How to prepare for the Langley School 11+

The exam at a glance

Langley School is an independent co-educational day and boarding school in Norfolk, with Year 7 entry into its senior school. For September 2028 entry, ElevenReady’s verified information is that the school uses its own assessment.

At the time of writing, the school’s public admissions information does not clearly publish a detailed Year 7 11+ test format, named test provider, paper structure, tested subjects or delivery method on the pages reviewed. That means parents should treat Langley’s assessment as school-set and school-specific, and check the admissions page directly for the most current arrangements before registering.

What we can say from the school’s admissions and joining information is that Year 7 entry is handled through the school’s admissions process, and families are encouraged to make contact with the admissions team, visit the school and discuss the right entry point for their child.

In practical terms, for a Year 5 family preparing ahead, that usually means focusing on broad independent-school readiness: secure reading comprehension, fluent core maths, accurate spelling and punctuation, and calm interview skills if an interview forms part of the process. Because the school does not publicly set out a fully detailed Year 7 paper specification on the pages we found, it is sensible to avoid over-specialising too early.

School type: independent, co-educational, day and boarding
Entry point: Year 7
Assessment setter: the school’s own paper
Publicly confirmed format details: not clearly published on the admissions pages reviewed
Best next step: contact the admissions team and request the current Year 7 entry process for 2028 entry

Registration and key dates

For Langley School, registration is run by the school, not a local authority. The school’s admissions pages invite families to contact admissions directly and to register interest through the school.

For September 2028 entry, the school had not yet published a full set of Year 7 registration and assessment dates on the pages reviewed. So rather than guess, it is better to say plainly: parents should check the school’s admissions page and ask the admissions office for the current timeline.

What is published is the school’s open-day information. The school lists a Senior School and Sixth Form Open Day on 26 September 2026 and a Pre-Prep and Prep School Open Day on 3 October 2026. Open events are useful because independent schools often explain the entry route, timelines and any assessment expectations there.

If you are planning for 2028 entry, a sensible approach is:

Join the school’s mailing list or register interest with admissions.
Attend an open event as early as possible.
Ask specifically for the Year 7 September 2028 application timeline, assessment date, interview arrangements and deadline.
Confirm whether any supporting documents are needed, such as school reports or a birth certificate.

Because official deadlines for 2028 entry were not published on the pages reviewed, we recommend keeping a close eye on the school website and using Free email alerts for this school's key dates.

For a broader overview page, parents can also bookmark The Langley School 11+ guide (format, catchment, dates).

Who can apply: catchment and admissions

Langley School is an independent school, so there is no state-school catchment system to navigate in the way there is for grammar schools. On the school pages reviewed, we did not find a published catchment or priority-area rule for Year 7 entry.

The school is co-educational and offers both day and boarding places. Its website describes Langley as a school for children from 6 months to 18 years old, with the senior school and sixth form based in Loddon.

Independent-school admissions decisions are typically based on the school’s own entry process rather than distance from the school gate. In practice, that usually means a mix of application, assessment, possible interview, school reference or report, and an offer decision from the school.

On the pages reviewed, we did not find a publicly stated Year 7 intake number, a published number of places available for 2028, or any cut-off score. If you want current competition levels or likely availability, the best route is to ask admissions directly at the school.

For parents, the practical point is reassuringly simple:

there is no state catchment test to plan around;
you should focus on meeting the school’s own entry requirements;
and you should ask early about boarding versus day availability if that matters for your family.

A month-by-month preparation plan

Because Langley School sets its own assessment and does not clearly publish a full Year 7 paper specification on the pages reviewed, the most effective preparation plan is a broad, steady one. The aim is to build strong core skills first, then introduce gentle timed work once the school confirms the assessment details.

Below is a realistic plan working back from an autumn Year 6 assessment for September 2028 entry.

