How to prepare for the King's Ely 11+ exam

The exam at a glance

For September 2028 entry into Year 7, King's Ely uses its own assessment process. For this guide, the verified format is a computer-based, timed assessment covering Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning. Because it is sat on screen, children need practice not only with accuracy but also with working briskly on a computer.

King's Ely's admissions information for Year 7 explains that applicants attend an Assessment Day, and the school's published timeline for a recent entry round says that for Year 7 this takes place on a Saturday morning. The school also refers to assessment outcomes and wider admissions feedback when making decisions.

In practical terms, families should expect the day to include arrival and registration, the assessment itself, and some light school-based activity or interaction around it. Independent schools often use the day to help staff get a rounded picture of each child, so calm confidence, polite communication and steady concentration all matter alongside raw scores.

The key preparation point is balance. Since all four areas are tested, avoid over-focusing on just Maths and English. A sensible plan covers:

Maths: arithmetic fluency, problem solving and speed
English: reading accuracy, vocabulary and careful written-language skills
Verbal Reasoning: word patterns, codes, vocabulary and logic
Non-Verbal Reasoning: shapes, sequences, rotations, codes and visual logic

Because the assessment is timed and computer-based, children should gradually get used to reading from a screen, clicking answers accurately, moving on when needed and keeping their focus for the full session.

Registration and key dates

King's Ely runs its own admissions process. The school's Prep admissions page invites families to register online by completing an enquiry or registration route through the school's admissions team, rather than through a local authority 11+ portal. For Year 7, the school advises parents to contact or apply through its admissions process on the school website.

For the 2028 entry cycle, the only verified deadline available in the published material provided for this guide is an initial application deadline of 30 October 2026 on the school's timeline for September 2027 entry. That is not the 2028 cycle, so parents should treat it as a guide to the school's usual timetable rather than a confirmed 2028 deadline.

Based on King's Ely's published 2027 timeline, the pattern is broadly:

applications close by late October
a Year 7 Taster Experience takes place in November
assessments are held in the Lent Term before entry
Year 7 Assessment Day is on a Saturday morning
offers are usually made by the beginning of February
accepted places in the first round are due by the first working day in March
an induction day follows in mid-June

The school page does not, in the sources reviewed for this guide, publish a confirmed 2028 assessment date. So the safest advice is to check the school's admissions page regularly and sign up for updates early in Year 5 or at the start of Year 6.

When registering, families should be ready for the standard information an independent school usually asks for: the child's details, current school, parent contact information and sometimes previous reports or other background information. If the school asks for further documents, follow its instructions exactly.

Useful links for parents:

Who can apply: catchment and admissions

King's Ely is an independent co-educational school, so there is no catchment area in the state-grammar sense. Children can apply from any area, subject to the school's admissions process, assessment and space availability.

For Year 7, King's Ely says this is a busy point of entry. The school states that admissions are subject to availability and assessment outcomes, and that where applications outstrip spaces, offers are made in chronological order of registration. That means early registration matters: if your child is a good fit for the school, it is wise not to leave the application until the last moment.

The school also confirms that bursary applications are accepted from Year 7 upwards, and may in exceptional circumstances be considered for younger pupils. If financial support may be relevant for your family, contact the admissions team early so that timelines for bursary paperwork and assessment can be lined up properly with the main application.

The school pages reviewed for this guide did not publish a verified number of Year 7 places or a published acceptance rate. Since King's Ely does not appear to set out those figures publicly on the sources reviewed, parents should rely on the admissions team for the latest availability picture.

A month-by-month preparation plan

The most effective preparation is steady and measured. For a Year 5 child aiming for a Year 7 place, there is usually no need for exhausting schedules. A child who works consistently across all four areas will often make better progress than one who does occasional heavy bursts.

12 months before the assessment

Start gently with 2 to 3 hours a week in total.
Build arithmetic fluency, careful reading habits and broad vocabulary.
Introduce short Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning tasks once or twice a week.
Let your child get used to reading and answering on screen.

