Henrietta Barnet Stage 2 Test & Results - 2027 entry

Hi, for anyone that sat the stage 2 test on Tuesday - what did your DD think of the papers? My DD said there were 3 or so multiple choice questions at the end of the maths paper but it was not clear where the answer should be written - whether to circle the answer as there was no separate multiple choice answer sheet. She asked the invigilator who said ‘they couldn’t tell her and she had to work it out’. She wasn’t asking for help with the question but trying to work out where to write the answer. They were also short of papers at the start of the exam. Anyone else heard anything similar from their DD.
Separately does anyone know when they start to release results; conscious CAF forms need to be submitted by the end of the month.

And I think the reasoning behind not revealing the scores is that they don't want the girls who are eventually admitted to HBS to compare their scores with each other.

It's funny they do that cause girls entering from the waitlist would have an approximate idea of their rank.
Also every year, parents raise Freedom of Information requests to get partially anonymised results from the council. It's not hard to put together your position on the list based on those results. It's a bit difficult if a large number of girls are from the same postcode (a few Harrow ones :)) but usually it's quite easy.

Hi, for anyone that sat the stage 2 test on Tuesday - what did your DD think of the papers? My DD said there were 3 or so multiple choice questions at the end of the maths paper but it was not clear where the answer should be written - whether to circle the answer as there was no separate multiple choice answer sheet. She asked the invigilator who said ‘they couldn’t tell her and she had to work it out’. She wasn’t asking for help with the question but trying to work out where to write the answer. They were also short of papers at the start of the exam. Anyone else heard anything similar from their DD.
Separately does anyone know when they start to release results; conscious CAF forms need to be submitted by the end of the month.

not so straightforward - girls entering via waiting list still could have higher overall scores than some girls who get offer in March because they live in the 3 miles zone.

Asked my daughter, and now I am completely confused! She said her paper had exactly 21 maths questions, with a clear "END OF TEST" message at the bottom of the final sheet. She is certain they were all written, free-response questions with no multiple choice at all. She distinctly recalls one of the very last questions being a written problem about finding a water level. I wonder if they gave out slightly different variations of the papers to different rooms?

Hi all, best of luck to all who have taken stage 2 of the exam.

We took the 1st stage exam but scored 270 so didnt make the cut. I was wondering if anyone knows what this means in terms of marks and how far off we were? Is it an average? We are looking to go to an independent school and were using HB as a practice but im not clear on whether this means we lost 15 marks per paper etc?

Hi all, best of luck to all who have taken stage 2 of the exam.

We took the 1st stage exam but scored 270 so didnt make the cut. I was wondering if anyone knows what this means in terms of marks and how far off we were? Is it an average? We are looking to go to an independent school and were using HB as a practice but im not clear on whether this means we lost 15 marks per paper etc?

Hi - Got an email from HBS this afternoon. I understand their email tends to be vague about the final outcome but could someone clarify what this means? We are in Category 4 - OOC and would really appreciate some insights on how to read this accurately!

As you know, your daughter performed well enough in Round One to enable her to sit the Round Two test. Therefore, it is the case that she may be offered a place at the School....
Assuming the number of applications exceeds our PAN, you are advised to list The Henrietta Barnett School as your daughter's first preference if you do want her to come here.

you are advised to list The Henrietta Barnett School as your daughter's first preference if you do want her to come here.
The wording is strange. Why can't HBS be anyone's second choice? I thought one can list HBS as a second preference and still gain admission if the first preference falls through.

Hi - Got an email from HBS this afternoon. I understand their email tends to be vague about the final outcome but could someone clarify what this means? We are in Category 4 - OOC and would really appreciate some insights on how to read this accurately!

As you know, your daughter performed well enough in Round One to enable her to sit the Round Two test. Therefore, it is the case that she may be offered a place at the School....
Assuming the number of applications exceeds our PAN, you are advised to list The Henrietta Barnett School as your daughter's first preference if you do want her to come here.

It just means if everyone who lists as first preference takes up all the spaces then obviously those who listed it as second won't get in. Putting it first increases the chance of a space (if you also make the grade)

It just means if everyone who lists as first preference takes up all the spaces then obviously those who listed it as second won't get in. Putting it first increases the chance of a space (if you also make the grade)

This isn't true. The school doesn't know where people put them. If they put HBS first & aren't eligible they won't get a place. If someone puts them 2nd, isn't eligible for their first but it eligible for hbs they will get it.

I think this is meant to remind people that, if you list HBS as your second preference and you meet the admissions criteria for your first preference, you will be offered a place at your first preference, not HBS, on 1st March, even if your DD scored highly enough to get a place. If you really do prefer the other school to HBS, this is absolutely fine and the advice doesn't apply to you.

Assuming the number of applications exceeds our PAN

If HBS is oversubscribed (which it will be!), someone who actually prefers HBS but makes the mistake of putting another school ahead of it on the application form might be allocated a place at the other school on 1st March and would have to join the HBS waiting list to try to correct the mistake. At that point, the girl would be behind all the lower scoring girls who put HBS first and were allocated a place there on 1st March.

I think this is meant to remind people that, if you list HBS as your second preference and you meet the admissions criteria for your first preference, you will be offered a place at your first preference, not HBS, on 1st March, even if your DD scored highly enough to get a place. If you really do prefer the other school to HBS, this is absolutely fine and the advice doesn't apply to you.

Assuming the number of applications exceeds our PAN

If HBS is oversubscribed (which it will be!), someone who actually prefers HBS but makes the mistake of putting another school ahead of it on the application form might be allocated a place at the other school on 1st March and would have to join the HBS waiting list to try to correct the mistake. At that point, the girl would be behind all the lower scoring girls who put HBS first and were allocated a place there on 1st March.

From my knowledge of another grammar school, the waiting list is ranked purely by test score, and the school does not see your preference order on the CAF. Therefore, if a girl scores high within the PAN but makes a mistake on her application and then asks to be placed back on the waiting list, she should be ranked according to her score, which means she jumps the queue and pushes everyone else on the original waiting list down.

Thanks, I get that. It's just the vague and noncommital tone of the email which doesn't seem to give you any sort of reassurance. It could very well be the option your DD gets BUT at the same time there's a good chance she won't!

From my knowledge of another grammar school, the waiting list is ranked purely by test score, and the school does not see your preference order on the CAF. Therefore, if a girl scores high within the PAN but makes a mistake on her application and then asks to be placed back on the waiting list, she should be ranked according to her score, which means she jumps the queue and pushes everyone else on the original waiting list down.