Bournemouth and Poole (Dorset Consortium) 11+: guide for 2028 entry
For children in Year 5 now, who sit the Dorset Consortium test in September 2027 to start secondary school in September 2028. The test provider changes to Quest Assessments for this year group. Dates and format are taken from Quest Assessments' and Bournemouth School's own pages.
Try a free Dorset Consortium-style practice (3 days, no card)
At a glance
- Test date
- September 2027, for 2028 entry. The day is not yet published
- Registration
- Opens in April 2027. The closing date is not yet published
- Schools
- Bournemouth School, Bournemouth School for Girls, Parkstone Grammar School and Poole Grammar School
- Set by
- Quest Assessments for 2028 entry. This year's test, for 2027 entry, was set by GL Assessment
- Papers
- Maths, English and Verbal Reasoning, 40 minutes each, in one session with a short supervised break
- Results
- Mid October 2027
Key dates
For 2028 entry (test in September 2027)
Quest Assessments gives months only for registration, the test and results. Exact days are not yet published.
- April 2027
- Registration opens
- September 2027
- Test. The day is not yet published
- Mid October 2027
- Results released
- Sunday 31 October 2027
- Deadline for the secondary school application
- Wednesday 1 March 2028
- National offers day
Source: Quest Assessments: Dorset Consortium 11+ assessment
This year's dates at Bournemouth School (2026 test, 2027 entry), as a guide to the pattern
- 13 April 2026
- Registration form available online
- 4 September 2026 (noon)
- Deadline to register for testing
- 26 September 2026
- Entrance tests
- 16 October 2026 (4.00pm)
- Results emailed to parents
- 29 January 2027 (noon)
- Deadline to register for late testing
- 23 February 2027
- Late testing
Get an email when Dorset Consortium publishes new 11+ dates
We check the official admissions pages every morning. When registration, test dates or results are announced, we'll send you a short email saying what changed and where to find it. We use your address for nothing else.
We email you first to confirm. Alerts come from Eleven Plus Academy, not the school. Privacy policy.
The three papers
A new test provider for this year group
Children who sat the test in September 2026, for 2027 entry, took GL Assessment papers: maths for 50 minutes, English for 45 minutes and verbal reasoning for 50 minutes. Bournemouth School says the consortium has decided to change to Quest Assessments after that.
The subjects stay the same for 2028 entry, but each paper is 40 minutes. Older practice material written for the GL papers will not match the new timings. Bournemouth School says its admissions policy for 2028 entry has yet to be determined by its trustees, so check again once it is published.
Usually five options, on an answer sheet
Quest says all questions are multiple choice, usually with five options, A to E. Children answer on a machine-read answer sheet by drawing a clear horizontal line through the box next to their answer.
Our sample questions below have four options, so expect one more choice to rule out in the test itself.
One attempt
Bournemouth School says the entrance tests may only be taken once by any student at any one consortium school. Check each school's own admissions page for how it uses the results and how to register.
Five Bournemouth and Poole-style sample questions
These are our own questions, written in the style of the test so you can see the level. They are not taken from any real paper. Tap a question to see the answer and the method.
1. What is the value of 7 squared minus 4 squared?
- A) 9
- B) 33
- C) 36
- D) 65
2. A film starts at ten to three in the afternoon and lasts 105 minutes. At what time does it end?
- A) Twenty-five past four
- B) Quarter to five
- C) Five to four
- D) Twenty-five to five
3. Which word is closest in meaning to drowsy?
- A) thirsty
- B) sleepy
- C) clumsy
- D) grumpy
4. Which word completes the sentence correctly? The children hung ___ coats by the door.
- A) there
- B) they're
- C) their
- D) theirs
5. In a code, each letter is replaced by the letter two places after it in the alphabet. How is the word MAP written?
- A) OCR
- B) NBQ
- C) OCQ
- D) KYN
What a Year 5 parent can do now
- Download Quest's familiarisation booklets and look through them together, so the question types and answer sheet are familiar.
- Start short, regular practice in maths, English and verbal reasoning now, keeping to Year 5 content, and add 40-minute timed papers after Easter.
- Check the admissions pages of the schools you are interested in from April 2027, when registration opens, for the exact test day and registration deadline.
How to prepare
- Download Quest's free familiarisation booklets for English, maths and verbal reasoning.
- Practise 40-minute papers in each of the three subjects.
- Practise drawing a clear horizontal line through the chosen box on an answer sheet.
- Use Quest's recommended reading lists and vocabulary list through Year 5.
Try a free Dorset Consortium-style mock
Set out like the papers the school or area describes, with your child's score at the end and, where the school sets a writing task, their writing marked from a photo. Where a timing is not published, ours is an estimate. Free 3-day trial, no card needed.
Start my Dorset Consortium-style mockOr get a free Dorset Consortium-style practice paper (PDF)
Our mocks follow the published format where there is one. The timings we estimate and the questions are our own, not real past papers.
The other 32 school and area guides
Blackheath High 11+ guide · Eltham College 11+ guide · Dulwich College 11+ guide · Alleyn's 11+ guide · Kent Test guide · Bexley 11+ guide · Colfe's 11+ guide · St Olave's 11+ guide · Medway Test guide · Tiffin 11+ guide · Sutton SET guide · ISEB Pre-Test guide · London 11+ Consortium guide · Latymer Upper 11+ guide · Henrietta Barnett 11+ guide · Dame Alice Owen's 11+ guide · QE Barnet 11+ guide · Redbridge 11+ guide · Buckinghamshire Transfer Test guide · Essex CSSE 11+ guide · Slough Consortium 11+ guide · Kendrick School 11+ guide · South Wilts Grammar 11+ guide · Bishop Wordsworth's 11+ guide · Torbay grammar schools 11+ guide · Plymouth grammar schools 11+ guide · Lincolnshire 11+ guide · West Midlands grammar schools 11+ guide · Wirral 11+ guide · Ripon Grammar School 11+ guide · Lancaster Royal Grammar 11+ guide · Northern Ireland SEAG Transfer Test guide
More free practice: Free 11+ Maths practice questions → · Free 11+ Verbal Reasoning practice → · Free 11+ Fractions questions → · Free 11+ Vocabulary questions →
Quick answers
When is the Dorset Consortium 11+ exam?
September 2027, for 2028 entry. The day is not yet published.
What is in the Dorset Consortium 11+ exam?
Paper One: Maths, 40 minutes. Multiple choice. Paper Two: English, 40 minutes. Multiple choice. Paper Three: Verbal reasoning, 40 minutes. Multiple choice. Quest says the total time in the test centre, including settling in, instructions, papers and the break, is typically around two to three hours. Bournemouth School says no content beyond the Year 5 National Curriculum will be tested in any of the three subjects.
When do I need to register for the Dorset Consortium 11+?
Opens in April 2027. The closing date is not yet published.
How can my child practise for the Dorset Consortium 11+?
Download Quest's free familiarisation booklets for English, maths and verbal reasoning.
Sources
Checked 7 October 2026. Schools change their tests, so always confirm dates and details on the official pages below.
Eleven Plus Academy is independent. It is not affiliated with the Dorset Consortium, Quest Assessments, GL Assessment or any school.