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
The Portsmouth Grammar School sets its own entrance assessment for Year 7 entry, using a GL-style format across Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning. For 2028 entry, our working assumption, not yet verified with the school, is that the test is computer-based, so children need practice reading carefully on screen, working accurately with a mouse or trackpad, and keeping a steady pace under time pressure.
Because the school assesses across all four areas, preparation needs to be balanced. Maths and English matter, but so do the reasoning papers. Verbal Reasoning usually rewards strong vocabulary, careful logic and quick pattern-spotting with words and codes. Non-Verbal Reasoning rewards visual analysis, rotations, sequences and shape relationships. The school’s own admissions process also includes an interview and a reference from the child’s current school.
For parents, the most useful way to think about the assessment is this: it is not just about whether your child can do the work, but whether they can do it efficiently in a timed digital format. That means a preparation routine should include short, regular timed practice on screen rather than only untimed work on paper.
On the day itself, families should expect an admissions process rather than a single isolated paper. The school’s admissions page says that after registration there is an assessment, an interview and a reference request to the current school before offers are made.
Registration and key dates
The school handles its own admissions, so parents should start with the admissions section of the Portsmouth Grammar School website rather than a local authority 11+ portal. The admissions page says families should make an online application and that, after submitting the form, the school will contact applicants to arrange the next stage.
For 2028 entry, the school had not published a full set of Year 7 deadlines on the pages reviewed at the time of writing. Where exact dates are not yet available, it is safest to treat the current published cycle as a guide and then check the school site regularly for updates. The admissions page states that applications for September 2026 entry are open, while the fees and assistance information states that scholarship and financial assistance applications for September 2027 entry had a closing date of Friday 25 September 2026. That does not confirm the Year 7 entrance test date for 2028 entry, but it does suggest that key admissions activity for Year 7 often happens in the early autumn of Year 6.
In practical terms, parents should plan on this pattern unless and until the school publishes otherwise:
- Summer term of Year 5 into early Year 6: start checking the school admissions page and request a visit if helpful.
- Early autumn of Year 6: expect application, scholarship and means-tested assistance deadlines to fall around this period, based on the published 2027 deadlines.
- Autumn of Year 6: expect the assessment and interview process to take place.
- After assessment: the school says offers are made once the assessment, interview and reference stages are complete.
If you are interested in means-tested financial assistance or a scholarship, do not leave the enquiry late. The published deadline on the school’s fees page for 2027 entry was the same September date for scholarship applications and financial assistance applications, which suggests these parts of the process run early.
Useful next steps for parents:
- Read the school’s admissions process page in full.
- Check whether a separate form is needed for scholarship or financial assistance.
- Prepare basic documents in advance, such as your child’s current school details and contact information.
- Set a reminder to recheck the school site regularly.
- Use Free email alerts for this school's key dates.
For a quick overview page, see The The Portsmouth Grammar School 11+ guide (format, catchment, dates).
Who can apply: catchment and admissions
The Portsmouth Grammar School is an independent co-educational school, so it does not operate the kind of state-school catchment system that grammar school parents may be used to. the information in our directory (not yet verified with the school) for this school is NoCatchment. In other words, there is no published geographic catchment area for Year 7 entry on the material reviewed here.
The admissions process is selective. The school says pupils can join at several points, including Years 7–10 and Year 12. For Year 7 applicants, families should expect the decision to be based on performance in the entrance assessment, the interview and the reference from the current school.
The school also publishes that means-tested financial assistance is awarded at 11+ and Sixth Form, and in some circumstances at 13+. That is important for families considering an independent school route but needing help with fees. The annual fee published for Year 7 to Year 13 is £25,614, or £8,538 per term, for 2026–2027, including VAT. Because fee levels can change, always recheck the latest school fees page before making a final decision.
The school pages reviewed did not publish a Year 7 intake number, a published pass mark, or a score threshold for offers. Independent schools often do not publish these figures. Parents should assume competition can be strong and focus on presenting a child who is academically secure, calm under timed conditions and ready for interview.
A month-by-month preparation plan
For September 2028 entry, most children will sit the assessment in the autumn of Year 6. A calm, steady build-up through Year 5 is usually more effective than a late rush.
