You've waited weeks. The envelope arrives, or maybe it's an email. You open it, expecting clarity. Instead you get a sheet of numbers, abbreviations and a score that could mean anything. Welcome to 11+ results day.
The way 11+ results are presented is confusing by design. Not deliberately confusing, but confusing because the scoring system was built by statisticians, not parents. So let's walk through exactly what you're looking at and what it means for your child's grammar school chances.
What's a raw score and why doesn't it matter much
The raw score is the simplest number on the page. It's how many questions your child got right. If the test had 80 questions and your child answered 62 correctly, the raw score is 62.
Straightforward enough. But here's the problem: raw scores on their own are almost useless for comparing children. A raw score of 62 on an easy paper means something very different from 62 on a harder one. And two children born 11 months apart have had very different amounts of schooling by the time they sit down in September.
That's where standardised scores come in.
How standardised scores work
A standardised score adjusts your child's raw mark for two things: the difficulty of the paper, and their age on the day they took the test.
Think of it this way. A child born on 2 September has had almost a full extra year of school compared to a child born on 31 August. Without adjustment, the older child has a clear advantage. Standardisation corrects for this by giving younger children a slight boost and older children a slight reduction.
The average standardised score is always 100. That's what an average child of that age, taking that paper, would score. Most children fall between 85 and 115.
If your child scored 111 standardised, they're above average. If they scored 121, they're well above. If they scored 95, they're slightly below the midpoint.
Where does grammar school entry sit? It depends entirely on your area. In Kent, qualifying scores have recently sat around 110 to 112. In Buckinghamshire, where the system is super-selective, you often need 121 or higher. Some Birmingham schools set their threshold closer to 109. The number means nothing without the context of which school and which year.
The difference between standardised score and qualifying score
This trips up a lot of parents. Your child's standardised score is their individual result. The qualifying score is the threshold set by the school or consortium, and it changes every year.
Schools don't publish a fixed pass mark in advance. They set the qualifying score after all the papers are marked, based on how many places are available and how the full cohort performed. So a child scoring 118 might qualify one year and miss out the next. It's not about hitting a magic number. It's about where your child sits relative to everyone else who took the test that year.
This is why you can't look at last year's qualifying score and treat it as a guarantee. It's a useful guide, nothing more.
What are stanines
Some results sheets include a stanine score. This is a scale from 1 to 9, where 5 is average. It groups children into broad bands rather than precise scores.
A stanine of 7 or above puts your child in roughly the top 23% of test-takers. A stanine of 9 means the top 4%. Schools don't typically use stanines for admission decisions, but they can help you understand where your child sits in the wider picture.
If your results only show a stanine and no standardised score, your local authority or school should be able to provide the full breakdown on request.
GL Assessment vs CEM: does the scoring work differently
Most grammar schools in England now use GL Assessment papers, after CEM (the Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring, based at Durham University) stepped back from standard 11+ testing. If your child sat the test in 2025 or 2026, there's a strong chance it was a GL paper.
GL tests typically cover four areas: English, maths, verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning. Each section generates its own score, and these are combined into a total standardised score. Some schools weight sections differently, so your child's English score might carry more importance than their non-verbal reasoning, or vice versa.
If you're in an area that still uses CEM-style papers, the scoring process is similar in principle. Raw marks get standardised, age gets factored in. The key difference is format, not how the final number is calculated.
What if your child didn't qualify
Let's be direct. If your child's standardised score is below the qualifying threshold, they haven't passed. That's a hard thing to read and a harder thing to tell a ten-year-old.
But a missed qualifying score is not a verdict on your child's ability. It's a snapshot of one morning. Children who score 108 when the qualifying mark is 111 aren't three points less intelligent than children who got in. They had a different day.
If your child is close to the threshold, some schools operate waiting lists ranked by score. Places do open up between October and March as families accept offers at other schools. It's not common, but it happens.
You can also appeal. Grammar school appeals in England follow a specific legal process, and you're entitled to see your child's full results, including individual section scores. If there were circumstances that affected their performance, such as illness or disruption on the day, that's worth raising.
How do you know if your child is on track before results day
This is the part most parents don't think about until it's too late. By the time you're reading the results letter, the preparation window has closed.
If your child is in Year 4 or early Year 5, you still have time to find out where they stand. A diagnostic assessment that benchmarks your child against GL Assessment standards can tell you which areas need work and which are already strong. That's the whole reason ReadyFor11 exists. It's a free diagnostic that gives you a standardised readiness score across the key 11+ maths topics, so you know exactly where to focus before the test, not after.
Knowing your child's starting point a year out is worth far more than staring at a results sheet wondering what went wrong.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good 11 plus score?
There's no single answer. A standardised score of 111 or above is generally considered above average. But "good enough" depends on the school you're applying to. In super-selective areas like Buckinghamshire, you'll need scores well above 120. In less competitive regions, 110 might be enough. Check your target school's historical qualifying scores for the best indication.
When do 11 plus results come out?
Results are typically released in mid-October, usually between the 10th and 20th. The exact date varies by consortium and region. Results always come before the 31 October deadline for secondary school applications, giving you time to list your preferences on the common application form.
Can I appeal if my child fails the 11 plus?
Yes. You have the right to appeal to an independent panel. You'll need to explain why you believe your child should be offered a place despite not meeting the qualifying score. Appeals are more likely to succeed if there were specific issues on test day, or if you have evidence your child performs at a higher level than the test result suggests. Your local authority will send details of the appeals process with the results.
Do younger children get higher standardised scores?
Not exactly. Younger children receive a larger age adjustment to their raw score, which levels the playing field. A child born in August who gets the same raw mark as a child born in September will receive a higher standardised score. The system is designed to make age-related differences fair, though some parents feel the adjustment doesn't go far enough for the very youngest children in the year group.
Your child's 11+ results don't have to be a mystery. Once you understand how raw scores become standardised scores and how qualifying thresholds work, the numbers start to make sense. And if your child hasn't sat the test yet, the best thing you can do right now is find out where they stand. Try the free diagnostic at readyfor11.co.uk and get a clear picture before results day arrives.