10+ entry for secondary schools 2026

[Ready0rNot]

Hi, starting a new thread for those with children who are sitting for the 10+ exams this year.

Has anyone started prep yet and if so how is it going along with mock tests and reading habits etc. Keen to hear from others and share tips here!

Our target schools are Trinity and Whitgift.

Hello all! We are all done now. How did your DS find it. My son said it was much harder than trinity and I think the sheer number of boys in their uniforms also got to him. Well it’s end of exam season for us so it’s just a waiting game now. How did yours find it?

How did today go for everyone?

My DS said it was harder than Trinity and not as welcoming as they were all in one big room and the snacks (very important as we all know) were worse and the teachers weren’t as nice.

Yes, the snacks are very important! 😆 it’s defo the more formal of the schools in that way. Competition is high there too with all the changes that have gone on in Trinity. My DS really wants Whitgift so I’m hoping it’s gone well. Either way, we will now relax and enjoy Christmas.

When is your DS’s interview at Trinity?
My DS preferred Whitgift but now here is changing his mind I think, mostly as Whitgift feels a bit too traditional for him.

Wednesday. Honestly, I don’t think I want Trinity it’s always been my backup school. I’ve got friends at both and Whitgift is the stand out for me. The “traditional” I think is just more professional. Everything they do is just to a high standard all the time and for the fees we are now expecting to pay, that makes me happy. Trinity feels now like a bit of a test. I don’t know how the coed is really going to work long term, by then we will be about three years in… that’s a lot of money to not know how the concept works and just because it works in sixth form, doesn’t mean it will through the school.
Also the fact they are interviewing so many makes me suspicious too. One friends son is at Whitgift has had so much pastoral support too as he found the transition hard. They have said the school have been so caring told him not to worry that he’s in now and he can be himself, he’s earned his spot. They also got him involved and gave him so much encouragement. Another mum friend who actually pushed me to apply had her son in a school in west London, he was getting bullied and is now as Whitgift and she said he’s like a different child now just so happy and enjoying school life. My Trinity mums are happy, but they do say it’s not got the bells and whistles that Whitgift has and if I’m honest I do want all that too because for 30k a year I do want the best of the best.

im just going to try and push this away now and not think about it over Christmas and hope for the best.

Yes, it is good to have the assessments over and done with before Xmas and I hope everyone will get the offers they want.

I think both schools are great actually and that’s why we applied for both. I think there is a lot to be said for being more traditional and having the bells and whistles. There is also a lot in the opportunities of being part as a school transitions to be fully coed (and no one can predict how that will go).
Ultimately, I’m sure all boys who get an offer will do a second visit and then make the final decision as to what is the best option for them and their families.

We’re so pleased assessments are over! whitgift was definitely more traditional feel to it and the entire day was a lot more structured and polished. DS said the tests were harder too.
we really like them both for different reasons however Trinity wins as I really like their overall approach and it suits our DS better - even as a co-ed (actually that is a huge plus for us). However an offer from both would be great for him it’s not bad to have that decision to make! Anything to avoid the dreaded 11+…!
Do we know when we are expected to receive offers for both schools?

So Whitgift will email on the week commencing with the 12th of January and the lucky ones will be interviewed on the 17th of January. Plus scholarships I guess.
Trinity interviews are ongoing till the end of January as well.
Offers are sent on the 13th of February!

we have older children at Trinity and have no doubt they will be managing the coed transition very well, it's been a very rounded, intelligente and nurturing school so far. Following this thread as applying for 10+ for our DD to our local school, but if it doesn't work out we will defo apply to Trinity for her too next year for the first coed cohort.

How did the interview go?

Well he left the interview happy so we took that as a good sign! Hard to know what these schools are looking for..especially as Trinity will be going co ed soon. Would be amazing to get an offer from both schools but either would be great.

Anyone else got their invitation from Whitgift? :)

Congratulations- we got ours today too :) good luck to everyone 🤞

Yes we got ours too!

