Guide to grammar schools and the Secondary Transfer Test

The result of the testing process decides which type of school will best meet your child's needs. This could be an upper/all-ability school or a grammar school.

A letter will be sent home advising you how to access your child's results.

Results will be sent to the email you used to register for the test.

On 10 October you will receive your child's test results.

You will receive your child's Secondary Transfer Test Score (STTS). It will also tell you what your child scored in the verbal, mathematical and non-verbal sections of the test. It will say whether the STTS qualifies your child for grammar school admission.

If your child's STTS is 121 or more, they have qualified for grammar school. This means that we will do our best to offer your child a place at one of your preferred grammar schools on National Offer Day.

If your child's STTS is less than 121, they have not qualified for a Buckinghamshire grammar school.

You must apply for your child's secondary school place by the national deadline of 31 October.

Submit your child’s secondary school application to your home Local Authority.

If you live outside Buckinghamshire, you will be able to include Buckinghamshire schools (including grammar schools) in the application submitted to your home Local Authority.

You only need to do something if your child did not qualify and you feel strongly that they should still be considered, for a Buckinghamshire grammar school.

In all scenarios explained below, make sure you include your preferred Buckinghamshire grammar school(s) in the secondary school application submitted to your home Local Authority.

If your child is eligible for the Pupil Premium grant, you should carefully check the admissions policy of your preferred grammar school(s). All Buckinghamshire grammar schools offer some places to non-qualified children who receive the Pupil Premium grant, subject to the child:

• Achieving a minimum score (specified by each school in their admissions policy), and
• Usually being resident in the school’s catchment area.

If your child meets the criteria to be considered on this basis, you should send evidence of your child’s Pupil Premium entitlement and test score to the relevant school(s) by the application deadline on 31 October.

You may also request that your child is considered for a Selection Review (explained below) - these two processes are separate and you can apply for both at the same time.

You can ask for a Selection Review. Reviews will take place in December and January. If your review is successful, your child will qualify for all Buckinghamshire grammar schools. We will then be able to consider all your grammar school preferences for the allocation of school places on National Offer Day.

If your child does not qualify at Selection Review, you may ask for an Independent Admission Appeal for a place at a particular grammar school after National Offer Day on 1 March. The deadline to lodge an appeal will be made clear in the appeals section of our website. Appeals will take place from May 2026.

If you decide to appeal and your child's case went to Selection Review, the Independent Appeal Panel (IAP) will first need to decide if the Selection Review Process was 'fair, consistent and objective'.

If the IAP agrees that the Selection Review was not 'fair, consistent and objective', they will then be able to consider the rest of your appeal for admission to the particular grammar school.

Alternatively, you may decide to wait. You can then ask for an Independent Admission Appeal for a place at a particular grammar school that was included in your child’s application once we tell you the outcome of your application on National Offer Day. We will refuse your grammar school preferences as your child did not score 121 or above in the Secondary Transfer Test. Admissions appeals take place from May 2026.