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  • 11+ area guide
  • Torbay Selective Schools

Torbay 11+: one shared test, three grammar schools

Facts checked 19 October 2026By ExamKind Editorial Team

Some details are being re-checked

We check every fact against the official source on a schedule, and some details on this page are due their next check (last verified 19 October 2026). We'll update the page if anything has changed. How we check facts

The Torbay 11+ at a glance

For September 2027 entry

  • The test

    Torbay grammar schools 11+

  • Score to qualify

    Set by each schoolSee each school's page below.

  • Schools on this page

    3

    Schools we cover in this area

Your next deadlines

  1. Not published yet: Test registration closes

    Not yet published

    For September 2028 entry. This is the test registration, not the school place application

  2. Next: School place applications close: Common Application Form ()

    in 11 days

    For September 2027 entry

  3. Coming up: Appeal deadline

    in about 24 weeks

    For September 2027 entry

Every step and date

Happening now

What's happening now

Results for 2027 entry (children now in Year 6) are due in October.

  • How results arrive: Guidance letter emailed by the school where the child sat the test: Yes/No for each Torbay selective school, no scores.Torbay 2027 entry: Results methodChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torquay Girls' Grammar School.The source says: On, or as soon as possible after 12 October Guidance letters emailed to parents.View the official source
  • What the letter tells you: Yes/No only on whether the child reached each school's required standard; actual scores never disclosed.Torbay: Results contentChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torquay Boys' Grammar School.The source says: This will not be the actual scores, but a Yes or No to whether your child's performance was of the required standard for this School.View the official source

The schools and Torbay Council give slightly different results and registration dates in their published documents, so we are checking with them and show those dates as awaiting confirmation below. Whatever the result, send your application to your home council by Saturday 31 October 2026Torbay 2027 entry: School place applications close (CAF)Checked 9 Oct 2026 against Torbay Council.The source says: Apply by 31 October 2026. If you apply by this date you will get your offer on 1 March 2027.View the official source. Offers come on Monday 1 March 2027Torbay 2027 entry: National Offer DayChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torbay Council.The source says: 1 March 2027 | National Allocation Day.View the official source.

  • If something affected your child on the day: Parents write to the school within 14 days of the test about circumstances affecting performance; considered by the Admissions Panel.Torbay: Extenuating circumstancesChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torquay Girls' Grammar School.The source says: please contact the school in writing within 14 days of the tests in order that this may be considered by the Admissions Panel.View the official source

How places are given

Passing the test is the first step, not a place

Children sit the Torbay grammar schools 11+. Each school then gives places using its own admission rules, so qualifying is not the same as being offered a place.

You apply for school places through your home council, on its Common Application Form (CAF), by its deadline. Name the schools in your real order of preference: councils look at every preference at the same time.

Step by step

The Torbay 11+, step by step

For children starting secondary school in September 2027 (Year 6 in 2026/27).

Add to my calendar

  1. Step 1: Register for the test

    Done

    Sign your child up for Torbay grammar schools 11+. This is not the school place application.

    Show the dates

    1. Done: Test registration opens

    2. Not published yet: Test registration closes

      Not yet published

  2. Step 2: Your child sits the test

    Done

    The test day, and any practice test before it.

    Show the dates

    1. Done: Test day

  3. Step 3: Results

    Dates not published

    You find out whether your child reached the standard, and how to ask for a review.

    1. Not published yet: Results

      Not yet published

  4. Step 4: Apply for school places

    Now

    List your schools on the Common Application Form (CAF) to your home council, in your real order of preference.

    1. Done: School place applications open (CAF)

    2. Next: School place applications close (CAF)

      in 11 days

    3. Coming up: Home address date: the address used for school places

  5. Step 5: Offers

    Coming up

    Your council tells you which school has offered a place.

    1. Coming up: National Offer Day

  6. Step 6: Appeals and waiting lists

    Coming up

    If you are refused a place, you can appeal and join waiting lists.

    1. Coming up: Appeal deadline

      in about 24 weeks

Year 5 now? Steps for September 2028 entryMost dates are only given as a month so far, so we mark them as expected.

  1. Step 1: Register for the test

    Dates not published

    Sign your child up for Torbay grammar schools 11+. This is not the school place application.

    1. Not published yet: Test registration opens

      Not yet published

    2. Not published yet: Test registration closes

      Not yet published

  2. Step 2: Your child sits the test

    Dates not published

    The test day, and any practice test before it.

    1. Not published yet: Test day

      Not yet published, checked 9 Oct 2026

All Torbay 11+ dates, with notes

The schools

Grammar schools in Torbay

3 schools on this test. Open a school for its rules, dates and past offers.

Listed A to Z by school name.

  1. Churston Ferrers Grammar SchoolBoys and girls

    No distance published

    –

  2. Torquay Boys’ Grammar SchoolBoys

    No distance published

    –

    168 places, 2027 entry

  3. Torquay Girls’ Grammar SchoolGirls

    No distance published

    –

    192 places, 2027 entry

More about the schools from our guide

Figures for 2026 entry come from Torbay Council school place allocations (per school, September 2026 entry)Torbay 2026 entry: PublicationChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torbay Council.The source says: We provide information about the number of on-time applications and how places were allocated for primary and secondary schools in Torbay.View the official source. They describe one past year, not a promise about the next.