January to March of Year 5
Keep preparation light and regular: about 1 to 2 hours a week split across several short sessions. The goal at this stage is diagnosis, not intensity. Check your child’s arithmetic fluency, reading comprehension, spelling accuracy and vocabulary, then introduce short Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning tasks to see what feels unfamiliar.
April to June of Year 5
Increase gently to 2 to 3 hours a week. Start building method. In Maths, close any gaps in number facts, fractions, decimals, percentages and multi-step word problems. In English, practise inference, writer’s method, punctuation and precise vocabulary. For reasoning, teach one question type at a time and revisit it until it becomes familiar.
July to August before Year 6
This is a useful consolidation period. Aim for 2 to 4 hours a week, but keep sessions short and purposeful. Move some work onto a screen because the PGS test is computer-based. Summer is a good time to strengthen weaker areas without the pressure of school homework. Children who leave the summer with secure basics usually cope much better with timed work in September.
September of Year 6
Now shift from learning content to applying it under time pressure. Around 3 to 4 hours a week is realistic for most families. Introduce timed sections rather than full papers straight away. Focus especially on staying calm, moving on from a hard question and avoiding careless errors on screen.
The final 3 to 4 weeks before the exam
Use a small number of realistic timed papers, review them carefully, and avoid overloading your child. At this point, quality matters more than quantity. One well-reviewed paper teaches more than three rushed ones. Make sure your child knows how to pace themselves across Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning.
The final week
Reduce volume. Do short refreshers, vocabulary review, arithmetic warm-ups and one or two confidence-building reasoning sets. Keep sleep, routine and school attendance steady. The aim is a child who feels prepared, not exhausted.
- When to start timed papers: usually in the summer before Year 6, with fuller timed practice in September.
- When to move onto screen practice: as soon as your child understands the question types.
- Best weekly rhythm: 3 to 5 short sessions works better than one long weekend block.
Subject by subject: what to practise
Maths
Prioritise secure arithmetic, place value, fractions, decimals, percentages, ratio basics, averages, measurement, shape and multi-step word problems. In a timed entrance assessment, children often lose marks not because the maths is beyond them, but because they misread information or spend too long on one method. Practise mental calculation, tidy working and quick checking. Screen-based practice matters here too: children need to stay accurate without relying on lots of rough paper layout.
English
English preparation should cover both reading and technical accuracy. Practise comprehension with inference, vocabulary-in-context, retrieval and summarising. Alongside that, revise punctuation, grammar and spelling patterns. Because independent school tests often reward precise reading, teach your child to slow down just enough to catch detail, then answer briskly. Strong general reading remains one of the best long-term preparation tools.
Verbal Reasoning
For Verbal Reasoning, focus on the common GL-style families of question: codes, letter sequences, word relationships, hidden words, synonyms and antonyms, and logical word patterns. Build vocabulary steadily. Many children improve quickly once they learn the mechanics of each type, so teach method first and timing second. Keep an error log of any question types your child repeatedly gets wrong.
Non-Verbal Reasoning
For Non-Verbal Reasoning, practise shape sequences, rotations, reflections, similarities, odd one out, nets, codes and spatial patterns. Children often benefit from being taught to look systematically for change: shape, size, shading, position, number and direction. Start untimed so that the visual rules make sense, then add timed sets to build speed.
Practice papers and mock exams
Practice papers are most useful when they are part of a routine, not used as a last-minute test. Start with short topic sets, then move to timed sections, then a small number of full mixed papers. After each one, spend longer reviewing than marking. Ask:
- Was the mistake caused by knowledge, timing or misreading?
- Did my child know the method but rush?
- Is there a pattern in the wrong answers?
- Did screen use affect concentration or pace?
For this school, it makes sense to include digital practice because the real assessment is computer-based. Even if you also use printed resources, make sure your child regularly practises reading, selecting and moving through questions on screen.
Use these resources as part of your preparation:
- Free The Portsmouth Grammar School practice papers (one per tested subject, with answers)
- The The Portsmouth Grammar School 11+ guide (format, catchment, dates)
- Free email alerts for this school's key dates
If you book a mock exam elsewhere, choose one for confidence, stamina and timing practice rather than score-chasing. The most helpful mock is one that gives your child experience of settling quickly, working independently and recovering after a tricky section.
