11+ support thread 2026

Good luck for everyone taking it today! So nervous!

DD said it was 'fine'. She only had to guess a few questions and had enough time so I'm taking that as a positive. She didn't seem too stressed by the experience. Me on the other hand...I was so glad to see her come out!

My daughter did FSCE today came out looking sad but said she thinks she did ok. I’m worried for her - myself i am just proud she did her best but for her I worry how it will affect her if she’s not in. Not to mention my EXTREMELY overbearing ex husband!

What did she say about the test? My DC said the time was a struggle and they missed a few questions near the end of the test as it was really difficult for them to complete it all

good luck to yours and mine! X

My dd took FSCE exam today too, didn’t complete it, found some questions much harder than expected.
I don't have high hopes, but proud she actually went because up until 7am she wasn’t going to take the exam

My DC had the exact same experience!!!

they didn’t finish a few questions unfortunately, not got high hopes but hoping and praying for a miracle because the schools in our area aren’t great! 😞

Hopefully they’ll have done well.
I spoke to a friend, her son sat the exam at a different school but was FSCE too, and she has said the same. He found it hard and couldn’t finish the papers.
not sure of the paper was a lot tougher than expected.

dd has now decided she really likes the school…which will make it even harder if the results don’t go the way she wants (here’s hoping )

She said similar. It was hard and very fast paced. She managed to complete both but she’s not very confident as said she just had to guess some. Time will tell. General consensus from her tutor group and girls in her school who took the test is similar!

Pleased to have stumbled across this thread. I can bless you all with anxiety here instead of internalising it all 😂I cannot wait for next week and for this all to be over to be honest. We've tried to keep pressure off DD, but with her sister at our local Grammar she's just desperate to join her there. She's more than capable, top of the year in CATs but came out of the test quite negative, specifically regarding NV. The timings threw her, I had no idea it would be different to practice papers which is all she did for prep. Keeping my fingers crossed for her and for yours! ❤

My DD sat the Colyton 11+ and felt like it went well, at least she felt like the questions were easier than the practise she'd done over the summer, including a mock 11+, where the maths in particular for that 10 minute burst were much easier on the day than in the practise material (she used Atom). How was it for your child? Did they sit for any other schools? DD also took the Torquay test and found the opposite, it was harder than the practise she'd done on Atom.

Had an email lasted night to say DGSB are now going to be emailing results instead of posting them which im SO relieved about. With my eldest he failed Kent Test and we had to wait until the end of the next day to get the DGSB results as our post comes so late!!

How is everyone finding the endless wait for results? Still another week to go here and the initial relief that the exam was over with no obvious major issues has given way to anxiety over how DD will take potential bad news. We have a strong back up school which she really likes so there's every chance she'll shrug it off and look forward to going there. Her best friend is, IMO, very likely to get the grammar and she would be so happy if they could go together.

Also playing on my mind is the fact that the grammar is an incredibly easy journey (20 minute walk or 10 minute cycle) whereas the comp is still easy but not walkable (it would take an hour) so it would be a combination of unreliable buses or a longer bike ride in fair weather.

I still couldn't call the result. She showed in practice papers that the ability was there, there is so much competition though (470+ girls sat for 160 places) so it feels like it was a huge ask. Boys in her class got their results on Tuesday and there were more didn't pass than those who did (no surprises in those results I would say) so she certainly won't be alone.

Glad you said this, I’m finding it so tough too! My DD is happily distracted with seeing friends and much less homework but I feel so anxious waiting and just want it to be over now and know either way. She has other quite good options locally so it wouldn’t be a disaster if she didn’t get in and I think she’d manage it ok too as we’ve always talked about it as being a very slim chance, but after working so hard it would be obviously be nice if she did. She also has a couple of friends that have done the exam so it would be a shame if some did get in and some didn’t.

It’s such a relief that the exams are over though so I’m trying to focus on that and not spend too long searching for waiting list numbers and past years’ results day chat. It feels impossible though!

It's tomorrow for us. And we are in very similar situation. DD's best friend -i think everyone would be suprised if she didn't pass. DD is less clear though - we feel she will either just pass or just fail.

Distance wise, the grammar and the preferred non grammar are within a couple mins of each other, both are on same bus from our village, so if she doesn't pass she will have to see all those that did get on the bus with her which night be tough.

It's an awful process, and I can see why so many areas have got rid of grammar, the pressure at this age is crazy

Hi, all.
Very very late to the party in more ways than one!
Just posted on the other group... have just come across both group tonight.

We did not have grammar school on our radar but in June there was a change in our living circumstances so it became an option. And that was the start of us registering and then preparing for 11+!
I was tutoring DD and I initially thought it would be no problem but it quickly showed that I had underestimated the prep. It's been very exhausting.
One exam just done on the 26th Sept (results out in 1 week), another exam in 3 weeks and the last one in December.

I am constantly filled with anxiety and having poor sleep. I have become so invested.

Goodluck to everyone still sitting exams and those awaiting results.

@11plus2026 , thank-you. Yes she's going for grammar schools, independents and state schools. It is an exhausting process but feel we are on the back foot as we started preparing so very late so I can't take my foot of the pedal.

Hoping Bucks DC and parents are OK this evening.
Been through it twice before so know what a rollercoaster it all is

Got Bucks results half an hour ago…DC passed. Genuinely can’t believe it, I’ve read the email many times over. Good luck to everyone else!

Still waiting here and driving myself mad as I just want to know now, but also kind of don't. I am desperately trying not to transmit any of this to DD, I haven't even told her when results day is (15th), although she may find out at school anyway, she hasn't really asked about it. Kind of regretting having put us through this process, I just don't want DD to feel any 'less' if she doesn't qualify for a place.

Meanwhile I'm obsessing over previous years' pass marks and associated facebook results day chats, trying to get my head around standardisation, and looking at DD's practice paper scores for reassurance. I'm sure I wasn't like this when my older two sat, but I've probably forgotten!

Hope everyone is doing ok, whether you have results or are still in the endless waiting game.

Same @GarlandaChynoweth , even down to the obsessing over previous years' marks and regretting ever starting this! We're in Essex, so waiting on CSSE results later today and so anxious. It's ridiculous, as DS will be able to do well wherever he goes, but I've tied myself in knots about it. We only started the process as "oh well, worth a go", but inevitably it's become more pressurised. Good luck to everyone and I hope all the DC are much more chilled than their overwrought parents!

@LifePortfolio we are currently anxiously waiting for the Csse results as well. I spent last night once again going over results and percentages!
We started this time last year as a "do you want to have a go?". It has led to a school change for both DC. When we started going through assessments to see what DDs baseline was it became very apparent that the schools assessment of "as expected" in all areas was rubbish. DD has got her heart set on the grammar and won't think about any of the other schools we have visited.

I am not thinking about next year when we will probably start it all over again for DS.

Well, all over for us - needed at least high 360s to be in contention for an out of catchment place, got 344 (on raw scores of 39/60 in each paper). Am gutted for DS, he thought he did a lot better than that on the day. Also a bit annoyed with tutoring - he was scoring 90% or more in the maths mocks, I know that's no guarantee of performance in the real thing but it's such a huge discrepancy, I don't think they hit the right level of difficulty.

Best of luck to everyone else, I hope tonight and Thursday brings you all much better news.