9 months before

Increase to 3 to 4 hours a week.
Work evenly across Maths, English, VR and NVR.
Keep sessions short: for many children, 25 to 35 minutes is enough.
Begin light timed drills, but keep most work untimed while methods are still forming.

6 months before

Move to 4 hours a week, split across several sessions.
Start mixed practice so your child learns to switch quickly between subjects.
Review mistakes carefully: was it knowledge, vocabulary, speed, or misreading?
Begin occasional computer-based timed sets.

4 months before

Use 4 to 5 hours a week if your child is coping well.
Add fuller timed sections in each subject.
Practise maintaining focus without becoming flustered by the clock.
For English, keep reading quality texts; for Maths, revisit weak topics repeatedly.

2 to 3 months before

Introduce regular timed papers or paper sets, roughly one set each weekend plus short weekday correction work.
Simulate screen-based work whenever possible.
Track patterns in mistakes. For example, some children lose marks mainly on vocabulary, others on rushing.
Keep one evening each week entirely free from preparation.

Final month

Do not cram.
Use short, tidy revision blocks and a small number of realistic timed runs.
Revisit favourite methods and high-yield question types.
Protect sleep, routine and confidence.

Final week

Keep work light.
Focus on accuracy, calm pacing and screen familiarity.
Sort travel plans and anything needed for the day.
Stop early the day before.

A helpful rule is this: if preparation is causing regular tears, dread or exhaustion, the plan is too heavy. For most children, calm consistency beats intensity.

Subject by subject: what to practise

Maths

For King's Ely, treat Maths as a speed-and-accuracy paper rather than a leisurely classroom test. Practise secure arithmetic, fractions, decimals, percentages, ratio, simple algebraic thinking, measures and worded problem solving. Children should learn to spot the quickest route, not just a valid route.

Useful practice methods include:

short daily arithmetic drills
mixed-topic question sets
word problems that require deciding which operation to use
timed screen-based practice for pace
error review, especially for careless slips

English

English preparation should cover reading carefully under time pressure and handling language precisely. Because school-set independent assessments can vary, a sensible approach is broad preparation: comprehension, vocabulary in context, spelling patterns, punctuation, grammar and clear written expression where appropriate.

Useful practice methods include:

regular reading from rich, age-appropriate fiction and non-fiction
summarising short passages aloud
vocabulary journals with synonyms, antonyms and root patterns
grammar revision in small chunks
brief timed comprehension tasks completed on screen when possible

Verbal Reasoning

Verbal Reasoning rewards pattern recognition in language. Children typically need confidence with codes, letter and number sequences, word relationships, hidden meanings, vocabulary and logic-based language tasks. The exact mix can vary, so broad exposure matters.

Useful practice methods include:

learning the main question families one by one
building vocabulary steadily
timed mini-sets rather than only long sessions
keeping a notebook of recurring patterns
practising quick elimination when unsure

Non-Verbal Reasoning

Non-Verbal Reasoning tests visual logic rather than curriculum knowledge. Children should become confident with sequences, rotations, reflections, shape codes, symmetry, nets and odd-one-out patterns. Many children improve quickly once they learn how to look systematically.

Useful practice methods include:

teaching one pattern type at a time
using visual language such as rotate, reflect, shade, count and position
comparing similar-looking questions that have different rules
timed practice to avoid overthinking
screen-based practice so clicking and scanning become familiar

Across all four subjects, the most useful habit is review. After every practice set, ask:

Did I know how to do this?
Did I misread it?
Did I run out of time?
Did I change a correct answer to a wrong one?

Practice papers and mock exams

Practice papers are most useful when they are used sparingly and reviewed properly. A common mistake is racing through large numbers of papers and learning very little from them. For King's Ely, a better method is to use one paper or section, mark it carefully, then spend longer reviewing than sitting it.

A sensible approach is:

Start with untimed familiarisation.
Move to short timed sections.
Build up to fuller mixed practice on screen.
Keep an error log by subject and question type.
Repeat weak areas before attempting another full set.

