The exam at a glance
For September 2028 entry, Heathfield School’s Year 7 entrance assessment is the school’s own process. ElevenReady’s verified information for this school says parents should prepare for a computer-based assessment covering Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning, with children needing to work accurately and at pace on screen.
The school’s admissions procedure page also says Year 7 applicants sit an online Cambridge Select Insight assessment and have an interview with the Headmaster. Because our verified format note and the school’s current admissions page are not worded in quite the same way, the safest practical approach for families is to prepare broadly across all four assessed areas and to expect a timed on-screen test plus interview.
What the day usually looks like is: arrival and registration, the assessment session on a computer, and an interview as part of the admissions process. The school presents the entrance assessment as part of its wider decision-making rather than as a stand-alone score only.
Heathfield is an independent school in Ascot offering day, part-time, weekly and full boarding. Its admissions material also states that the school is moving to being fully co-educational by 2031, which is relevant for families considering Year 7 entry over the next few years.
Registration and key dates
Heathfield handles admissions directly through the school rather than through a local-authority grammar-school testing system. The admissions procedure page explains that families should begin by making contact with the admissions team and completing the school’s registration process.
The school publishes a registration fee of £240 including VAT. For Year 7 entry, the school’s admissions page says the entrance assessment takes place in November of Year 6. For the most recent published cycle on the page, 2027 joiners were assessed on Wednesday 4 and Thursday 5 November 2026. The same page says that offers were made before Christmas and that the acceptance deadline was Monday 1 March 2027. It also says there is a scholarship assessment day in January following the entrance assessment.
As of today, we have not found a separately published 2028-entry timetable on the school site. So for families aiming for September 2028 entry, the sensible reading is that assessment is typically in November of Year 6, with decisions before Christmas, based on the pattern the school has published for the previous cycle.
In practice, parents should:
- Contact Heathfield admissions through the school.
- Check whether the school asks for a registration form and supporting information.
- Pay the registration fee.
- Book or confirm the Year 7 assessment date offered by the school.
- Keep a close eye on email for interview, assessment and offer communications.
If you want a quick way to keep track of updates, use Free email alerts for this school's key dates: /school-alerts?school=heathfield-school. For an overview page, see The Heathfield School 11+ guide (format, catchment, dates): /schools/heathfield-school.
Who can apply: catchment and admissions
Heathfield is an independent school, so there is no local-authority catchment system in the grammar-school sense unless the school specifically introduces one in its own policy. From the admissions material we found, we did not see a published geographical catchment area for Year 7 entry.
What the school does make clear is that it offers several types of places: day, part-time, weekly and full boarding. That matters because families may be applying from a wide area, not just nearby.
The school’s admissions procedure page describes selection through the school’s own registration, assessment and interview process. We did not find a published number of Year 7 places on the pages reviewed, and we did not find any official published cut-off score, qualifying mark or distance rule. If you are trying to judge competitiveness, the honest answer is that the school does not appear to publish the figures parents often ask for, so it is best to speak to admissions directly and check the latest information on the school’s admissions page.
One important wider admissions point is that the school says it is moving to being fully co-educational by 2031. For 2028 entry families, that makes it especially worth checking the latest Year 7 arrangements directly with Heathfield, as the transition may affect year-group intake planning over time.
A month-by-month preparation plan
Because Heathfield’s Year 7 assessment is held in November of Year 6, a calm preparation plan usually works better than a last-minute push. For most children, steady practice over several months is enough. You do not need a full tutoring timetable to prepare sensibly; consistency matters more.
March to May of Year 5
Keep this light: around 1 to 2 hours a week in total is plenty. Focus on building secure basics in Maths and English, and introduce gentle Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning practice once or twice a week. At this stage, aim for familiarity rather than speed.
- Read daily and talk about vocabulary.
- Revise number fluency, times tables and written methods.
- Try short reasoning exercises in small batches.
- Use screen-based practice sometimes, not only paper.
June to August of Year 5
Increase to around 2 to 3 hours a week. Start mixing subjects within the same week so your child learns to switch between styles of thinking. Summer is a good time to work through untimed practice carefully, correcting errors well.
