Gravesend Grammar School is a highly selective grammar school in Kent.
The entrance exam for this school is the Kent Test (11+).
Many families assume that strong performance guarantees a place. In reality, oversubscription and admissions rules mean that even well-prepared pupils can miss out, often by margins parents never realised existed.
The questions below address the issues parents most commonly misunderstand when considering this school.
Gravesend Grammar School is a selective grammar school and children must pass an entrance examination to be considered for admission. In recent years the number of applicants has exceeded the number of available places. In short, pupils need strong test performance and, when there are more eligible applicants than places, they must also meet the school’s oversubscription criteria to secure a place.
No. It is likely that the number of students who passed the test will be greater than the number of places available. *In 2025, 246 students named Gravesend Grammar School as their first-choice preference, but only 210 places were available. As a result, the school was oversubscribed and its published oversubscription criteria were applied to determine which applicants were offered places.
*https://www.kentonline.co.uk/kent/news/revealed-the-kent-schools-struggling-to-attract-pupils-afte-319173/The Kent 11+ exam assesses English, Mathematics, Verbal Reasoning, Non-Verbal Reasoning, and Creative Writing.
Oversubscription means that more children apply for a school than there are places available.
Before oversubscription criteria are applied, children with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) that names the school will be offered a place.
If the number of applications exceeds the number of places available, places will be allocated in the following order of priority:
Looked After Children and Previously Looked After Children
Children who are currently in care or who were previously in care.
Medical Health, Social and Special Access Reasons
Priority may be given where a child’s physical or mental health needs, or those of a parent or guardian, make attendance at this specific school essential.
Sibling Link (Current Family Association)
Children who have a sibling attending the school at the time of entry.
Child of Staff Member
Children who have a parent who has been a member of staff for more than 2 years.
Children who live within the Borough of Gravesham
Child who live in the civil parishes of Ash-cum-Ridley, Bean, Fawkham, Hartley, Longfield and New Barn, Southfleet, Swanscombe and Greenhithe and Stansted
Children who live within the civil parishes of Stone, Darenth, Horton Kirby and South Darenth, Cliffe and Cliffe Woods.
All other eligible children
Please note that within each criterion, children in receipt of Pupil Premium will be ranked highest.
No — you do not have to live in Kent to apply to Gravesend Grammar School.
Families living outside Kent are welcome to apply and register for the entrance assessments. However, if the school is oversubscribed, distance from home to school is one of the factors used in the oversubscription criteria, which can make it more competitive for applicants who live further away.
Register for the Kent Test (11+)
Parents must register their child for the Kent Test through Kent County Council by the published deadline.
Receive test results
You will be informed whether your child has met the grammar school standard.
Submit the Secondary Common Application Form (SCAF)
Parents must complete the SCAF through Kent County Council, ranking schools in order of preference.
Submit the Supplementary Information Form
If your child has been registered for free school meals in the last 6 years, complete this form.
Offers are made
School places are offered on National Offer Day - If more eligible children apply than there are places, oversubscription criteria are used to decide who is offered a place.
Waiting list or appeal (if needed)
If a place is not offered, parents can choose to join the waiting list and/or submit an appeal.
If your child has a disability or special educational needs which will affect their access to testing, you need to discuss this with their primary school's special educational needs coordinator (SENCO) before you register them for the test as the school will need to apply for any necessary access arrangements.
It is helpful for pupils to practise the types of questions they may be asked, particularly verbal and non-verbal reasoning, as these question styles are often unfamiliar to many children. It is also beneficial to become familiar with exam techniques, such as working to time, understanding instructions and managing pressure on the day. Preparation can help identify and bridge any gaps in knowledge and support from an experienced tutor can guide pupils through all of these areas, building confidence and ensuring they are able to show their true ability in the test environment.
We understand that parents often have specific questions when exploring schools, entrance exams or preparation options. You’re very welcome to ask us a question and we’ll do our best to point you in the right direction.