Live near a border?

  • You can apply for schools in another council's area. You still apply through your own home council, on its form.
  • Each area runs its own test, with its own registration and dates. If you like schools in two areas, check both registration deadlines.
  • Schools often give priority to children living nearby or in a catchment area, so check each school's rules before you rely on it.
Every area's dates

Areas in the same part of the country: Bournemouth and Poole (BCP), Devon, Gloucestershire, Plymouth, Wiltshire

How the test works

There is no central exam board office, and the papers are set by GL Assessment.

  • Who runs it: No central body: each Torbay selective school registers and tests its own candidates (a child registers with one school, which is the test centre); test papers are from GL Assessment.Torbay: Test administratorChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torquay Girls' Grammar School.The source says: The registration is made with just one school which will be the school where your child will sit the test.View the official source
  • What it covers: English and maths knowledge expected by the end of Year 5 (KS2 national curriculum); no verbal or non-verbal reasoning.Torbay grammar schools 11+ (GL Assessment): Curriculum basisChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Churston Ferrers Grammar School.The source says: It is designed to assess the core knowledge and skills that any child, in any primary school, would be expected to have learned by the end of Year 5. There are no verbal or non-verbal reasoning papersView the official source
  • Answer format: multiple-choiceTorbay grammar schools 11+ (GL Assessment): Answer formatChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torquay Girls' Grammar School.The source says: NB the tests do not require a ... student to handwrite, but mark ... onto an OMR sheet; therefore,View the official source
  • Scoring: Scores standardised for age (month of birth) before thresholds are set.Torbay grammar schools 11+ (GL Assessment): StandardisationChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torquay Boys' Grammar School.The source says: To remove this unfairness, the marks are adjusted to make them 'standard' for all candidates, regardless of their age.View the official source
  • Paper lengths: Awaiting confirmationTorbay grammar schools 11+ (GL Assessment): PapersOfficial sources disagree; we are confirming this with the publisher.View the official source (the schools describe them differently; we are checking)
  • Practice material: Free GL familiarisation material (English and maths only) on the GL website; schools also link free materials.Torbay grammar schools 11+ (GL Assessment): Familiarisation materialsChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torquay Girls' Grammar School.The source says: You can also take a look at the GL familiarisation material which tells you what you need to know about this test and gives you some sample questions. You only need to look at the material for English and Maths as they are the only two elements that you will be tested on.View the official source

Some schools also offer free online practice for children eligible for the pupil premium through a partner platform; see the school pages.

How places are decided

There is no single Torbay pass mark.

  • Qualifying: Each school sets its own eligible score / pass threshold on the shared test after standardisation; one guidance letter tells parents Yes/No for each Torbay selective school.Torbay: Qualifying ruleChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torquay Girls' Grammar School.The source says: Guidance will be given whether the scores achieved would be likely to gain a place at each of the selective schools in Torbay.View the official source
  • Ranking: Age-standardised test score (English + maths total), moderated after reviews; each school ranks under its own criteria.Torbay: Score used for rankingChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torquay Boys' Grammar School.The source says: Once all of the standardised and moderated selection test scores are known, the Admissions Panel will rank the candidatesView the official source
  • One registration, every school: All Torbay selective schools and The Spires College selective places use the same test results.Torbay: Scores shared withChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torbay Council.The source says: All selective schools in Torbay use the same test results. Students only need to sit the test once.View the official source

Pupil premium

When you register, the form covers this: Shared registration form asks whether the child receives Pupil Premium and whether the child is or was in care.Torbay: Registration questionChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torquay Girls' Grammar School.The source says: Is your child in receipt of Pupil Premium: | Yes | No | ... Is the child in care or was in care but ceased to be in care because they were adopted orView the official source At Torquay Boys' the extra Supplementary Information Form is needed only to claim pupil premium priority, by Saturday 31 October 2026Torbay 2027 entry: Pp form deadlineChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torquay Boys' Grammar School.The source says: return it to the ... School by the closing date of 31 October or as soon as possible thereafter.View the official source. How much priority pupil premium carries differs a lot between the three schools, so read each school page.

Appeals

General information, not legal advice.

If your child is refused a place you can appeal.

  • How: Appeals to an independent panel arranged by Torbay Council Governance Support; grammar-school appeals consider academic standard evidence and prejudice.Torbay: RouteChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torbay Council.The source says: If your child was not offered a place at your preferred school, you are able to appeal this decision.View the official source
  • Deadline for 2027 entry: Monday 5 April 2027Torbay 2027 entry: Appeal deadlineChecked 9 Oct 2026 against Torbay Council.The source says: 5 April 2027 | Closing date for receipt of 1st round appeals to be included in the main body of appeal hearingsView the official source
  • Hearings: expected in May and June 2027Torbay: Hearings2027Checked 9 Oct 2026 against Torbay Council.The source says: May/June 2027 | Appeals heardView the official source, held remotely.

Most appeals for full grammar schools do not succeed, so keep a realistic choice on your application too.

Official sources

20 sources: the council, the test administrator and each school

ExamKind is independent. We are not connected with any council, school or test provider, and nobody pays to appear on this page. How we check facts