When	What to focus on
January to March of Year 5	Keep preparation light: around 1 to 1.5 hours a week in short sessions. Build reading stamina, mental maths fluency, spelling accuracy and neat written work. Start a habit of discussing texts aloud: what happened, why, and how the child knows.
April to June of Year 5	Increase to around 1.5 to 2 hours a week. Add regular comprehension practice, arithmetic revision and short problem-solving tasks. If your child is applying to several independent schools, begin comparing each school’s admissions process so you do not prepare for the wrong style.
Summer holidays before Year 6	Keep work steady but not heavy: about 2 hours a week, split into manageable sessions. Consolidate core English and maths. Practise listening carefully to instructions and checking answers. Read daily if possible.
September of Year 6	Move to around 2 to 3 hours a week. Once Langley confirms the current assessment arrangements, tailor preparation more precisely. Begin timed mini-sections rather than full papers if your child is still building confidence.
October of Year 6	Use timed practice more purposefully, but only after your child is secure in the basics. Review errors carefully. If an interview may be involved, practise speaking clearly about books, hobbies, school subjects and reasons for wanting the school.
Final 2 to 3 weeks before the assessment	Do not cram. Keep sessions calm and shorter. Focus on accuracy, routine and confidence. Prioritise sleep, school attendance and a normal week.

When should timed papers start? For most children, not at the very beginning. Start with untimed skills work, then short timed tasks once confidence is there. If Langley later publishes a clear paper format, that is the point to make timing more specific.

How much is realistic? For a typical Year 5 child aiming at one independent-school assessment, 1 to 3 hours a week is usually plenty. More than that often becomes tiring and unhelpful unless a child is very enthusiastic and coping well.

Subject by subject: what to practise

Because Langley School’s public admissions information did not clearly confirm tested subjects on the pages reviewed, the safest approach is to prepare the core areas most commonly needed for independent senior-school entry, then refine once the school confirms the current assessment details.

English

Work on reading comprehension, vocabulary, inference and written accuracy. A child aiming for Year 7 entry should be comfortable reading a passage carefully, finding evidence, explaining meaning and writing in full sentences with accurate punctuation.

Useful habits include:

reading a wide range of fiction and non-fiction;
summarising short passages aloud;
spotting key words in a question;
checking spellings, capitals and full stops at the end.

If Langley later confirms a written English task, practise planning before writing and leaving a minute to proofread.

Mathematics

Build confidence in arithmetic first: number facts, the four operations, fractions, decimals, percentages and place value. Then add worded problems that require children to decide which method to use.

Good preparation looks like:

short, regular mental maths practice;
careful written working;
checking whether an answer is sensible;
becoming fluent enough not to panic under time pressure.

If the school later publishes more detail about its maths assessment, adjust the balance of arithmetic and problem solving accordingly.

Reasoning or school-set problem solving

The school’s pages reviewed did not clearly confirm whether reasoning is tested. Even so, it can be helpful to build general problem-solving habits: noticing patterns, following multi-step instructions, working methodically and checking for careless errors.

This does not mean drilling one commercial style of paper. Because Langley uses its own assessment, broad thinking skills are more useful than assuming a particular external test format.

Interview and wider readiness

Independent schools sometimes include an interview, taster session or informal meeting as part of admissions. We did not find a clearly published Year 7 interview specification on the pages reviewed, so treat this as possible rather than certain.

Simple preparation can still help:

practise greeting adults confidently;
talk about favourite books and interests;
answer in full sentences rather than one-word replies;
show curiosity about school life, clubs and subjects.

Practice papers and mock exams

When a school sets its own assessment, practice works best when it is used to strengthen core skills, not to chase an exact paper style that has not been published.

A sensible routine is:

start with untimed questions to learn method;
move to short timed sets once accuracy improves;
review every mistake and sort it into types: knowledge gap, rushed reading or careless slip;
repeat weak areas the following week.

If your child becomes anxious with full papers, step back. A short, successful session is usually more helpful than a long one that ends in tears.

