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, Silcoates School uses its own entrance assessment. our working assumption for this school, not yet verified with the school, is that the assessment is a GL-style paper covering Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning, with standard timed sections and a balanced spread across all four areas.
The test is paper-based, so children should be comfortable working neatly on paper, keeping track of time and moving calmly between short, timed sections. Because the format includes both curriculum subjects and reasoning, preparation needs to be broad rather than heavily focused on one area.
Silcoates’ admissions process for prospective pupils includes an enquiry, a visit or tour, registration, a taster day and assessment. On the school’s admissions page, the school explains that children from Year 3 upwards are assessed as part of the process, and that pupils are invited to complete an assessment on the morning of their taster day.
In practical terms, families should expect the day to involve:
- arrival and registration with the admissions team or school staff;
- a paper-based assessment session;
- for many applicants, a taster experience as part of the wider admissions process;
- the chance for the school to consider both academic performance and broader suitability for the school.
Because Silcoates is an independent school, the assessment is part of the school’s own admissions process rather than a local-authority grammar school testing round. That usually means parents should think about the whole application journey: making contact early, visiting the school, understanding the ethos, and asking how the assessment fits with the taster day for your child’s year group.
Registration and key dates
Silcoates handles admissions directly through the school rather than through a council 11+ portal. The school’s admissions page sets out a process of enquiry, tour, registration, taster day and assessments. For Year 7 applicants, the sensible first step is to contact the admissions team via the school and ask for the current entry timetable for September 2028.
At the time of writing, the school website page available publicly does not clearly publish a full September 2028 Year 7 admissions timetable. The page does state “Senior School September 2027 Entrance Assessment Day: Friday 13 November 2026”, but this appears to be an older cycle rather than the next entry year requested here, so parents should not rely on it for 2028 entry.
The same page also says that:
- the school holds an Open Morning in September;
- prospective pupils will be invited to complete an assessment on the morning of their taster day;
- the admissions process includes formal registration.
So, for September 2028 entry, the safest advice is:
- make an enquiry with Silcoates during Year 5 or at the start of Year 6;
- attend the school’s Open Morning if you can;
- ask for the registration form or online application route;
- check whether the assessment is scheduled on a set entrance assessment day, linked to the taster day, or both;
- confirm when decisions are released and whether a deposit is needed to accept a place.
As for documents, independent schools commonly ask for basic pupil details and previous school information, and sometimes recent school reports. However, because the published Silcoates page viewed here does not list a document checklist in detail, it is best to ask the admissions team exactly what is required for your child’s year group.
If you want a quick overview page to revisit, see The Silcoates School 11+ guide (format, catchment, dates). You can also sign up for Free email alerts for this school's key dates so you do not have to keep checking manually.
Who can apply: catchment and admissions
Silcoates is an independent coeducational school, so entry is not run through a state grammar school catchment process. From the published admissions information reviewed, the school’s process is based on application to the school itself, along with visits, registration, a taster day and assessment.
The public admissions page viewed does not publish a catchment area, and ElevenReady’s directory (not yet verified with the school) also lists catchment or priority arrangements as unknown. In practice, that usually means families should not assume there is a defined distance-based priority in the way there often is for state selective schools. Instead, ask the school directly how places are decided if there are more applicants than places.
The school website explains that its admissions process applies to prospective pupils from Year 3 onwards, which confirms that formal assessment is part of admissions for children joining the senior years. The school also educates pupils from Junior School through Senior School and Sixth Form, so some Year 7 places may be taken by children already in the prep or junior section, with external applicants considered alongside them. The school page reviewed does not publish the number of Year 7 places available, so it is worth asking admissions how many places are typically offered to external candidates in your child’s year.
Questions worth asking the school directly include:
- How many external Year 7 places are usually available?
- Is the assessment the only academic measure, or are school reports and interview or taster-day observations also considered?
- Are scholarships or bursaries available for Year 7 entry, and if so, are there separate deadlines?
- When is a place formally offered, and what is the acceptance process?
Because Silcoates is independent, the best approach is to treat admissions as a school-led process rather than trying to compare it with local-authority selective rules. A polite early conversation with admissions can clear up most of the practical points very quickly.