- Build comprehension stamina.
- Practise arithmetic and problem solving.
- Teach common Verbal Reasoning patterns.
- Introduce standard Non-Verbal Reasoning question families.
September to December of Year 6
This is the key foundation term. Aim for roughly 3 to 4 hours a week, split into short sessions. Start using timed sections, but only after your child understands the question types. If the assessment is on screen, include regular computer-based practice so navigation and pacing feel normal.
- Do one or two timed mini-sections each week.
- Track mistakes by topic.
- Practise reading instructions carefully.
- Keep one session each week for consolidation, not new work.
January to Easter of Year 6
Continue at around 3 to 4 hours a week. By now, your child should know all the main question styles. The goal becomes accuracy under time pressure and keeping confidence steady.
- Alternate skill practice with mixed papers.
- Review weaker topics promptly.
- Encourage neat working in Maths even when timed.
- Keep vocabulary and reading going in the background.
Summer term of Year 6
Move towards 4 hours a week if your child is coping well. This is a good time to begin fuller timed papers, though not every week. One timed paper followed by careful review is far more useful than several rushed attempts.
- Start full or near-full timed practice.
- Practise sitting at a computer for sustained periods.
- Revisit any recurring reasoning traps.
- Build interview confidence through conversation, not scripts.
September to October of Year 6
This is the final stretch before a likely November assessment. Keep work focused and manageable: roughly 4 to 5 hours a week is enough for most children. Taper slightly in the final week so your child goes in fresh.
- Use timed mixed practice regularly.
- Review errors the same day where possible.
- Do a small amount of interview preparation.
- Prioritise sleep, routine and confidence.
Subject by subject: what to practise
Maths
For Heathfield, prepare for Maths that tests secure primary-school knowledge and the ability to apply it quickly on screen. Practise arithmetic fluency, fractions, decimals, percentages, ratio, measures, shape, data handling and multistep problem solving. Because the assessment is timed, children should learn when to move on and come back rather than getting stuck.
Good practice includes short daily arithmetic, regular word problems and mixed review so topics are not always predictable. If using online practice, make sure your child is comfortable entering answers digitally and keeping track of time.
English
English preparation should cover reading accuracy, comprehension, vocabulary and written language skills where relevant to the assessment format. Focus on understanding meaning from context, identifying key information quickly, and handling inference without overthinking. Strong general reading habits help as much as formal practice.
Useful preparation includes reading a wide range of fiction and non-fiction, discussing author choices, learning precise vocabulary, and practising short comprehension tasks under gentle time limits. If your child writes slowly, build confidence with planning ideas quickly before writing.
Verbal Reasoning
Verbal Reasoning typically rewards familiarity with recurring question types. Children should practise recognising patterns in words and letters, vocabulary links, codes, sequences, logical relationships and instruction-heavy tasks. The biggest gain often comes from learning the method for each question family and then applying it calmly.
Build this subject in small steps. Start untimed so your child learns the mechanics properly, then introduce timed drills once the method is secure. Vocabulary growth matters here too, so reading and word games are genuinely useful support.
Non-Verbal Reasoning
Non-Verbal Reasoning usually involves visual patterns, shape sequences, rotations, reflections, symmetry, codes and identifying the odd one out. Many children improve quickly once they learn to look systematically for change: shape, size, position, number, shading and direction.
Practise by teaching one pattern type at a time, then mixing them. Because Heathfield’s assessment is on screen, include digital visual-reasoning practice where possible so your child gets used to scanning accurately without marking directly on paper.
Practice papers and mock exams
Practice papers are most useful when they are used to diagnose, not just to score. For Heathfield, that means balancing all four tested areas and making sure some practice is done on screen, since the assessment is computer-based.
Start with untimed work to learn the question types. Move to timed sections only once your child understands the method. When you use a full paper, always leave enough time afterwards to review every mistake. Ask:
- Was this a knowledge gap?
- Was it a timing issue?
- Was the instruction misunderstood?
- Was the answer changed from right to wrong?
One reviewed paper is worth much more than several rushed ones. In the final six to eight weeks before the exam, use occasional mixed timed papers to build stamina, but avoid turning every weekend into a test day.
