Exam format not yet verified. We have not confirmed this school's exam board or paper format from an official source. Where this guide describes the test, treat it as a working assumption and check the school's admissions page before relying on it.
The exam at a glance
For September 2028 entry into Year 7, Austin Friars uses its own entrance assessment. our working assumption for this school, not yet verified with the school, is that children are assessed using a GL-style paper covering Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning. In practice, that means families should prepare steadily across all four areas rather than focusing on just English and Maths.
The school describes itself as not academically selective. It says assessment results are used to help place pupils appropriately and to identify any additional support that may be needed. That changes the feel of preparation slightly: the aim is not last-minute cramming, but helping your child show secure Year 5 learning, cope with timed sections and arrive feeling settled.
The school’s admissions information explains that entrance assessments are usually completed during Taster Days. The exact delivery details for 2028 entry have not yet been confirmed publicly, so it is best to treat the format as an assessed visit rather than assuming a large, formal test-centre style session.
What the day often looks like at an independent school using taster-day assessment is a mix of welcome activities, some time in classrooms and one or more timed assessment sessions. Until Austin Friars publishes the 2028 arrangements, parents should avoid over-planning around the logistics and instead prepare for the core skills: reading carefully, managing time, writing clearly, and working methodically through reasoning questions.
- Board/setting: school’s own entrance assessment
- Question style: GL-style paper
- Subjects: Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning, Non-Verbal Reasoning
- Selection: the school says it is not academically selective
- Likely context: assessment usually completed during a Taster Day
- Delivery for 2028: not yet confirmed publicly
Registration and key dates
The school’s admissions journey page is the first place to check because Austin Friars runs its own admissions process. For current published admissions information, the school asks families to register and notes a £75 non-refundable registration fee for Junior and Senior School entry. If you are planning for 2028 entry, expect to use the school’s own admissions route rather than a local authority test registration portal.
At the time of writing, we could not find a published set of specific 2028 Year 7 assessment dates, nor a confirmed opening date or deadline for registration for that cohort. The school does, however, publish some useful timing clues. It says that Open Week takes place in October and that entrance assessments are usually completed during Taster Days. For families planning ahead, that suggests autumn is an important point in the admissions calendar.
Because this is an independent school, you should also remember that there are usually two parallel processes: the school’s own registration and assessment steps, and your broader planning for other schools if you are also applying elsewhere. Keep all confirmations, receipts and email correspondence in one folder so nothing is missed.
For 2028 entry, a sensible approach is:
- Check the school’s admissions page from the summer term of Year 5 onward.
- Book an open event when dates are released.
- Register promptly once the school opens applications for your child’s year group.
- Ask what documents are required; independent schools commonly request basic personal details and previous school information, but parents should follow Austin Friars’ own instructions when published.
- Confirm whether your child’s assessment will take place on a Taster Day and whether anything needs to be brought on the day.
If you want a simple way to keep track, see Free email alerts for this school's key dates. You can also check The Austin Friars 11+ guide (format, catchment, dates) for updates once the school publishes them.
As of now, the safest wording is that the school has not yet published the exact registration window, assessment date or results date for September 2028 entry. Parents should check the admissions page directly for the current cycle.
Who can apply: catchment and admissions
Austin Friars is an independent co-educational day school for pupils aged 3 to 18. For Senior School entry, the important point for parents is that the school states it is not academically selective. It uses entrance assessments to help with setting and identifying any additional support needs, rather than as a strict grammar-style pass-or-fail hurdle.
ElevenReady’s directory (not yet verified with the school) information for this school is NoCatchment, and that fits the admissions approach set out by the school. In other words, families should not expect a state-school style catchment area priority rule to drive Year 7 entry. Instead, the process is school-led and centred on registration, assessment and the school’s decision-making.
The school publishes its Senior School fees for 2026/27 as follows:
| Year group band | Fee |
| 1st and 2nd Form | £8,266 per term |
| 3rd to 5th Form | £8,568 per term |
| VI Form | £8,568 per term |
We could not find a publicly stated number of Year 7 places, nor an official published figure for competition levels or applications per place. Because the school is not academically selective, published cut-off scores and pass marks are not part of its admissions messaging. If you want to understand likely availability for your child’s entry year, the most useful step is to ask the admissions team directly once the 2028 cycle opens.
For parents, the practical takeaway is reassuring: preparation still matters, but the purpose is to help your child demonstrate their current attainment and reasoning skills in a calm, well-organised way.
A month-by-month preparation plan
Because Austin Friars uses a broad paper across four subjects, the best preparation is steady and balanced. Below is a realistic plan working back from an autumn assessment in Year 6 for a child entering Year 7 in September 2028. The hours suggested are intentionally moderate; most children do better with consistency than with heavy workloads.