A month-by-month preparation plan
For a child aiming for an autumn Year 6 assessment, start gently in Year 5. The aim is not to create pressure; it is to build familiarity with four tested areas and confidence with timed paper work.
| Month | What to do |
| January to March in Year 5 | Keep it light: around 1 to 2 hours a week split into short sessions. Focus on core arithmetic, reading comprehension, spelling accuracy, and simple reasoning question types. Read widely and little and often. |
| April to May in Year 5 | Increase to about 2 hours a week. Introduce all four subjects so nothing feels unfamiliar later. Keep work untimed at first, aiming for method and understanding. |
| June to July in Year 5 | Move to 2 to 3 hours a week. Start short timed bursts, especially in verbal and non-verbal reasoning, where speed matters. Review mistakes carefully rather than racing through lots of pages. |
| Summer holidays before Year 6 | A steady 2 to 4 hours a week is usually enough. Use a mix of revision, technique and one short mixed paper each week. Build stamina gradually, but leave plenty of downtime. |
| September in Year 6 | Raise this to roughly 3 to 4 hours a week if your child is coping well. Begin regular timed papers in sections. Practise switching calmly between English, Maths and reasoning tasks. |
| October in Year 6 | This is the consolidation month. Use one or two full or near-full mock sessions across the month, then spend more time reviewing than testing. Target weak areas and keep confidence up. |
| Final 1 to 2 weeks | Short, tidy sessions only. Focus on accuracy, instructions, and calm routines. Avoid cramming and avoid introducing lots of new material. |
A few practical rules help:
- Short sessions beat long ones. Four 30-minute sessions often work better than one exhausting two-hour block.
- Keep all four subjects in rotation. Because Silcoates tests a broad mix, children should not spend all their time on Maths and comprehension alone.
- Use timed practice gradually. Start untimed, then add time pressure once methods are secure.
- Review errors properly. Ask: was it knowledge, vocabulary, speed, misreading or nerves?
- Protect confidence. If a paper goes badly, treat it as information, not a verdict.
If your child is already very busy with school and clubs, do less, not more. Consistency matters more than volume.
Subject by subject: what to practise
Maths
For Silcoates, maths preparation should cover secure Key Stage 2 number skills first, then speed and accuracy under time pressure. Prioritise the four operations, place value, fractions, decimals, percentages, ratio basics, measures, shape vocabulary and straightforward word problems.
Because this is a GL-style paper, children should be ready for short questions that reward efficient working. Practise mental arithmetic, selecting the correct operation from a worded question, and checking whether an answer is sensible. Encourage neat working on paper so they can recover if they lose their place.
- Times tables and number bonds to automatic recall
- Fractions, decimals and percentages conversions
- Multi-step word problems
- Perimeter, area, measures and time
- Quick checking habits to reduce careless errors
English
English preparation should be split between reading and written accuracy. For reading, focus on comprehension from short passages: retrieving information, choosing evidence, working out word meaning from context, and identifying tone or purpose in an age-appropriate way.
For written English, practise spelling, punctuation and grammar in context. If the school uses its own paper built on GL-style sections, children benefit from being confident with sentence structure, common punctuation marks, verb forms and standard spelling patterns. Regular reading is one of the best ways to support this quietly over time.
- Comprehension with short passages
- Vocabulary building from reading
- Grammar and punctuation basics
- Spelling patterns and proofreading
- Clear written answers where required
Verbal Reasoning
Verbal Reasoning often feels unfamiliar at first, so start with technique and pattern recognition before worrying about speed. Children should meet the main families of question type repeatedly so they learn what each is really asking.
Typical practice areas include vocabulary-based questions, letter codes, number-letter patterns, word relationships, hidden words and logical manipulations of letters. Keep a notebook of new words and recurring patterns. Over time, aim for calm method rather than guessing.
- Synonyms, antonyms and precise vocabulary
- Letter sequences and codes
- Word relationships and analogies
- Finding patterns quickly
- Timing practice once methods are secure
Non-Verbal Reasoning
Non-Verbal Reasoning rewards visual pattern spotting. Many children improve quickly once they learn to look systematically for shape, position, rotation, reflection, shading and number of elements.
Use short sets at first, talking through why an answer is correct. Then move to timed work. Encourage your child to scan for the simplest rule first: what changes from one box to the next, what stays the same, and whether more than one feature is changing at once.
- Rotation and reflection
- Shape sequences and transformations
- Codes using symbols or pictures
- Mirror images, symmetry and orientation
- Working quickly without losing accuracy
Practice papers and mock exams
Practice papers are most useful when they are used as a learning tool, not just as a score generator. For Silcoates, choose materials that cover Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning, and use them in stages.
- Start by subject. In the early months, use short topic-based exercises to teach methods.
- Move to timed sections. Once your child understands the question types, introduce timing in small chunks.
- Then use mixed papers. This helps with switching attention between different kinds of thinking.
- Review every paper. Spend at least as long correcting as completing. Look for patterns in mistakes.
- Add one or two mock-style experiences. Sitting still, following instructions and managing nerves are all trainable skills.