Helpful next steps:
- Free Heathfield School practice papers (one per tested subject, with answers): /schools/heathfield-school-mock-tests
- The Heathfield School 11+ guide (format, catchment, dates): /schools/heathfield-school
- Free email alerts for this school's key dates: /school-alerts?school=heathfield-school
If you book a mock elsewhere, choose one that reflects a computer-based experience where possible. A mock is most helpful when it teaches pacing, concentration and recovery after a hard section.
On the day
Children usually do best when the day feels calm and ordinary. Aim for a normal evening beforehand, a good night’s sleep and a straightforward breakfast. Avoid heavy last-minute revision; a short confidence boost is fine, but cramming rarely helps.
- Arrive in good time so there is no sense of rushing.
- Check practical details the day before: route, parking, timings and anything the school has asked your child to bring.
- Remind your child that some questions are meant to feel challenging.
- Encourage them to keep moving if they are stuck, especially in timed sections.
- For a computer-based test, remind them to read each screen carefully and keep an eye on the clock.
For the interview element, the aim is not a rehearsed performance. Heathfield is likely to want a genuine sense of your child: their interests, their attitude to school and how they communicate. Light preparation is enough. Talk through simple questions about favourite subjects, activities, books and why the school appeals.
After the assessment, try not to interrogate your child on the journey home. A warm, low-pressure response helps them settle much better than a detailed post-mortem.
After the exam: results, allocation and appeals
Heathfield is an independent school, so the process after assessment is different from state-school National Offer Day arrangements. The school’s admissions page says that, for the published 2027-joiner cycle, offers were made before Christmas. It also states that the acceptance deadline was Monday 1 March 2027.
That means families should be prepared for a school-led offer timeline rather than waiting for a local-authority allocation date. If your child is offered a place, read the acceptance instructions carefully and note any deadline for confirming it. If your child is being considered for scholarships, the school says there is a scholarship assessment day in January after the main entrance assessment.
We did not find a published formal appeals process on the pages reviewed in the way a state admissions authority would publish one. In the independent sector, if a child is unsuccessful, the usual next step is to speak politely with admissions, ask whether any waiting list operates, and check whether there are later opportunities to be considered if circumstances change.
What has changed recently
The clearest recent change announced by the school is that Heathfield says it is moving to being fully co-educational by 2031.
The admissions procedure page also gives a recent Year 7 timetable example for the 2027 joiner cycle, stating that entrance assessment days were Wednesday 4 and Thursday 5 November 2026, with offers before Christmas and an acceptance deadline of Monday 1 March 2027.
We did not find any other clearly announced official change in the last two years to published Year 7 catchment rules, place numbers or a school-published cut-off score on the sources reviewed.
Frequently asked questions
When is the Heathfield School Year 7 assessment usually held?
The school says the Year 7 entrance assessment takes place in November of Year 6. On its admissions page, the published dates for 2027 joiners were 4 and 5 November 2026.
Is the Heathfield 11+ on paper or on a computer?
ElevenReady’s verified information for 2028 entry says the assessment is computer-based, so children should practise working accurately and quickly on screen.
What subjects should my child prepare for?
Prepare across Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning. Balanced preparation matters more than over-focusing on one area.
Does Heathfield have a catchment area?
We did not find a published catchment area on the admissions pages reviewed. As an independent school, Heathfield runs its own admissions process rather than a local-authority catchment system.
How much is the registration fee?
The school’s admissions procedure page gives a registration fee of £240 including VAT.
When do Heathfield offers come out?
For the published 2027-joiner cycle, the school says offers were made before Christmas. Check the current admissions page for the latest timeline for your child’s year.
Sources
- Heathfield School Admissions Procedure: Registration fee is £240 including VAT; Year 7 entrance assessment takes place in November of Year 6; for 2027 joiners, assessment days were Wednesday 4 and Thursday 5 November 2026; offers were made before Christmas; acceptance deadline was Monday 1 March 2027; scholarship assessment day is held in
- Heathfield School website: School is in Ascot and offers day, part-time, weekly and full boarding places.
Preparing for other schools in Bracknell Forest
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.