Plymouth grammar schools 11+: guide for 2028 entry
For children in Year 5 now, who sit the Plymouth 11+ in September 2027 to start secondary school in September 2028. Dates and format are taken from the three Plymouth grammar schools' own admissions pages.
At a glance
- Test date
- Saturday 18 September 2027 for 2028 entry, as listed by Devonport High School for Girls. This year's tests were on two Saturdays, 12 and 19 September 2026
- Registration
- Opens on 19 April 2027 for 2028 entry, as listed by Devonport High School for Girls. This year it closed on 31 August 2026
- Set by
- Quest Assessments
- Papers this year
- English comprehension and maths, both multiple choice, 40 minutes and 60 questions each
- Devonport High School for Boys
- Also sets its own English writing paper, which all its candidates must pass
- Practice exam
- Saturday 3 July 2027. Optional, with its own registration. Plymouth High School for Girls lists 170 places and Devonport High School for Girls lists 234
Key dates
For 2028 entry (test in September 2027)
These are the dates listed by Devonport High School for Girls. Its table shows the registration closing date and the results date with the year 2026, which looks like a slip, so we have left them out. Plymouth High School for Girls publishes its own timeline for 2028 entry as a download on its website, which we could not open when we checked. Open it for the registration closing date and the results date.
- Monday 12 April 2027
- Practice exam registration opens (noon at Plymouth High School for Girls)
- 19 April 2027
- 11+ registration opens
- 26 May 2027
- Practice exam registration closes (3pm at Plymouth High School for Girls), or earlier if the places fill
- Saturday 3 July 2027
- Practice exam
- Saturday 18 September 2027
- 11+ test date: Quest maths and English comprehension, with no writing
- 31 October 2027
- Latest date to apply for a school place
- 1 March 2028
- School place allocations notified
Source: Devonport High School for Girls: the application process
This year's dates (2026 tests, 2027 entry), as a guide to the pattern
- 27 April 2026
- 11+ registration opened
- 4 July 2026
- Practice exam
- 31 August 2026
- 11+ registration closed
- Saturday 12 September 2026
- Test day 1: English comprehension
- Saturday 19 September 2026
- Test day 2: maths
- 15 October 2026
- Results sent out by email
- 31 October 2026
- Latest date to apply for a school place through Plymouth City Council
- 1 March 2027
- School place allocations notified
Source: Plymouth High School for Girls: timeline for 11 Plus entry for September 2027
Get an email when Plymouth 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.
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The papers
These timings are for the 2026 tests
The paper lengths and question numbers above are what Plymouth High School for Girls published for the September 2026 tests. The schools had not confirmed the format for September 2027 when we checked, so treat them as a guide.
This year English was on the first Saturday and maths on the second. For 2028 entry, Devonport High School for Girls lists a single test date, Saturday 18 September 2027, for both maths and English comprehension.
No reasoning papers
Plymouth High School for Girls says the tests are English comprehension and maths, and that verbal, non-verbal and spatial reasoning are not included.
How places are decided
The two girls' grammar schools use the same papers on the same days, and girls can sit them at either school. Plymouth High School for Girls says there is no pass mark. Allocations for the two girls' schools are based on the first 278 students who have put a grammar school as their first or second choice and who have accepted a grammar school place.
Devonport High School for Boys says the average of the two Quest papers gives a boy's rank, and that all candidates must also pass its English writing paper. For this year's tests, results there are given as A, B or C. The school says families with an A or B can apply for a place, and that a B means the boy may be added to the waiting list.
For every school you still need to apply through your council by 31 October. Families are notified of school place allocations on 1 March.
Five Plymouth-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. The test is a reading comprehension paper; our English questions use a single sentence each.
1. A recipe uses 250 g of flour to make 10 scones. How many grams of flour are needed for 36 scones?
- A) 720
- B) 860
- C) 900
- D) 925
2. What is 4006 − 1789?
- A) 2217
- B) 2227
- C) 2317
- D) 3217
3. Three quarters of a number is 54. What is the number?
- A) 40
- B) 64
- C) 81
- D) 72
4. Read this sentence: "Mina trudged up the lane, her boots heavy with mud." What does the word trudged tell you about how Mina walked?
- A) Quickly and happily
- B) Slowly and with effort
- C) Quietly on tiptoe
- D) In a great hurry
5. Read this sentence: "Although the harbour was calm, the fishermen kept glancing at the dark clouds." What can you work out from it?
- A) The fishermen had caught no fish
- B) The harbour was crowded with boats
- C) The fishermen thought the weather might turn bad
- D) It was the middle of the night
What a Year 5 parent can do now
- Decide whether you want the optional practice exam on Saturday 3 July 2027. At Plymouth High School for Girls registration opens at noon on Monday 12 April 2027, there are 170 places and the school's page gives the cost as £50. Devonport High School for Girls lists a practice session on the same day, with 234 spaces.
- Start short, regular practice in reading comprehension and Year 5 maths now, and add timed sets later in Year 5.
- Check the admissions page of each school you are applying to in April 2027, when 11+ registration opens, for the confirmed format, the registration deadline and the results date.
How to prepare
- Practise multiple-choice reading comprehension. There is no writing in the Quest English paper.
- Keep maths to Year 5 content and work on accuracy and pace: this year's paper had 60 questions in 40 minutes.
- If you are applying to Devonport High School for Boys, practise a piece of writing as well.
Try a free Plymouth-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 Plymouth-style mockOr get a free Plymouth-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 · Bournemouth and Poole 11+ guide · South Wilts Grammar 11+ guide · Bishop Wordsworth's 11+ guide · Torbay 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 Plymouth 11+ exam?
Saturday 18 September 2027 for 2028 entry, as listed by Devonport High School for Girls. This year's tests were on two Saturdays, 12 and 19 September 2026.
What is in the Plymouth 11+ exam?
English comprehension: 40 minutes, 60 questions. A Quest Assessments multiple-choice paper, split into two sections. Plymouth High School for Girls says there is no longer a free-writing element, and that the number of questions can vary from year to year. Maths: 40 minutes, 60 questions. A Quest Assessments multiple-choice paper, split into two sections. No content beyond Year 5 of the National Curriculum is assessed. English writing (Devonport High School for Boys only). A paper set by Devonport High School for Boys itself. The school does not give its length on the page we read.
When do I need to register for the Plymouth 11+?
Opens on 19 April 2027 for 2028 entry, as listed by Devonport High School for Girls. This year it closed on 31 August 2026.
How can my child practise for the Plymouth 11+?
Practise multiple-choice reading comprehension. There is no writing in the Quest English paper.
Sources
Checked 7 October 2026. Schools change their tests, so always confirm dates and details on the official pages below.
- Devonport High School for Girls: the application process
- Plymouth High School for Girls: timeline for 11 Plus entry for September 2027
- Plymouth High School for Girls: timeline for 11 Plus entry for September 2028 (page linking to a download)
- Plymouth High School for Girls: the 11 Plus examination process
- Plymouth High School for Girls: 11 Plus frequently asked questions
- Plymouth High School for Girls: 11 Plus practice examination
- Devonport High School for Boys: admissions FAQs
Eleven Plus Academy is independent. It is not affiliated with Plymouth High School for Girls, Devonport High School for Girls, Devonport High School for Boys, Quest Assessments, Plymouth City Council or any school.