On the day
Keep the morning simple. Aim for a normal breakfast, plenty of time, comfortable school-appropriate clothes and a calm journey. Avoid last-minute cramming; a brief warm-up is fine, but this is not the day for new material.
Remind your child of four practical habits:
- Read each question carefully before clicking.
- Keep moving if one question feels hard.
- Use steady pacing rather than rushing at the start.
- Reset mentally after any section that felt difficult.
Because the assessment is computer-based, it helps if your child has already practised common screen habits: scrolling carefully if needed, keeping track of where they are, and not panicking if a question looks unfamiliar. The interview stage, where applicable, is usually best approached as a conversation. Encourage your child to be polite, thoughtful and straightforward rather than trying to sound impressive.
Parents can help most by staying matter-of-fact. Present the day as a chance to show readiness for the school, not as a verdict on your child’s ability.
After the exam: results, allocation and appeals
For The Portsmouth Grammar School, the process is different from state grammar school allocation because this is an independent school. There is no local authority National Offer Day process for the school itself. Instead, the school says that once the application has been made, applicants are invited to assessment and interview, a reference is requested from the current school, and then offers are made.
The pages reviewed did not publish a specific results date or a separate published score report for Year 7 entry. If you need exact timings for offers, waiting lists or any review process for 2028 entry, check directly with the admissions team once the new cycle opens.
If your child is not offered a place, it is still worth asking politely whether a waiting list operates and whether there is any later entry point to consider. The school states that pupils may join in Years 7–10 and Year 12, so there can be other points of entry, though availability will vary from year to year.
For families applying for financial assistance, keep copies of any forms and submit them by the school’s published deadline. These applications usually run alongside the admissions process rather than after an offer is secured.
What has changed recently
On the material reviewed for this guide, the clearest recent published update is about fees and financial assistance deadlines. The school’s fees page states that the annual fee for Year 7 to 13 is £25,614, or £8,538 per term, for 2026–2027, including VAT. The same page also states that scholarship applications for September 2027 entry were open and that the closing date for Year 7 and Year 9 scholarship applications was Friday 25 September 2026; applications for financial assistance for 2027 entry also had to be completed by Friday 25 September.
No separate official announcement about a change to Year 7 test subjects, a catchment policy, or published place numbers was found on the pages reviewed. For 2028 entry, our working assumption, not yet verified with the school, is that the assessment is the school’s own paper in a GL-style format across Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning, delivered on computer.
Frequently asked questions
Does The Portsmouth Grammar School have a catchment area?
No. It is an independent school and the information in our directory (not yet verified with the school) for this school is NoCatchment.
What does The Portsmouth Grammar School test at 11+?
For 2028 entry, the assessment covers Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning, and it is sat on a computer.
Is the PGS Year 7 test GL Assessment?
The school uses its own paper in a GL-style format. In practice, children should prepare for familiar GL-type question styles across all four subjects.
When should my child start preparing for PGS?
For most children, a light start in Year 5 with regular short sessions works well. Build gradually, then add timed and screen-based practice in the summer before Year 6 and early autumn.
Does The Portsmouth Grammar School offer financial help?
Yes. The school says means-tested financial assistance is awarded at 11+ and Sixth Form, and in some circumstances at 13+.
How much are the fees at The Portsmouth Grammar School?
The published fee for Year 7 to 13 for 2026–2027 is £25,614 per year, or £8,538 per term, including VAT. Always check the latest fees page for updates.
Sources
- The Portsmouth Grammar School – Admissions process: School admissions are handled by the school; applications are made online; the process includes assessment, interview and a reference from the current school; pupils may join in Years 7–10 and Year 12; applications for September 2026 entry are open.
- The Portsmouth Grammar School – Homepage: The school is a co-educational school in Portsmouth for pupils aged 2½ to 18.
Preparing for other schools in Portsmouth
- Madani Academy · practice papers
- Mayville High School · practice papers
- How to prepare for the Portsmouth High School GDST 11+ · 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.