The Perse School Cambridge 11+ Preparation 2026

The Perse School Cambridge 11+ is a highly competitive entrance process for approximately 70 external Year 7 places at one of England's most academically distinguished independent day schools. The assessment uses a 70-minute computer-based test delivered by Quest — covering Maths, English, Non-verbal Reasoning and Verbal Reasoning — alongside a 30-minute handwritten creative writing task, a group activity, and a short informal interview. Registration for the 2026/27 admissions cycle closes on 1 December 2026, the exam takes place on Saturday 16 January 2027, and offers are made in early February 2027. This guide covers everything families in Cambridge city and the surrounding villages need to know before starting preparation.

What Is The Perse School and Why Is 11+ Entry So Competitive?

The Perse School is a co-educational independent day school at Hills Road, Cambridge (CB2 8QF), educating pupils from age 3 to 18. The Upper School takes children aged 11–18, with over 1,200 students on roll. It is one of the most sought-after independent schools in the East of England — and one of the most academically rigorous.

The school's results are exceptional by any measure. In 2024, 88% of GCSE grades were in the 9–7 range — the equivalent of the old A*/A band — while 82% of A-Level grades were A* or A. In a single recent cohort, 19 students went to Cambridge University and 18 to Oxford. The Sunday Times named The Perse "Independent School of the Year for Academic Performance in East Anglia" in 2024. Pupils regularly compete and succeed at the International Biology Olympiad, the National French Debating Competition, and the Senior Schools' Challenge.

With approximately 70 external Year 7 places available — and some of those filled by pupils progressing from The Perse Prep — competition is fierce. Families from Cambridge city and the wider catchment (Histon, Girton, Comberton, Sawston, Fulbourn, Great Shelford, Saffron Walden and beyond) register each year in considerably larger numbers than places allow. Understanding the specific assessment format and starting structured preparation well in advance are essential, not optional.

For a broader introduction to preparation approaches, see our companion blog: The Perse School Cambridge 11+ Preparation.

What Does the Perse School 11+ Entrance Assessment Look Like in 2026?

The assessment for 2026/27 entry runs in two parts, both on the same day in January. Understanding the structure in detail — not just the subjects covered — is one of the most important steps families can take early in the process.

Part 1: Computer-based assessment (70 minutes total), delivered by Quest. This section comprises four timed components. The Maths component lasts 20 minutes and uses an adaptive format: question difficulty adjusts in real time based on your child's responses, and candidates cannot skip or revisit questions once answered. The English component lasts 30 minutes and is non-adaptive — questions follow a fixed sequence covering reading comprehension, spelling, punctuation and grammar, and candidates can move back and forth. Non-verbal Reasoning runs for 10 minutes and uses an adaptive format focused on spatial and visual reasoning. Verbal Reasoning also lasts 10 minutes, testing vocabulary and logical deduction, in an adaptive format.

Quest provides familiarisation materials including a free taster exercise linked from the school's assessment page, and the school encourages all registered candidates to complete this before exam day. No calculators, rulers or additional equipment are required — all materials including pens and pencils are provided on the day. All questions are primarily multiple choice; a small number may require a typed word or number but no extended typing is involved.

Part 2: Handwritten creative writing (30 minutes). Candidates respond to a written prompt or an image by writing a short story. They have full creative freedom to choose any genre, style or narrative perspective. The story must use paragraphs and is assessed on creativity (imaginative, engaging and descriptive writing), vocabulary (varied and effective language and literary techniques), and accuracy (spelling and punctuation used correctly and with confidence). Assessors are experienced and quickly identify pre-prepared or formulaic content — authentic, original writing consistently outperforms memorised passages.

Following the written components, all candidates participate in a group activity and a short informal one-to-one interview with a Perse teacher. The interview is relaxed and conversational: the teacher is interested in what genuinely interests the child — books, hobbies, passions, ideas. Children with rich extracurricular lives and real curiosity tend to find this stage enjoyable. It is also a meaningful part of the assessment, since the school's selection criteria explicitly include a child's ability to engage with extracurricular life and support the school's values.

Perse School 11+ Assessment Structure — 2026/27 Entry

Component	Part	Duration	Format	Focus Areas
Maths	Part 1 (Quest)	20 min	Adaptive	Arithmetic and mathematical reasoning
English	Part 1 (Quest)	30 min	Non-adaptive	Reading comprehension, spelling, punctuation, grammar
Non-verbal Reasoning	Part 1 (Quest)	10 min	Adaptive	Spatial and visual reasoning
Verbal Reasoning	Part 1 (Quest)	10 min	Adaptive	Vocabulary and logical deduction
Creative Writing	Part 2	30 min	Handwritten	Creativity, vocabulary, accuracy
Group Activity	Additional	Variable	Group	Collaboration, engagement with school values
Interview	Additional	Short, informal	1-to-1	Interests, passions, intellectual curiosity

Key Dates and Deadlines for 2026/27 Admissions

For September 2027 entry — the 2026/27 admissions cycle — the timeline is as follows. Open events for the Upper School are a valuable first step: the Summer Open Event is on 26 June 2026 (9:15am–12pm) and the Autumn Open Event is on 26 September 2026 (8:45am–12:45pm). Families considering Year 7 entry in 2027 should attend one of these events in Year 5 or early Year 6 to tour the school and meet the admissions team.

