Which Grammar Schools Use GL Assessment?

GL Assessment is used by around 80 percent of grammar schools in England, making it by far the most common 11 plus provider. Major GL Assessment areas include Kent, Buckinghamshire, the Birmingham and West Midlands Grammar Schools Partnership, Trafford, Lincolnshire, Gloucestershire, the Slough Consortium, Barnet, Redbridge, Torbay in Devon, and parts of Dorset and Wiltshire, among others. A small number of areas have recently moved away from GL, including several Yorkshire grammar schools now using FSCE, and Sutton's grammar schools, which run their own bespoke test. 

If you are trying to work out whether your target grammar school uses GL Assessment for its 11 plus exam, this guide covers it region by region, with a full list of areas, consortiums and named schools, plus the handful of areas that have recently moved to something different. 

What is GL Assessment?

GL Assessment, formerly known as Granada Learning, is the largest and most widely used provider of 11 plus entrance exams in England. It creates and marks tests on behalf of individual grammar schools, shared consortiums of schools, and entire local authorities, which is exactly why the same GL style paper turns up in so many different parts of the country.

GL Assessment papers are known for their consistent, clearly structured format, generally split into separate sections for English, maths, verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning, with multiple-choice answers marked by computer. This predictability is one of the biggest reasons GL remains the most trusted choice for so many areas.

Full list of Grammar Schools and areas that use GL Assessment

Coverage is not fixed, and areas do occasionally change provider, but here is a detailed, region by region breakdown of where GL Assessment is currently used.

Kent (the Kent Test, also called PESE)

Kent runs one of the largest grammar school systems in the country, with over 30 grammar schools sharing the Kent Test.

• Dartford Grammar School

• Gravesend Grammar School

• Invicta Grammar School

• Maidstone Grammar School

• Dane Court Grammar School

• Borden Grammar School

• Chatham and Clarendon Grammar School

• Barton Court Grammar School

• Highworth Grammar School

• Oakwood Park Grammar School

• Mayfield Grammar School

• The Harvey Grammar School

• Tonbridge Grammar School

Buckinghamshire (the Secondary Transfer Test)

All 13 grammar schools in this fully selective county share a single GL based test.

• Aylesbury Grammar School

• Chesham Grammar School

• Burnham Grammar School

• John Hampden Grammar School

Birmingham and the West Midlands Grammar Schools Partnership

The King Edward VI Foundation switched to GL Assessment in 2023, and the same test is shared across the wider partnership covering Warwickshire, Walsall, Wolverhampton and Shropshire.

• King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Boys and Girls

• King Edward VI Aston School

• King Edward VI Handsworth Grammar and Handsworth Girls

Trafford, Greater Manchester

Five of Trafford's seven grammar schools share a common GL Assessment based test, with a qualifying score of 334.

• Altrincham Grammar School for Girls

• Altrincham Grammar School for Boys

• Sale Grammar School

• Stretford Grammar School

• Urmston Grammar School

Lincolnshire Consortium of Grammar Schools

Around 15 grammar schools across Lincolnshire share a GL Assessment based test, focused on verbal and non-verbal reasoning.

• Boston Grammar School

• Skegness Grammar School

• Spalding Grammar School

• Bourne Grammar School

• Caistor Grammar School

• King Edward VI Grammar School, Louth

• Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Horncastle

• Kesteven and Grantham Girls' School

Gloucestershire

Seven grammar schools in the Gloucestershire consortium currently sit the Gloucestershire 11+, set by GL Assessment.

• Pate's Grammar School

• Denmark Road High School

• Sir Thomas Rich's School

Slough Consortium, Berkshire

Four grammar schools share a common GL Assessment based test.

• Herschel Grammar School

• Langley Grammar School

• St Bernard's Catholic Grammar School

• Upton Court Grammar School

Barnet, Redbridge and other London boroughs

Several London grammar schools use GL Assessment, either alone or alongside their own additional assessment stages.