January to March of Year 5
Keep it light: around 1 to 1.5 hours a week in short sessions. Focus on reading fluency, secure arithmetic, spelling patterns and gentle reasoning exposure. At this stage, you are building confidence, not timing everything.
- Read widely and discuss vocabulary.
- Revise core number facts and written methods.
- Introduce simple verbal and non-verbal reasoning question types one at a time.
- Encourage neat presentation and careful checking.
April to June of Year 5
Increase to 1.5 to 2 hours a week. Begin rotating all four subjects each fortnight so none is neglected. Your goal is to spot weaker areas early.
- Maths: arithmetic accuracy, fractions, place value, multi-step word problems.
- English: comprehension, inference, vocabulary, punctuation and short writing tasks.
- Verbal Reasoning: codes, sequences, word relationships, careful instruction-following.
- Non-Verbal Reasoning: shape patterns, rotations, reflections and visual logic.
July to August before Year 6
Aim for 2 to 3 hours a week, still split into short sessions. Summer is a good time for calm consolidation because school pressure is lower.
- Start mixed practice so your child switches between subjects comfortably.
- Use one untimed or lightly timed paper section at a time.
- Review mistakes properly rather than racing through more questions.
- Build stamina with short back-to-back sections.
September of Year 6
Move to 3 to 4 hours a week if your child is coping well. This is the point to begin more regular timed work. Do not make every session a full paper; targeted correction is usually more valuable.
- Practise timing by section, not only as complete papers.
- Refine method marks habits in Maths: set work out clearly.
- Train careful reading in English and Verbal Reasoning.
- Keep one session each week for weaker topics only.
The month before the assessment
Stay at around 3 to 4 hours a week, with one rest day before any major school assessment or taster event. Children often improve most from polishing routines rather than learning brand-new content.
- Complete a small number of realistic timed papers.
- Go over recurring errors: rushing, skipped words, untidy working, weak checking.
- Practise calm starts: name, date, read the instructions, begin with focus.
- Keep sleep, reading and school homework steady.
The final week
Reduce intensity. A tired child is less likely to show their true level.
- Do brief refreshers only.
- Review notes on common mistakes.
- Prepare practical items early.
- Keep the tone positive and matter-of-fact.
Subject by subject: what to practise
Maths
For a GL-style Maths section, children usually need secure Key Stage 2 skills used under time pressure. Practise arithmetic fluency first, then move to short word problems and multi-step questions. The biggest gains often come from reducing avoidable errors: copying numbers wrongly, missing units, or rushing the final step.
- Times tables and number bonds so basics are automatic.
- Place value, the four operations, fractions, decimals and percentages at an age-appropriate level.
- Word problems that require choosing the correct method.
- Interpreting tables, charts and simple measures.
- Checking strategies: estimate first, then compare your answer.
English
Preparation should cover both reading and written accuracy. In GL-style school entrance tests, children often need to read a passage carefully, infer meaning, understand vocabulary in context and show accurate spelling, punctuation and grammar. For Austin Friars, avoid over-specialising; broad, secure English habits are the right fit.
- Comprehension practice with fiction and non-fiction.
- Vocabulary building through reading, discussion and word journals.
- Inference: what is suggested rather than directly stated.
- Sentence control: punctuation, grammar and clear expression.
- Brief writing tasks with an emphasis on planning and proofreading.
Verbal Reasoning
Verbal Reasoning rewards familiarity with question types as much as raw ability. Many children improve quickly once they learn to recognise the pattern each task is testing. Keep sessions short and focused, and teach your child to underline or mentally hold the exact instruction before answering.
- Letter and number sequences.
- Codes and simple transformations.
- Word relationships, synonyms and antonyms.
- Odd-one-out and classification tasks.
- Speed with accuracy: learn the method, then add timing gradually.
Non-Verbal Reasoning
Non-Verbal Reasoning is often the least familiar area, so regular exposure helps. Children need to spot what changes from one shape to the next: rotation, reflection, shading, number, position or size. Encourage them to describe the pattern aloud at first; that makes visual logic more concrete.
- Rotations and reflections.
- Shape sequences and analogies.
- Symmetry, position and orientation.
- Changes in shading, size and number.
- Working systematically through answer options when unsure.
Across all four subjects, the most helpful habit is to review errors by type. Ask: was it a knowledge gap, a timing issue, a reading mistake or a careless slip? That tells you what to practise next.
Practice papers and mock exams
Practice papers are most useful when they are used sparingly and reviewed carefully. For Austin Friars, where the assessment spans Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning, a balanced programme is better than doing repeated papers in only one favourite subject.