Registration closes at the beginning of December of Year 6 — typically 1 December 2026. At registration, families submit their child's most recent school report and pay a non-refundable registration fee of £240. All registered candidates are then invited to sit the assessments on Saturday 16 January 2027. Offers are communicated in early February 2027, and families have until early March 2027 to accept or decline. If accepted, a non-refundable acceptance fee of £840 is payable at that point.

All assessments must be attended in person at The Perse School. No remote or overseas assessment is available. Children with special educational needs or disabilities should declare these at registration so that appropriate access arrangements can be put in place ahead of exam day.

How to Prepare for Each Component of the Perse 11+ Assessment

Preparing well for The Perse School 11+ requires a different approach to each assessment component. The adaptive format of the Quest Maths, Non-verbal and Verbal Reasoning sections means the test will push your child harder as they perform well — there is no fixed ceiling. This makes broad, flexible understanding more valuable than drilling a narrow set of practice questions.

Mathematics. The Maths section covers KS2 content up to and including Year 5, including the four operations, fractions, decimals and percentages, measurements and units (perimeter, area, mass, capacity), properties of geometric shapes, angles, bar charts and line graphs, coordinates, simple probability, negative numbers and mean averages. Because the section is adaptive, children who work through early questions accurately will face progressively more challenging problems. The ideal preparation builds strong fluency first — so that mental calculations are fast and reliable — then applies that fluency to multi-step reasoning problems under timed conditions.

English (Part 1 — Quest). The non-adaptive English module in Quest covers reading comprehension, spelling, punctuation and grammar. Children can review and revise answers within this section, which rewards those who have developed systematic proofreading habits. Regular reading across a wide variety of genres remains the single most effective preparation: it builds vocabulary, analytical thinking and an intuitive grasp of grammar that no worksheet programme can replicate in isolation.

Non-verbal Reasoning. This adaptive section tests spatial and visual reasoning — identifying patterns, sequences, analogies and transformations using shapes and symbols. Because non-verbal reasoning does not appear in the national curriculum, many children encounter these question types for the first time in preparation materials. Starting early with structured non-verbal reasoning practice is especially important for children who are otherwise academically strong but unfamiliar with the format.

Verbal Reasoning. The Verbal Reasoning component tests vocabulary and understanding of meaning in context, including word analogies, deductions and vocabulary in context questions. Wide reading provides the strongest long-term foundation, supplemented by targeted practice to build familiarity with the specific question formats used in the Quest platform.

Creative Writing (Part 2). The 30-minute handwritten creative writing task frequently separates very strong candidates from exceptional ones. Assessors with experience evaluating thousands of entries can immediately identify pre-prepared content or formulaic responses — originality, fresh observation and controlled technique consistently outperform rehearsed writing. The most effective preparation involves developing genuine storytelling skills over time: reading widely, experimenting with different narrative voices and perspectives, practising sensory and descriptive writing, and learning to use punctuation as a tool for effect rather than just compliance. Personalised tutor feedback on draft writing is particularly valuable here, because the kind of specific, craft-level commentary that improves creative writing is rarely available in a classroom setting.

Group Activity and Interview. These components assess qualities that do not appear in written tests: the ability to collaborate, to listen actively, to contribute ideas confidently, and to sustain a genuine conversation about something the child finds genuinely interesting. The best preparation over the long term is a rich extracurricular life — real hobbies, enthusiasms and interests that the child can talk about naturally and with detail. Mock interview practice can help nervous children develop composure, but authenticity is consistently more compelling to Perse teachers than rehearsed answers.

Bursaries, Fees and Financial Support at The Perse School

The Perse School's termly fees are updated annually and published on the school's admissions pages. Independent day school fees in Cambridge are substantial — the Upper School represents a significant financial commitment for most families — and understanding the financial support available is an important part of the admissions process.

The school offers means-tested bursaries ranging from 5% to 100% of fees. These are awarded based on a financial assessment of the family's circumstances and are intended to ensure that academically exceptional children are not excluded from The Perse solely because of cost. Families wishing to be considered for a bursary should indicate this on the registration form; the financial assessment then runs in parallel with the academic admissions process. Bursary holders are full members of the school community with access to all activities and facilities.

No academic scholarships are offered at Year 7 entry. Music scholarships are awarded by invitation at the end of Year 7, worth a one-off payment of £500, and are not means-tested. The non-refundable registration fee is £240; an acceptance fee of £840 is payable if a place is offered and accepted. Detailed and up-to-date fee information is available directly from The Perse School admissions pages.

Frequently Asked Questions about The Perse School 11+ Entry

Further reading: 11+ Tuition at Leading Tuition | Cambridge Tutors | Perse School 11+ Preparation Blog