For those who applied to both schools do you have a preference? My son quite likes both and doesn’t mind. Which is very typical of him! He’s naturally quiet, not sporty but enjoys playing sport but sensitive and enjoys music and art (hates drama). Good at maths and English but not super academic. My husband prefers Whitgift for the sport opportunity (as do I) but equally like the nurturing feel of Trinity and the co-ed aspect too. Just want to make the right decision for him, especially as he’s told us he “doesn’t mind” (!) Keen to hear others thoughts?

We’re doing the 11+ rather than 10+, but my son sounds very similar to you. We all love the Whitgift grounds and facilities way more, but something about Trinity just feels very wholesome and kind. Though it’s not beautiful on the outside, once you’re indoors the facilities were great. We have a friend with a son at Whitgift - who loves it and has thrived there - but we still really favour Trinity for that indefinable gut feel reason that it would be a good fit. On a more subjective level, I really like the diversity and that the cross-section is more like London really is. My son is coming from a prep; it may just be that we worry that his life has always been so privileged that that feels important to us.

I think both schools are excellent options and any offers we get, we will be happy with.
When we began this journey of looking at schools etc, Whitgift was our son’s number one and I just loved the inclusivity of Trinity. My husband liked both equally. As we revisited both W and T over the last couple of years we could tell that there is an obvious difference between the two. For me, Whitgift feels traditional in every sense - the look, the way communication happened and the style in which the written exam was conducted.
Trinity, maybe less sporty but def more academic on the basis of the results, is a big block of concrete where the beauty lies within as far as I can tell. Each time we visited I felt the students and teachers alike wanted to include you and both the assessment and the interview were friendly and put my son at ease.
Ultimately, if both schools were to offer a place I think we would go with Trinity - mostly because my son thinks that the teachers are simply really nice and friendly in Trinity and ultimately (I think) it is a teacher who can make you love or hate a subject and become incredibly invested and good at something.

Can I ask how you/DS are preparing for the interviews? We have been going over questions online but not sure if we need to be doing anything else?

@Nov2025 @Ready0rNot for the Trinity parent interviews with the headmaster, is it more about them checking that your son is a good fit? We have ours for the 11+ coming up, and I am feeling a bit nervous! Would appreciate any intel on whether it’s worth preparing for the parent interviews?

@Rayo2025 have had a look online for what lind of common questions may come up, and worked with my son to put some bullet points down. I want to him to speak naturally, but not freeze - so thought it would be helpful to e.g. pick 3 hobbies/sports to talk about if they ask about that, have an idea what his favourite subject is at school etc. but no more than bullet points on a paper. Then when he has his interview in a couple of weeks he has something to look over before going in just so he has a starting point to speak from.

Thanks to everyone who has responded. Really interesting to read your thoughts.

@MunchkinJ i can’t remember who but someone helpfully shared a great account of child/parent interview on this thread which could you give you an idea on how the interviews may go. Personally I don’t think it’s worth preparing for the parent interview. It was more a casual chat to go over the results of your son’s test and find out more about him. It was also a chance to ask the head any questions. One of the things we were keen to hear about was how they plan to implement co-ed over the next few years.

@Rayo2025 what are his hobbies outside of school? Why? Favourite subjects are at school? Why? Remind him to say the reason why! As mentioned above someone posted about how their interview went in this thread you might find helpful.

I wrote the post you mention, you can find it on the first page of the thread I believe.

Thank you @MunchkinJ and @Ready0rNot. My DS who has his interview coming up for Trinity is being asked to attend a 15 minute interview along with 2 classroom based sessions. There is no mention of a parent interview. Wonder if anyone else's DS had the same experience?

Is this for 11+?

No 10+

do you know anything more about the classroom based assignments? Is this for a scholarship? We didn’t have a class based assignment and didn’t apply for scholarships either. Hopefully someone that did may be able to help and share some wisdom!