For free school-specific materials, use these ElevenReady resources:
- Free Silcoates School practice papers (one per tested subject, with answers)
- The Silcoates School 11+ guide (format, catchment, dates)
- Free email alerts for this school's key dates
If you use mock exams outside home, treat them as practice for routine and resilience, not a prediction. One child may underperform in a first mock simply because the setting is unfamiliar. What matters is what they learn from it.
A sensible final plan is to complete a small number of good papers carefully rather than a huge pile in a rush. Quality of review almost always matters more than quantity.
On the day
For a paper-based independent school assessment, calm organisation makes a real difference. The goal is for your child to arrive feeling prepared, fed, rested and unhurried.
- Check the arrival time and location with the school in advance.
- Prepare any required stationery the night before, if the school asks children to bring it.
- Choose comfortable school-appropriate clothes if there is no special instruction.
- Have a normal breakfast with slow-release energy and plenty of time.
- Leave early enough that small travel delays do not become the first stress of the day.
For your child, the most helpful reminders are usually simple:
- listen carefully to instructions;
- if one question feels hard, move on and come back if time allows;
- keep an eye on the clock, but do not panic about it;
- check answers if there is time;
- remember that the school is also looking at overall potential and fit, not one perfect moment.
If the assessment is linked to a taster day, frame the day as a chance to experience the school, not just a test to get through. Children often do better when they feel they are visiting a possible future school rather than entering a high-pressure event.
After the exam: results, allocation and appeals
Because Silcoates is an independent school, the post-exam process is different from the national offer day system used for state secondary admissions. In most independent-school cases, the school reviews the assessment alongside the wider application and then contacts families directly with the outcome.
From the public information reviewed, Silcoates does not clearly publish a detailed public timeline for when Year 7 assessment results are issued or the exact acceptance steps for the 2028 cycle. Parents should therefore ask admissions:
- when assessment outcomes are normally sent;
- whether offers are conditional on school reports or other information;
- how long families have to accept a place;
- whether a deposit is payable on acceptance;
- what happens if your child is placed on a waiting list.
If your child is not offered a place, independent schools do not usually run the same formal statutory appeal process as state schools. Instead, the sensible steps are to ask politely whether feedback can be given, whether a waiting list operates, and whether there may be another point of entry in a later year if Silcoates remains your preferred school.
If your family is applying to both independent and state schools, keep a careful calendar. The independent school may ask for a decision before state offers are released, so make sure you understand the financial and practical implications before accepting.
What has changed recently
From the school information reviewed, the main publicly visible point to note is that the admissions page currently shows “Senior School September 2027 Entrance Assessment Day: Friday 13 November 2026”. For families targeting September 2028 entry, this appears to belong to an earlier admissions cycle, so it should be treated as a sign that the page may not yet have been updated for the next cohort.
The school also states on its admissions page that prospective pupils are invited to complete an assessment on the morning of their taster day, which is useful context for current admissions practice.
Beyond that, we did not find a clearly announced recent change in the last two years to the school’s published Year 7 exam board, catchment policy, number of places or formal admissions rules for this entry point.
Frequently asked questions
What does Silcoates School test for Year 7 entry?
For 2028 entry, our directory, not yet verified with the school, records Silcoates uses its own paper in a GL-style format covering Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning.
Is the Silcoates entrance exam paper-based?
Yes. our working assumption for this school, not yet verified with the school, is that the assessment is paper-based.
Does Silcoates School have a catchment area?
We did not find a published catchment area on the school information reviewed. As an independent school, admissions are handled directly by Silcoates, so ask the admissions team how places are prioritised if there are more applicants than places.
When is the Silcoates School entrance exam?
The public admissions page viewed shows an entrance assessment day for September 2027 entry, but not a confirmed 2028 timetable. For September 2028 entry, contact the school directly to confirm the current assessment date.
How early should my child start preparing for Silcoates?
A gentle start in Year 5 is usually sensible. Begin with short weekly sessions across all four subjects, then increase gradually and add timed practice in Year 6.
Does Silcoates use GL Assessment papers?
our directory, not yet verified with the school, records the school uses its own paper in a GL-style format across four subjects. That means GL-type practice is useful even though the assessment is school-set.
Sources
- Silcoates School admissions process: Silcoates handles admissions directly; the admissions process includes enquiry, tour, registration, taster day and assessments; prospective pupils from Year 3 onwards are assessed; pupils are invited to complete an assessment on the morning of their taster day; the page states 'Senior School Septemb
- Silcoates School website: Silcoates School is an independent coeducational school educating pupils from Junior School through Senior School and Sixth Form.
Preparing for other schools in Wakefield
- Ackworth School · practice papers
- Queen Elizabeth Grammar School · practice papers
- Wakefield Girls' High School · practice papers
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.