Preparation
11 Plus Tutor in Sidcup: How the Bexley Selection Test Works and How to Prepare
Nov 4, 2026
If your child is in Year 5 or early Year 6 and you live in or near Sidcup, the exam you are planning for is the Bexley Selection Test, commonly known as the 11 Plus. It is the single test used for entry to all four grammar schools in the London Borough of Bexley, including Chislehurst and Sidcup Grammar School.
What is the Bexley Selection Test?
Grammar schools are academically selective, so your child must show they meet a certain academic standard before they can be considered for a place. The Bexley Selection Test is how the borough measures that standard. According to Bexley Council, the test assesses verbal ability and English comprehension, numerical reasoning, and non-verbal reasoning. Only children who achieve the selective mark, decided by the grammar school head teachers, are eligible for consideration. One registration covers all four Bexley grammar schools: Beths Grammar School (Bexley), Bexley Grammar School (Welling), Chislehurst and Sidcup Grammar School (Sidcup) and Townley Grammar School (Bexleyheath).
What does the test look like?
Your child sits two non-adaptive paper assessments on the same day, with breaks in between. Each paper lasts around 50 minutes. Paper one covers verbal ability and English comprehension; paper two covers numerical and non-verbal reasoning. Answers are recorded on an OMR answer sheet, which is why practising with the official familiarisation booklets matters.
Key dates to plan around
Dates are confirmed each year by Bexley Council and Quest Assessments. The pattern: registration opens and closes in the summer term of Year 5 (check bexley.gov.uk for the exact window); the test takes place in September of Year 6; results arrive by email in early October, before the secondary school application deadline of 31 October; National Offer Day is 1 March. Always confirm the current year’s dates on the Bexley Council selection tests page.
How to prepare (the official advice)
Quest Assessments, which produces the test with the London Borough of Bexley, says the test assesses genuine understanding of the school curriculum: the best preparation is a strong grounding in what your child is already learning, plus wide reading and applying knowledge to new contexts. Their advice: read widely and for pleasure; short, regular learning habits beat long sessions; try logic puzzles, word games and pattern-spotting; work through the free official familiarisation booklets at a relaxed pace.
For more support, explore our 11+ exam preparation guide and 11+ mock exam course.
Where a tutor fits in
Many Sidcup families want more than the official guidance: a structured weekly routine, someone to spot whether comprehension or vocabulary is holding back the verbal paper, timed practice under exam conditions, and honest feedback on whether grammar school is the right target. At Life Changing Tuition in Sidcup, our 11 Plus preparation follows the shape of the real Bexley test: verbal and non-verbal reasoning, numerical reasoning and English comprehension, in small steps with regular timed practice. The most useful first step is a baseline check against the four areas the test assesses.
Sources
If your child is in Year 5 or early Year 6 and you live in or near Sidcup, the exam you are planning for is the Bexley Selection Test, commonly known as the 11 Plus. It is the single test used for entry to all four grammar schools in the London Borough of Bexley, including Chislehurst and Sidcup Grammar School.
What is the Bexley Selection Test?
Grammar schools are academically selective, so your child must show they meet a certain academic standard before they can be considered for a place. The Bexley Selection Test is how the borough measures that standard. According to Bexley Council, the test assesses verbal ability and English comprehension, numerical reasoning, and non-verbal reasoning. Only children who achieve the selective mark, decided by the grammar school head teachers, are eligible for consideration. One registration covers all four Bexley grammar schools: Beths Grammar School (Bexley), Bexley Grammar School (Welling), Chislehurst and Sidcup Grammar School (Sidcup) and Townley Grammar School (Bexleyheath).
What does the test look like?
Your child sits two non-adaptive paper assessments on the same day, with breaks in between. Each paper lasts around 50 minutes. Paper one covers verbal ability and English comprehension; paper two covers numerical and non-verbal reasoning. Answers are recorded on an OMR answer sheet, which is why practising with the official familiarisation booklets matters.
