Editorial standards: kind, honest, exact

What does "kind" mean for our writing?

• We write in plain English for busy parents, and we keep a calm tone.
• We do not suggest that a child is "not keeping up" or that families must start ever earlier. The 11+ is one route to a good secondary education, not the only one.
• We treat children's wellbeing as part of preparation, not an afterthought, and we say so on our keeping perspective guide.
• We do not shame families who choose not to sit the 11+, or who choose differently from us.

What does "honest" mean?

• We say what we don't know. If something is not yet published or official sources disagree, the page says so.
• We avoid false precision. Where the honest answer is a range or "it depends on the school", we say that.
• We are open about money. ExamKind plans to sell practice tools. Our information pages stay free and will not push a product as the answer to a worry.
• We are open about AI. Our pages are drafted with AI tools and approved by a human founder. Details are on How we make our content.

What does "exact" mean?

• Every admissions fact comes from an official source, is checked twice and shows the date we checked it.
• We always say which entry year a fact belongs to, for example "2027 entry" (children starting secondary school in September 2027).
• We name the source in plain words, such as "the council's admissions guide" or "the school's admission policy".
• We use UK terms: Year 5 and Year 6 in England, P6 and P7 in Northern Ireland.

Which claims will we never make?

• That any product, plan or amount of practice can promise a pass or a place.
• Success rates or pass rates for our own products unless they are measured, published with the method, and fair.
• That a teacher or any named expert wrote or checked a page, unless that person really did the work.
• Invented quotes, reviews or "parent stories". Where we describe what parents commonly say, we make clear it is a general observation, not a statistic.

How do we write about other companies?

We describe test providers, schools and other organisations factually, from their own official statements, and we do not run down competitors. We do not use other companies' brand names to attract search traffic. Where a test provider is linked to a company that sells preparation, we say so if an official source confirms it, because families have a right to know.

How do we handle sensitive topics?

• Appeals and reviews: our guidance is general information, not legal advice, and each page says so. Deadlines are strict, so we point you to the official source every time.
• Special educational needs and disabilities: we explain the process and your rights in plain terms and point you to the official route.
• Wellbeing: we share sensible, widely held approaches, and we are clear that we are not giving medical or clinical advice.
• The founder reads every page on these topics before it is published.

Do we reproduce test papers?

No. We never copy or re-host GL Assessment, Quest, FSCE, CSSE, SEAG, consortium or school papers. Where official free familiarisation materials exist, we link to the official source.

How can you hold us to these standards?

If a page falls short, please report an error. We publish significant fixes on our corrections log.

Related pages

• How we verify school and admissions data
• Our independence
• About ExamKind
• Terms of use