24 questions across ratio, direct and inverse proportion, compound measures and area and volume scale factors.
⚗️ Ratio and proportion mastery — Higher
Ratio, proportion and rates of change is 20% of a Higher paper and it is the area that rewards method over recall. This sheet works through it in one sitting: simplifying and sharing in a ratio, including the questions that give you one share or the difference rather than the total; expressing one quantity as a fraction or percentage of another; direct and inverse proportion, both numerically and as an equation with a constant k; compound measures — speed, density and pressure — with unit conversions built in rather than avoided; and the similar-shapes work where lengths, areas and volumes scale by the factor, its square and its cube. That last group is where Higher candidates lose the most marks in this area, so it is deliberately over-represented here.
- 1.Two mathematically similar circles have radii 4 cm and 20 cm. Write the ratio of the area of the smaller circle to the area of the larger circle in its simplest form.
- 2.A furniture maker builds two mathematically similar bookcases. The smaller bookcase is 40 cm tall and uses 2 m² of wood. The larger bookcase is 60 cm tall. Work out the area of wood needed for the larger bookcase, giving your answer in m².
- 3.At an animal shelter, the ratio of cats to dogs is 2:5. There are 18 more dogs than cats. Work out the number of cats.
- 4.A metal cylinder has a mass of 356.5 g and a volume of 47 cm³. Work out the density of the cylinder, in g/cm³, to 1 decimal place.
- 5.Simplify the ratio 12 : 18 : 30 to its simplest form.
- 6.Paint costs £14.40 for every 20 m² of wall it covers. Assuming the same rate, work out the cost of the paint needed to cover 56 m² of wall.
- 7.A delivery driver travels 45 km in the first 30 minutes of a journey, and then a further 75 km in the next 1 hour. Work out her average speed for the whole journey, in km/h.
- 8.It takes 2 identical pumps 10 hours to empty a flooded basement. Working at the same rate, work out how many hours 5 of these pumps would take to empty the same basement.
- 9.A charity collects donations from adults and children in the ratio 5:2. Altogether, £238 is collected. Work out how much more the adults donate than the children.
- 10.Two cars travel at constant speeds. Car A travels 150 km in 3 hours. Car B travels 180 km in 4 hours. Which car is faster, and what is its speed?
- 11.A jumper costs £45 at Shop A, where it is reduced by 20%. The same jumper costs £34 at Shop B, where a further 10% reduction is then applied. Work out the difference between the two reduced prices.
- 12.Write £3.60 : £2.40 as a ratio in its simplest form.
- 13.The ratio of Josh's savings to Mia's savings is 4:7. Mia has £39 more than Josh. Work out Josh's savings.
- 14.A charity shop and a school share collection-box money in the ratio 5 : 8. The charity shop receives £47.50. Work out how much the school receives.
- 15.A shop sells ribbon by the metre. 2 m costs £3.00, 4 m costs £6.00, and 7 m costs £10.50. Does this data show that the cost is directly proportional to the length of ribbon bought? Choose the correct verdict and reason.
- 16.The price of a cycling helmet rises from £80 to £116. Work out the percentage increase.
- 17.Two mathematically similar logos are printed on a poster. They have areas 20 cm² and 45 cm². Nadia says that the length scale factor from the smaller logo to the larger logo is 45 ÷ 20 = 2.25. Give a reason why Nadia is incorrect, and work out the correct length scale factor.
- 18.There are 400 students at a school. 25% of them have a brother, 40% have a sister and 15% have both a brother and a sister. Work out how many of the students have neither a brother nor a sister.
- 19.Two mathematically similar polygons have perimeters in the ratio 2 : 5. Write the ratio of their areas in its simplest form.
- 20.A company's turnover this year is £180,000. Last year's turnover was £120,000. Write down this year's turnover as a percentage of last year's turnover.
- 21.Write 75p : £1.50 as a ratio of whole numbers in its simplest form.
- 22.y is directly proportional to x², and x is positive. When x = 4, y = 32. Construct the equation connecting x and y, then work out the value of x when y = 200.
- 23.Two mathematically similar triangular flags have areas in the ratio 4 : 25. The height of the smaller flag is 6 cm. Work out the height of the larger flag.
- 24.A shade of paint is made by mixing blue paint and white paint. To make 5 litres of the shade, 2 litres of blue paint is used and the rest is white paint. Write the ratio of blue paint to white paint in its simplest form.
What is on this worksheet?
The sheet holds 24 questions drawn from the MathsUK bank — the content area covered: Ratio, proportion and rates of change (statements R4, R5, R9, R10, R11, R12, R13). It is pitched at GCSE Higher and takes about 45 minutes to work through in full. It is built for independent practice, with full answers at the end for self-marking.
How to use the sheet well
- Print it or open it on screen — both work. Printing is A4; the screen view fits phones and tablets.
- Do all 24 questions before checking — about 45 minutes is the guide, but there is no time pressure.
- Check the answers — press “Show answers” or print the answer page separately.
- Redo the questions you got wrong — twice as effective as doing 24 fresh ones.
- “New questions” — builds a fresh sheet on the same statements, so you can practise again without repeats.
Why this sheet helps
MathsUK worksheets use questions graded by difficulty and a fair spread of correct-answer positions (the answer is not always (a)) — so the student really has to think about each question rather than guess a pattern. Every question is tagged to a DfE content statement and checked before it enters the bank. The answers come with a step-by-step explanation, not just a value — so a wrong answer becomes a lesson.
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