'What score do you need for the 11+?' — it is probably the question most parents search for, and the honest answer is that it depends on the area and the school. But the mechanism behind the number is the same everywhere: raw marks are converted into a standardised age score, adjusted for the child's age in months, with an average of 100. Here is how that works, what a 'qualifying score' is, why a qualifying score does not always mean a place, and what the results letter actually tells you.
It is important to understand in advance: there is no single national pass mark. What is published is the mechanism — standardisation, the age adjustment and the local qualifying rule — and that is exactly what is collected here.
Raw marks become a standardised age score
Your child's raw mark on each paper (say 38 out of 50) is not the score that matters. It is converted by the test provider into a standardised score on a scale where the average of all children who sat the test is 100 and the standard deviation is 15. That means roughly two thirds of children score between 85 and 115, and only about 2% score above 130. The conversion is done separately for each paper, and then the papers are combined — sometimes added, sometimes weighted (for example maths counted twice) — according to the local rule.
Standardisation is relative to the cohort that sat the test in that area in that year — not to a fixed national standard. A child could get the same raw mark in two different years and receive slightly different standardised scores, because the cohort's performance shifted.
The age adjustment
The 'age' in standardised age score means the score is also adjusted for the child's exact age in months on the day of the test. An 11+ cohort spans a full year of birthdays — a child born in September is almost a year older than a classmate born the following August — and older children tend to score slightly higher on raw marks. The adjustment removes that advantage, so that a summer-born child who performs as well as the typical child of their exact age gets the same standardised score as an autumn-born child who performs as well as the typical child of theirs.
Qualifying score versus ranking — the local rule
Areas turn the standardised score into an admissions decision in one of two ways, and it matters which yours uses:
| Method | How it works | Where you see it |
|---|---|---|
| A qualifying score | A fixed threshold on the combined score (sometimes with a minimum on each paper). Every child at or above it is 'of grammar school standard'; places are then allocated by the school's oversubscription criteria — distance, siblings, catchment | County-wide systems such as Kent and Buckinghamshire |
| Ranking | No threshold. All candidates are ranked by score and the school offers places from the top until it is full; the effective pass mark is whatever the last admitted child scored, and changes every year | 'Super-selective' grammar schools, often in London and the Home Counties |
The actual threshold or cut-off for your area is published by the local authority or the school — often only after the results — and figures you see quoted online for other counties do not transfer. If a number matters to you, look it up on the official page for the school you are naming.
What is actually tested
The 11+ is a multiple-choice test of general reasoning and attainment: verbal reasoning, non-verbal (and sometimes spatial) reasoning, maths and English, in a combination chosen locally. It is worth knowing: there are no open-ended written answers on most papers, and the reasoning papers are not tied to the school curriculum — so there is no 'material to learn' for them in the ordinary sense, only a format to get used to. The maths and English papers draw on the Year 5 curriculum.
What parents actually receive — a score, and a 'standard reached' line
A key point worth knowing in advance: the results letter, sent in mid-October of Year 6, normally gives the standardised age score (overall, and sometimes per paper) and states whether the child has reached the qualifying standard or where they rank. It does not give raw marks, and it does not tell you which questions were wrong. In ranking areas the letter may give only a score and a rank, with the offer itself not known until national offer day on 1 March.
The stage after the score: the admissions criteria
Reaching the qualifying score is not the end — a place depends on the school's admission arrangements as well. If more qualified children apply than there are places, the school applies its published oversubscription criteria in order: typically looked-after children first, then (depending on the school) siblings, children eligible for the pupil premium, children living in a named catchment or priority area, and distance from the school. In a ranking school the score itself is the criterion. So a child can reach the qualifying standard and still not be offered a place at a particular school — which is why families are advised to name more than one school on the application form.
Frequently asked questions
What score do you need to pass the 11+?
There is no national pass mark. Each area either sets its own qualifying score on the standardised age scale (the figure is published locally and is often in the low 110s to low 120s, but check yours) or ranks candidates with no fixed threshold. Scores are relative to the cohort in that area and year.
What is a standardised age score?
A score on a scale where the average child in the cohort scores 100 and the standard deviation is 15, adjusted for the child's age in months on the day of the test. About two thirds of children score between 85 and 115. It lets children born at different times of the year be compared fairly.
Do parents receive the raw marks or the exact ranking?
Normally not the raw marks. The results letter gives the standardised age score (overall and sometimes per paper) and whether the child reached the qualifying standard; in ranking areas it may give the rank. It does not show which questions were answered incorrectly.
What is the difference between a qualifying score and a ranking system?
With a qualifying score, every child at or above the threshold is eligible and places are then allocated by the school's admissions criteria (distance, siblings and so on). With ranking, there is no threshold — the school fills its places from the highest score down, so the effective cut-off changes every year.
Does reaching the qualifying score guarantee a place?
No. It makes the child eligible. If the school is oversubscribed with qualified children, its published admissions criteria decide who is offered a place. That is why it is sensible to name more than one school on the common application form.
All the papers, the timings and the official rules
To the parents' guide — the structure of the test in full ←