Start with untimed practice to learn methods and question styles. Move to timed sections once your child understands what each task is asking. Full papers should be occasional checkpoints, not the whole plan.
Useful ElevenReady resources:
- Free Austin Friars practice papers (one per tested subject, with answers)
- The Austin Friars 11+ guide (format, catchment, dates)
- Free email alerts for this school's key dates
When using practice papers, try this approach:
- Choose one subject at a time when introducing new question types.
- Mark work together and discuss why an answer was wrong.
- Keep an error log: vocabulary, maths method, timing, misread instruction, careless slip.
- Redo a small number of mistakes a few days later.
- Only use full timed papers once your child has enough familiarity to benefit from them.
If you use mock exams, treat them as a rehearsal for routine and confidence, not as a prediction. For a school that is not academically selective, a mock is mainly useful for practising focus, pace and resilience.
On the day
Keep the morning simple. A calm, ordinary tone helps children far more than a big speech about doing their best. If the assessment is part of a Taster Day, frame it as a chance to experience the school and let staff get to know them.
- Check the start time, location and any instructions from the school the day before.
- Prepare clothes, stationery if requested, water and any other essentials the evening before.
- Aim to arrive with time to spare so there is no rushed start.
- Give a normal breakfast and avoid trying anything unfamiliar.
- Remind your child to listen carefully to instructions before beginning.
Useful in-the-room reminders for children are short and practical:
- Read the question fully.
- Keep an eye on the time, but do not panic.
- If stuck, move on and come back if allowed.
- Show working clearly in Maths.
- Check for missed words, especially in reasoning questions.
Afterwards, resist the temptation to go through every answer in the car. Most children feel better if the day is allowed to end normally.
After the exam: results, allocation and appeals
Because Austin Friars is an independent school running its own admissions process, the post-assessment process is different from a local-authority grammar school allocation round. In general, families can expect the school to review the assessment alongside its wider admissions considerations and then communicate the outcome directly.
At the time of writing, we could not find a publicly published results date for 2028 entry, nor a published appeals framework specific to Year 7 entrance assessment outcomes on the admissions page we reviewed. Independent schools usually set out their own offer and acceptance process, so parents should rely on the school’s written guidance for the relevant admissions cycle.
If your child receives an offer, read the deadline for acceptance carefully and keep copies of all documents. If the outcome is not what you hoped, the most practical next step is to contact the admissions team politely and ask whether feedback, waiting-list information or any further process is available for that cohort.
Where the school has not published a specific appeals route, it is sensible to ask for the formal process in writing rather than assuming it mirrors the state-school system.
What has changed recently
We did not find any clearly announced recent change in the last two years to Austin Friars’ Year 7 entrance assessment board, catchment arrangements or admissions approach beyond the current published information that the school is not academically selective, that assessments are usually completed during Taster Days, and that a £75 non-refundable registration fee applies for Junior and Senior School entry.
For families applying for 2028 entry, the main thing to watch is not a known overhaul of the process, but the release of the school’s next set of admissions dates and practical arrangements on its admissions page.
Frequently asked questions
Is Austin Friars academically selective for Year 7?
No. The school says it is not academically selective and uses entrance assessment results to help with setting and to identify any additional support needs.
What subjects are in the Austin Friars 11+ assessment?
For 2028 entry, our working assumption, not yet verified with the school, is that the assessment covers Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning.
Does Austin Friars have a catchment area?
No catchment rule is published for this process. It is an independent school and ElevenReady records this school as NoCatchment.
When is the Austin Friars Year 7 assessment?
The exact 2028 assessment date has not yet been published publicly in the sources reviewed. The school says entrance assessments are usually completed during Taster Days, so check the admissions page for the current cycle.
How much is the registration fee?
The school’s admissions journey page states a £75 non-refundable registration fee for Junior and Senior School entry.
How should my child prepare if the school is not academically selective?
Keep preparation balanced and calm. Focus on secure Maths and English, regular verbal and non-verbal reasoning practice, and enough timed work that your child feels comfortable rather than pressured.
Sources
- Austin Friars School – Admissions Journey: School admissions process is run by the school; entrance assessments are usually completed during Taster Days; Open Week is in October; £75 non-refundable registration fee for Junior and Senior School entry; the school states it is not academically selective and uses assessment results to help place
- Austin Friars School – Home page: Austin Friars describes itself as an independent day school for 3 to 18 year olds.
- Austin Friars School – Fees: Senior School fees for 2026/27: 1st and 2nd Form £8,266 per term; 3rd to 5th Form £8,568 per term; VI Form £8,568 per term.
Preparing for other schools in Cumberland
Written by ElevenReady from the school's published information and reviewed by a person before publishing. Last reviewed 4 October 2026. Exam arrangements change. Check the school's admissions page for the current year.