• Queen Elizabeth's School for Boys, Barnet

• Henrietta Barnett School, Barnet

• St Michael's Catholic Grammar School, Barnet

• Ilford County High School, Redbridge

• Woodford County High School, Redbridge

Devon and Dorset

Torbay's selective schools use GL, and several Dorset grammar schools also share a GL based format, though Colyton Grammar School in Devon sets its own bespoke test.

• Torquay Boys' Grammar School

• Torquay Girls' Grammar School

• Poole Grammar School

• Parkstone Grammar School

Other individual schools and areas

A range of other schools and areas also use GL Assessment, including several in Wiltshire, Lancashire and Cumbria.

• Lancaster Royal Grammar School

• Lancaster Girls' Grammar School

• Clitheroe Royal Grammar School

• Newstead Wood School, Bromley

• Ripon Grammar School, North Yorkshire (from September 2026)

Northern Ireland: the SEAG assessment

Grammar school transfer in Northern Ireland runs through the Schools' Entrance Assessment Group, and this assessment is set and marked by GL, though it uses its own particular structure.

Areas that have recently moved away from GL Assessment

Because coverage genuinely does shift over time, a handful of areas that may still appear on older lists, including some general guides online, no longer use GL Assessment.

Please note: Always double-check with the school itself. Because test providers can and do change, sometimes within just a year or two, the safest approach for any family is to confirm the current exam format directly on the target school's own admissions page.

How to check if your target school uses GL Assessment

1. Check the school's own admissions page first

Most schools state their current test provider clearly, often alongside registration dates and exam format details.

2. Check your Local Authority's admissions guidance

For consortium areas like Kent or Buckinghamshire, the council's own website usually confirms the shared test provider for that year.

3. Contact the school directly if in doubt

A quick email or phone call to the admissions office is the most reliable way to confirm the current format, especially if your child is applying from outside the immediate area.

What the GL Assessment 11 plus exam covers

While the exact combination varies slightly by area, GL Assessment 11 plus exams generally draw on the same core subjects.

• English, including reading comprehension, spelling, punctuation and grammar

• Maths, covering topics up to the expected standard for the start of Year 6

• Verbal reasoning, testing word-based logic and pattern recognition

• Non-verbal reasoning, and in some areas, spatial reasoning, testing shape and pattern-based thinking

Most GL Assessment papers are multiple choice, marked by computer, with no negative marking, meaning a raw score simply reflects the number of correct answers given.

How to prepare for a GL Assessment 11+ exam

Since GL Assessment papers follow a genuinely consistent, well understood format year on year, structured preparation tends to work particularly reliably for this exam type.

1. Start early, ideally Year 3 or Year 4

Building vocabulary, mental arithmetic and comprehension steadily over time gives far stronger results than cramming in the final months before Year 6.

2. Give verbal and non-verbal reasoning dedicated attention

Since neither is taught in ordinary school lessons, focused, structured practice on these specific question types genuinely moves the needle.

3. Practise under real timed conditions

Working through 11+ past papers and sitting 11 plus mocks builds the pace and composure needed for the real GL Assessment format, well before it counts.

4. Get support that understands your specific region's format

A tutor who knows exactly how your target consortium structures its GL Assessment papers can prepare a child far more precisely than generic 11+ practice alone.

Our 11+ free practice papers are a great starting point at home, and our 11 plus intensive summer course offers a concentrated push well ahead of exam season.

If your family is nearby, our 11 plus tutors in Birmingham have genuine experience preparing children for GL Assessment papers, including the King Edward VI Foundation entrance exams, and would love to help your child build real, lasting confidence with it.

Final thoughts

GL Assessment remains the backbone of the 11 plus system across most of England, covering around 80 percent of grammar school entrance tests from Kent to Buckinghamshire to Birmingham and beyond. But as Yorkshire and Gloucestershire both show, the picture is not permanently fixed, and families should never assume a region's exam provider today will necessarily be the same one in a few years' time.

The safest approach is always to confirm the current format directly with your target school before beginning focused preparation, then build a plan around exactly what that specific exam actually tests. Whichever provider your family ends up preparing for, we would love to help your child approach it with confidence. Get in touch with us today.