For school-specific support, use these ElevenReady resources:

For mock exams, remember that the goal is not only a score. A mock helps you notice whether your child can:

settle quickly;
listen to instructions first time;
pace themselves;
recover after a difficult question;
keep presentation neat under pressure.

After any mock or paper, spend more time reviewing than testing. That is where most improvement happens.

On the day

Keep the day steady and ordinary where you can. Children usually do better when the adults around them are calm.

The night before: pack anything the school has asked for, check the route and aim for an early bedtime.
Breakfast: choose something familiar rather than a treat that may unsettle them.
Timing: leave early so there is no sense of rushing.
What to say: remind your child to listen carefully, read every question properly and move on if they get stuck.
Afterwards: keep the conversation light. Avoid a detailed post-mortem in the car.

If there is also an interview or meeting, encourage your child simply to be polite, thoughtful and themselves. Schools are usually looking for teachability, curiosity and readiness, not rehearsed perfection.

After the exam: results, allocation and appeals

At an independent school such as Langley, the process after assessment is different from the state grammar-school system. There is no local-authority allocation day for the school itself in the same way there is for state schools. Instead, the school normally reviews applicants through its own admissions process and makes offers directly to families.

On the pages reviewed, we did not find a publicly confirmed Year 7 results date, offer date or appeals procedure specific to 2028 entry. If your child sits the assessment, ask admissions when families should expect to hear and what the next steps are.

In general, the sequence is likely to be:

assessment and any follow-up interview or review;
communication from the school about outcome or next stage;
offer, waiting list or decline;
acceptance paperwork if a place is offered.

If your child is not offered a place, ask politely whether a waiting list operates and whether there is any formal review process. Independent schools vary, so it is best to rely on the school’s own admissions guidance rather than assumptions from grammar-school admissions.

What has changed recently

From the official pages reviewed, we found current open-day information but did not find a clearly announced recent change to Langley School’s Year 7 assessment format, test provider, catchment policy, number of places or admissions rules within the last two years.

If the school publishes updated 2028 entry arrangements later, parents should follow the latest admissions page and any direct communication from the admissions office.

Frequently asked questions

Does Langley School use GL or CEM for Year 7 entry?

No published page we reviewed clearly states that it uses GL or CEM. ElevenReady’s verified information for 2028 entry is that Langley uses the school’s own assessment.

What subjects are in the Langley School 11+?

The public admissions pages we reviewed did not clearly confirm the tested subjects. Check directly with the school’s admissions team for the current Year 7 assessment details.

Is there a catchment area for Langley School?

No state-school catchment policy is stated on the pages reviewed. Langley is an independent school, so admissions are handled through the school’s own process.

When do I register for Langley School Year 7 entry?

The 2028 Year 7 registration timeline was not yet clearly published on the pages reviewed. Register interest with the school and ask admissions for the current deadline and assessment date.

How much should a Year 5 child do each week?

For most children, 1 to 3 hours a week is a sensible range, depending on confidence and how many schools they are applying to. Short, regular sessions are usually better than long ones.

Are there boarding places at Langley School?

Yes. The school describes itself as a day and boarding school. Ask admissions early about availability if you are interested in boarding for Year 7.

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Sources

Langley School website: Langley School is a co-educational independent day and boarding school for children from 6 months to 18 years old; the senior school and sixth form are in Loddon; families are directed to the school for admissions and enquiries.
Langley School admissions page: Admissions are run by the school; families are encouraged to contact admissions directly; no state catchment policy is stated on the page reviewed; no clearly published Year 7 2028 deadline, assessment date, tested subjects or published cut-off score were found on the page reviewed.
Langley School open events: Senior School and Sixth Form Open Day on 26 September 2026; Pre-Prep and Prep School Open Day on 3 October 2026.

Preparing for other schools in Norfolk

Written by ElevenReady from the school's published information and reviewed by a person before publishing. Last reviewed 20 October 2026. Exam arrangements change. Check the school's admissions page for the current year.