Senior school admissions reward families who plan ahead. Registration deadlines, assessments and offers each fall at fairly predictable points, but they vary between schools and between the two main entry stages. This guide sets out the general shape of the timeline so you can see where you are and what comes next.
A note on dates: Every school sets its own deadlines, and these can differ by months. Always check the admissions page of each target school and confirm directly with their registrar. The timeline below is a general guide, not a substitute for each school's published dates.
First, which entry point?
The UK independent system has two principal entry points into senior school. 11+ entry means joining in Year 7 at age 11, typically from a primary or prep school. 13+ entry means joining in Year 9 at age 13, usually from a prep school that runs to 13. Some schools take pupils at both points; others at only one. Your child's current school and your target schools together determine which timeline applies — and it is worth confirming this before anything else, because the whole schedule shifts by two years between them.
The 11+ timeline (entry into Year 7)
Begin researching schools, attending open days, and forming a shortlist. This is the time to understand each school's character, entry requirements and assessment format.
Register your child with target schools. Many close registration in the autumn or spring of Year 5 — often a year or more before entry — so this is the deadline that catches families out most often.
Assessments take place — usually written exams (English, maths, sometimes reasoning) and interviews. For grammar schools, the 11+ test typically falls in September of Year 6.
Offers are made. Independent schools commonly release offers in the new year; families then accept and pay a deposit by the school's deadline.
Your child starts Year 7.
The 13+ timeline (entry into Year 9)
The 13+ route has an unusual feature: many senior schools ask families to register and sit pre-tests up to three years before entry, often in Year 6 or Year 7, even though the child does not start until Year 9.
Research and shortlist schools. Begin to understand which use the ISEB Common Pre-Test and which set their own assessments.
Register with target schools and sit pre-tests (often the ISEB Common Pre-Test, taken once and shared with multiple schools). Conditional offers may follow.
Sit the main entrance assessments — Common Entrance or school-specific exams — and attend interviews.
Confirmation of places, conditional on Common Entrance results.
Your child starts Year 9.
The single most important takeaway: registration deadlines arrive far earlier than most families expect — frequently a full year or more before entry, and for 13+ pre-tests, sometimes two to three years ahead. Working backwards from your entry year is the safest way to avoid missing a deadline.
When should you actually start?
As a rule of thumb, begin the active process around two years before your intended entry point: Year 4 or 5 for 11+, and Year 6 or 7 for 13+. That gives time to visit schools properly, register before deadlines, and prepare without pressure. Starting earlier is rarely wasted; starting late narrows your options but is often still workable with focused support.
What if we are starting late?
It happens often — a relocation, a change of plan, a school that no longer fits. Many schools hold occasional places and consider in-year or later applications. The approach simply becomes more targeted: identifying schools with availability, and preparing efficiently for the assessments that remain.
Not sure where you are on the timeline?
We help families map their own admissions journey — working backwards from the right entry point and the schools that fit. An initial conversation is confidential and without obligation.
Get in touchThis guide is provided for general information about UK independent school admissions and does not constitute advice on any individual school's process. Deadlines and assessment formats vary by school and change over time — always confirm directly with each school.