Mock exams can also help, especially for children who need practice with nerves, stamina or computer-based timing. The goal is not to frighten them with scores; it is to make the real day feel familiar.

Use these resources as part of your preparation:

If your child sits a mock and underperforms, do not panic. One off-day score often reflects tiredness, timing or unfamiliarity rather than true potential. Look for trends across several pieces of work instead.

On the day

Keep the morning calm and ordinary. Children usually do best when the day feels organised rather than over-important.

Have an early night beforehand.
Allow plenty of time for travel and parking.
Choose comfortable uniform or clothing if the school has given guidance.
Eat a steady breakfast, not a sugary one.
Bring any documents or items the school has requested.

Just before the assessment, avoid last-minute teaching. It is usually far better to remind your child of a few simple habits:

read the question carefully
watch the time, but do not obsess over it
if stuck, move on and come back if possible
use calm breathing if nerves rise
listen carefully to instructions on the computer system

For parents, the most helpful tone is warm and matter-of-fact. Try to avoid saying things such as “this is your big chance”. A calmer message works better: “Do your best, read carefully, and let the school see the real you.”

After the exam: results, allocation and appeals

As an independent school, King's Ely does not follow the state secondary allocation day process for Year 7 places. Instead, families hear directly from the school according to its own admissions timetable.

On the most recent published Year 7 timeline reviewed for this guide, offers are usually made by the beginning of February, and first-wave acceptances are due by the first working day in March. As this timeline relates to a previous cycle, parents should check the live admissions page for the 2028 entry round once it is published.

If your child is offered a place, read the acceptance deadline carefully and respond promptly. Because King's Ely says that oversubscribed places are offered in chronological order of registration once assessment and feedback are taken into account, delays are not wise.

If your child is not offered a place, the next step is to speak directly to the admissions team. Independent schools do not run appeals in the same way as local-authority schools. Sometimes there may be a waiting list or the possibility of reconsideration if circumstances change, but families should ask the school for the exact process in writing.

If bursary support is relevant, keep in close contact with the school about deadlines and evidence, as financial-assistance decisions may run on a related but separate timetable.

What has changed recently

In the official and reputable sources reviewed for this guide, no newly announced public change for King's Ely Year 7 entry was found on places, catchment, or a new admissions policy beyond the school's published recent timeline and its established admissions wording. Parents should therefore check the live admissions page for the 2028 cycle in case a new assessment date or process note is published later.

One practical point to note is that the most specific dated timeline currently visible in the reviewed material is for September 2027 entry, not 2028 entry. So for 2028 applicants, some timeline details available now are typical rather than confirmed.

Frequently asked questions

Does King's Ely have a catchment area for Year 7?

No. King's Ely is an independent school, so it does not use a state-school catchment system for Year 7 admissions.

What subjects are in the King's Ely 11+ assessment?

For 2028 entry, the verified format covers Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning, sat as a timed computer-based assessment.

Is the King's Ely Year 7 exam computer-based?

Yes. For 2028 entry, the assessment is verified as computer-based, so children should practise answering accurately on screen as well as on paper.

When should my child start preparing for King's Ely?

For most children, a gentle start in Year 5 works well. Begin with short sessions across all four subjects, then increase timed practice gradually nearer the assessment.

How are offers decided if King's Ely is oversubscribed?

The school says that admissions are subject to assessment results and feedback, and that when applications outstrip spaces, offers are made in chronological order of registration.

Does King's Ely offer bursaries for Year 7?

Yes. The school states that bursary applications are accepted from Year 7 upwards, with younger applications only considered in exceptional circumstances.

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Sources

King's Ely Prep Admissions: King's Ely runs its own admissions process; Year 7 is a busy point of entry; admissions are subject to availability and assessment outcomes; where applications outstrip spaces, offers are made in chronological order of registration; bursary applications are accepted from Year 7 upwards and in except
King's Ely website: School identity and type: independent co-educational school in Ely.

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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.