider-specific material. Practise new methods without a timer first, then add suitable timed work if it helps the child prepare for the local format. An app or mock is practice support, not an official paper or a guarantee of admission.

The date lookup below is cycle-labelled. Check that its entry year matches the one you need.

Use our Bexley school directory to compare the four schools and follow their official admissions links.