Address: Gravesend Grammar School, Church Walk, Gravesend, DA12 2PR
County: Kent
School Website: www.gravesendgrammar.com
School Type: Boys
Number of pupils: 1353
Number of Places in Year 7: 210
Open Day Date: Contact school
Exam Date: September
Exam Board Type: GL and Dover Test (Quest)
Gravesend Grammar School is a larger than average selective school for boys aged 11-18. The school accepts girls to join in the Sixth Form. Gravesend Grammar School joined as a member of Aletheia Academies Trust in 2025.
Gravesend Grammar School provides a rigorous academic curriculum, a wide range of extra curricular activities and it offers excellent opportunities for the arts. The school has a strong focus on technology and aspires to equip its students with the skills for lifelong learning.
Ofsted made the following key judgements following the school inspection of Gravesend Grammar School on 19 March 2025:
Quality of education:
Good
Behaviour and attitudes:
Outstanding
Personal development:
Outstanding
Leadership and management:
Good
Sixth form provision:
Good
Your child will need to develop the following skills:
English
Maths
Verbal Reasoning
Non-Verbal Reasoning
Creative Writing
Preparing for the 11+ can feel overwhelming, especially with different exam formats and timelines to consider. If you’d like structured guidance and personalised support, you can find out more about our 11+ tuition services using the link below.
The tests are multiple-choice with a separate answer sheet. They are marked by an automated marking machine.
The first test will be an English and maths paper and will take 1 hour. Each section will involve a 5-minute practice exercise followed by a 25-minute test. The English section will involve a comprehension exercise as well as some additional questions drawn from a set designed to test literacy skills.
The second test will be a reasoning paper. It will take about 1 hour, including the practice sections and questions. It will contain a verbal reasoning section and a non-verbal reasoning section of roughly the same length. The non-verbal reasoning will be split into short sections, administered and timed individually.
There will also be a writing exercise which will not be marked but may be used by a local headteacher panel as part of the headteacher assessment stage of the process. 40 minutes will be allowed for the writing task, including 10 minutes planning time.
This document explains the Kent Test papers for children who will take them.
In the first instance, parents must register their child to sit the Kent Test, which can be done online via Kent County Council. Once students have taken the test in September, parents will receive their results in October and must then submit their Secondary School Common Application Form (SCAF) via the Kent local authority website.
Your child will get 3 standardised scores, one for English, one for maths and one for reasoning, and a total (aggregate) score.
Standardisation is a statistical process which compares your child's performance with the average performance of other children in each test. A slight adjustment is made to take account of each child's age so that the youngest are not at a disadvantage.
The grammar school threshold for the test will not be published until the results have been sent out.
In order to calculate a standardised score the company producing and marking the tests will create a reference table – called a “look-up table” – for each test paper that is written, and the table is specific to that test paper, because it takes account of the difficulty of the paper. The minimum standardised score is derived from the look-up table and the actual number will vary depending on the average score of all those taking the test and the number of applicants.
Below is an example look-up table. The vertical axis is the “raw score”, i.e. the number (percentage) of actual questions that a child gets right on a paper. The horizontal axis represents the age of the child at the time of taking the exam, shown as years + months.
In 2025, children needed a total score of 332 or more, with no single score lower than 108 to be allocated a place at a Kent grammar school. Test scores ranged from 68 to 141. The highest possible total score is 423.
If your child did not reach the threshold score and their primary school referred their case to the local Head Teacher Assessment Panel, the panel will have looked at their achievement in school and examples of their work, including the writing task completed on the day, before a final decision was made.
If your child does not qualify, the Head does not seek a review or if the review is unsuccessful, you still have the right to have your child’s case heard by an Independent Appeals Panel. You are only able to appeal a decision after school allocations have been sent out to parents in March.
In-Year Admissions are for students applying to join the school after the normal Year 7 entry point, up to Year 11. Applications are considered in line with the Schools Admissions Code, but offers depend on both availability and whether the student meets the academic requirements, including passing the Kent Test (11+) or the school’s own entrance test.
Currently, all year groups from Years 7 to 11 are full and operating above their Published Admission Number (PAN). As a result, no further places are available and this is unlikely to change. A waiting list is held for Year 7 only, while applications for other year groups will be declined. Appeals will be heard in line with the School Admission Appeals Code.
Our 11+ admissions consultations help parents think through school choice, entrance pathways and preparation priorities before committing to preparation.