London 11+ exam: grammar schools in Sutton, Kingston and beyond — complete guide for 2026

London 11+ exam candidates face one of the most fragmented grammar school landscapes in England. In a city of nine million people, there are just a handful of selective state secondary schools — concentrated in the London Borough of Sutton and the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames in south-west London, with a small number of others spread across outer boroughs. For families in London and the surrounding Home Counties considering grammar schools, understanding which schools exist, where they are, and how their admissions work is the essential starting point.

London grammar schools at a glance

The Sutton consortium: London’s most competitive grammar school cluster

The four grammar schools in the London Borough of Sutton form the most sought-after selective school cluster in the capital. They are consistently among the highest-performing state schools in England — and among the most oversubscribed. Understanding how they work, what they test, and how places are allocated is the essential first step for any London family considering selective secondary education.

The four Sutton consortium schools

The Sutton consortium exam: how it differs from GL and CEM

This is the most important thing to understand about the Sutton 11+. The four Sutton schools do not use GL Assessment or CEM. They set their own bespoke consortium exam — papers written specifically for these schools, not available commercially, and not directly comparable to either mainstream format. See the GL vs CEM guide for how Sutton differs from Kent (GL) and Birmingham (CEM).

This has profound implications for preparation. There is no Bond or CGP series that specifically targets the Sutton consortium papers. Past papers are not published by the consortium. The question types, timing, and structure are not publicly documented in the way that GL’s 21 VR types are.

What the Sutton exam does test

Despite the lack of published documentation, a clear picture of the Sutton consortium exam has emerged through the experience of families who have sat it over many years:

• English comprehension — passage-based comprehension with literal retrieval, inference, language analysis, and vocabulary in context. Passages tend to be demanding — often literary fiction or sophisticated non-fiction.
• Mathematics — standard 11+ syllabus at high difficulty, calibrated for some of the most selective state schools in England.
• Verbal reasoning — VR questions appear, though not necessarily in GL’s documented 21 question types. Word relationships, analogies, sequences, and vocabulary are all in scope.
• Creative writing — some Sutton schools include a timed creative writing component. This is relatively unusual among state grammar schools nationally and requires specific preparation.

The exact balance of subjects, timing, and question format varies year to year and between schools — which reinforces the importance of checking each school’s current admissions documentation.

The Sutton consortium exam: registration and timeline for 2026

How Sutton allocates grammar school places

The Sutton consortium schools are among the most oversubscribed grammar schools in England. Wilson’s School and Nonsuch High School for Girls regularly attract more than ten applicants per available place. Understanding how places are allocated is essential — and the Sutton model has a distinctive feature that distinguishes it from most other grammar school areas.

The Sutton selection process: ranked by score

Most grammar school areas use distance as the primary tiebreaker among qualifying children. Sutton takes a different approach at some schools — children are ranked by their standardised score, and places are offered in score order, from highest to lowest, subject to other priority criteria.

This is a significant departure from the distance-first model used in Kent, Buckinghamshire, Birmingham, and Trafford. In practical terms, a child who achieves a very high score and lives further from the school may receive an offer over a child with a lower score who lives closer. Performance in the exam carries more weight in Sutton than geographic proximity — up to a point.

Always verify the specific oversubscription criteria for each Sutton school before applying — policies are updated annually and the exact criteria may differ between the four schools.

Preparing for the Sutton exam: the creative writing difference

The most distinctive preparation requirement for the Sutton consortium — compared to every other grammar school area in this guide — is creative writing. Some Sutton schools include a timed creative writing component, and it carries meaningful weight in the overall score.

Creative writing for 11+ purposes is not the same as creative writing for school. The examiner is looking for structural control, vocabulary precision, and the ability to engage a reader within a strict time limit — typically 25–35 minutes. For families targeting the Sutton schools, creative writing preparation should begin early — in Year 5 at the latest — with weekly timed practice.

• Planning before writing — even two minutes of noting a beginning, middle, and end produces significantly better work.
• Precise vocabulary — movement verbs, emotion words, and descriptive adjectives are directly rewarded.
• Strong openings — in medias res, atmospheric description, a striking image, or a rhetorical question.

For detailed creative writing guidance applicable to the Sutton exam, see the 11+ English guide.

