Guide to grammar schools and the Secondary Transfer Test

Buckinghamshire grammar schools are very popular.

In the Buckinghamshire Secondary Transfer Test, children need to achieve a score of 121 to qualify for a place.

Every year there are far more qualified children than grammar school places.

A score higher than 121 does not give a child a better chance of being offered a grammar school place (this is different to some other areas). When there are more qualified applicants than places, oversubscription criteria and admission rules admissions rules are used to work out which qualified children may be offered a place (for example whether they have siblings, or are living in the catchment area).

Each school’s admission rules can be found on their website, within the school’s Admissions Policy.

All Buckinghamshire grammar schools also give some priority to children who are entitled to Pupil Premium.

You can view detailed information on our website about how grammar school places have been allocated in the past as well as more in-depth statistics on The Buckinghamshire Grammar Schools website.

If a place at a preferred Buckinghamshire grammar school cannot be offered to your child, you can appeal against the decision after National Offer Day, however bear in mind that most appeals for grammar school places are not successful, even for qualified children. More information is available on our website.

No, your child is not guaranteed a Buckinghamshire grammar school place, even if you can provide evidence that supports a move into Buckinghamshire.

Most Buckinghamshire grammar schools require families to have moved into Buckinghamshire by 1 September 2026, for that address to be used in the child’s application for 2027 entry. A few grammar schools have earlier deadlines. Evidence is always required to support a change of address, and you will also need to provide evidence to show you have disposed of your previous address by the same date, before we can agree to use a new address.