Key dates to plan around
Dates are confirmed each year by Bexley Council and Quest Assessments. The pattern: registration opens and closes in the summer term of Year 5 (check bexley.gov.uk for the exact window); the test takes place in September of Year 6; results arrive by email in early October, before the secondary school application deadline of 31 October; National Offer Day is 1 March. Always confirm the current year’s dates on the Bexley Council selection tests page.
How to prepare (the official advice)
Quest Assessments, which produces the test with the London Borough of Bexley, says the test assesses genuine understanding of the school curriculum: the best preparation is a strong grounding in what your child is already learning, plus wide reading and applying knowledge to new contexts. Their advice: read widely and for pleasure; short, regular learning habits beat long sessions; try logic puzzles, word games and pattern-spotting; work through the free official familiarisation booklets at a relaxed pace.
For more support, explore our 11+ exam preparation guide and 11+ mock exam course.
Where a tutor fits in
Many Sidcup families want more than the official guidance: a structured weekly routine, someone to spot whether comprehension or vocabulary is holding back the verbal paper, timed practice under exam conditions, and honest feedback on whether grammar school is the right target. At Life Changing Tuition in Sidcup, our 11 Plus preparation follows the shape of the real Bexley test: verbal and non-verbal reasoning, numerical reasoning and English comprehension, in small steps with regular timed practice. The most useful first step is a baseline check against the four areas the test assesses.
Sources
If your child is in Year 5 or early Year 6 and you live in or near Sidcup, the exam you are planning for is the Bexley Selection Test, commonly known as the 11 Plus. It is the single test used for entry to all four grammar schools in the London Borough of Bexley, including Chislehurst and Sidcup Grammar School.
What is the Bexley Selection Test?
Grammar schools are academically selective, so your child must show they meet a certain academic standard before they can be considered for a place. The Bexley Selection Test is how the borough measures that standard. According to Bexley Council, the test assesses verbal ability and English comprehension, numerical reasoning, and non-verbal reasoning. Only children who achieve the selective mark, decided by the grammar school head teachers, are eligible for consideration. One registration covers all four Bexley grammar schools: Beths Grammar School (Bexley), Bexley Grammar School (Welling), Chislehurst and Sidcup Grammar School (Sidcup) and Townley Grammar School (Bexleyheath).
What does the test look like?
Your child sits two non-adaptive paper assessments on the same day, with breaks in between. Each paper lasts around 50 minutes. Paper one covers verbal ability and English comprehension; paper two covers numerical and non-verbal reasoning. Answers are recorded on an OMR answer sheet, which is why practising with the official familiarisation booklets matters.
Key dates to plan around
Dates are confirmed each year by Bexley Council and Quest Assessments. The pattern: registration opens and closes in the summer term of Year 5 (check bexley.gov.uk for the exact window); the test takes place in September of Year 6; results arrive by email in early October, before the secondary school application deadline of 31 October; National Offer Day is 1 March. Always confirm the current year’s dates on the Bexley Council selection tests page.
How to prepare (the official advice)
Quest Assessments, which produces the test with the London Borough of Bexley, says the test assesses genuine understanding of the school curriculum: the best preparation is a strong grounding in what your child is already learning, plus wide reading and applying knowledge to new contexts. Their advice: read widely and for pleasure; short, regular learning habits beat long sessions; try logic puzzles, word games and pattern-spotting; work through the free official familiarisation booklets at a relaxed pace.
For more support, explore our 11+ exam preparation guide and 11+ mock exam course.
Where a tutor fits in
Many Sidcup families want more than the official guidance: a structured weekly routine, someone to spot whether comprehension or vocabulary is holding back the verbal paper, timed practice under exam conditions, and honest feedback on whether grammar school is the right target. At Life Changing Tuition in Sidcup, our 11 Plus preparation follows the shape of the real Bexley test: verbal and non-verbal reasoning, numerical reasoning and English comprehension, in small steps with regular timed practice. The most useful first step is a baseline check against the four areas the test assesses.
Sources
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