Kingston grammar schools: the alternative south-west London option

Two grammar schools in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames offer an important alternative for families in south-west London who find the Sutton schools geographically inaccessible or too competitive.

Tiffin School (boys, Kingston) and Tiffin Girls’ School (girls, Kingston) are both excellent grammar schools with outstanding results — and both have consistently been among the top-ranked state schools in England. They use their own bespoke entrance examination rather than GL or CEM, similar in character to the Sutton exam.

The Kingston schools are important to understand for two reasons. First, their exam format and timeline differ from the Sutton consortium — they operate independently with their own registration process, exam date, and results notification. Families targeting both Sutton and Kingston schools must manage two separate processes. Second, the Kingston schools attract significant application volumes from across south-west London and Surrey — competition is intense, and the level of preparation required is comparable to the Sutton consortium schools.

For families in Richmond, Wimbledon, Surbiton, and the wider south-west London area, Kingston may be the more geographically accessible option than Sutton, or may complement it as part of a broader selective school shortlist.

Queen Elizabeth’s School, Barnet: north London’s highest-performing grammar

Queen Elizabeth’s School in Barnet is arguably the most academically distinguished state school in England. It consistently achieves the highest or near-highest GCSE and A-level results of any state school in the country.

QE is a boys’ school that sets its own bespoke entrance examination. The exam is highly competitive and the school attracts applications from across north London, Hertfordshire, and beyond. Like the Sutton schools, QE does not use GL or CEM — its own papers are specifically designed for its level of selectivity.

Preparation for QE requires particular attention to the school’s own sample materials and past papers, which it publishes. The mathematical component is notably demanding — significantly beyond the standard 11+ syllabus — and the verbal reasoning component is similarly challenging. Families targeting QE alongside other grammar schools should be aware that additional QE-specific preparation is needed beyond general 11+ preparation.

The complete London grammar school landscape

London’s selective schools span multiple boroughs and formats. Use the filters below to explore by area or gender. Always confirm current admissions on each school’s website.

Preparing for London grammar schools: the bespoke challenge

The single most important preparation insight for London grammar schools — particularly the Sutton consortium and QE — is that there is no definitive resource that specifically targets these schools in the way that Bond or CGP target GL schools.

This is not as limiting as it sounds. The underlying skills tested are the same as in any 11+ exam — reading comprehension, vocabulary, mathematics, and verbal reasoning. High-quality general 11+ preparation resources develop these skills effectively. London candidates cannot rely on format familiarity as a preparation strategy in the way that GL candidates can — they must genuinely develop the underlying skills.

1. Wide reading and vocabulary first — more important here than anywhere else in this guide.
2. Comprehension technique second — see the 11+ English guide.
3. Mathematics third — the full 11+ maths syllabus applies; QE requires additional depth — see the 11+ Maths guide.
4. Creative writing fourth (for Sutton) — weekly timed writing practice from Year 5.
5. VR question type familiarity — see the 11+ Verbal Reasoning guide.

The competition reality: London is different

London grammar schools operate in a competitive environment unlike any other area in this guide. Wilson’s School, for example, receives several thousand applications for approximately 120 places. Nonsuch, Tiffin, Tiffin Girls, and QE face similarly extreme ratios.

For families who want broader options, pairing London applications with out-of-London schools — Kent, Buckinghamshire, or Surrey-border schools — is a common and sensible strategy. The preparation for London bespoke exams and for GL Kent or Bucks overlaps significantly.

London vs other grammar school regions: key comparison

Appeals: what to do if results are not what you hoped

Appeals for London grammar schools follow the same legal framework as all state school appeals — heard by an independent panel, with success depending on specific grounds rather than a general belief that your child deserved a place.

For Sutton consortium schools specifically, the score-ranked allocation model means that an appeal must address either a procedural error or evidence that the child’s score substantially underrepresents their ability. Appeals must be submitted within the window specified in the results notification.

Further preparation resources

• 11+ English guide — comprehension, vocabulary, and creative writing
• 11+ Verbal Reasoning guide — foundation for bespoke VR sections
• 11+ Maths guide — full syllabus with worked examples
• 11+ preparation strategy — bespoke exam study planning
• Kent 11+ guide — if also considering Kent from south London
• GL vs CEM guide — difference from London bespoke format
• 11+ timeline and registration — key dates for 2026