Cheltenham College 13+ Tutoring: CE Preparation 2027

Cheltenham College is a co-educational HMC independent boarding school in Gloucestershire, educating pupils aged 13 to 18 in Third Form (Year 9) through to Sixth Form. It has over 1,100 pupils from more than 30 nationalities. Entry into Year 9 is via ISEB Common Entrance, with a pass mark averaging 55% (Admissions Policy, reviewed June 2026), or via College Entrance or Scholarship papers.

What is the Cheltenham College 13+ admissions process?

Entry into Third Form (Year 9) at Cheltenham College is academically selective and follows one of three routes: the ISEB Common Entrance examinations, College-specific Entrance papers, or Scholarship papers. For the majority of UK-based candidates progressing from a prep school, the CE route is standard. The process begins well before the actual examinations, with a formal early assessment event held during Year 6. The College's own Admissions Policy states that this assessment takes place "32 months in advance of entry."

At the Entrance Day, external candidates sit English and Mathematics tests and participate in a series of structured discussions and activities. The admissions team assesses attitude, participation, collaboration, knowledge and expression during interview alongside raw test performance. Candidates who are successful at this stage receive a conditional offer and a house allocation, typically within approximately two weeks. These offers are conditional on satisfactory CE performance — specifically, an average of 55% across the submitted CE papers — in June of Year 8.

The College's Admissions Policy (June 2026) confirms that where CE results fall below the usual pass mark, the College invites parents to meet the Deputy Head (Academic) to discuss monitoring and support requirements. This reflects an approach that considers each candidate holistically rather than applying a binary cut-off. A satisfactory school reference is required alongside the academic assessment, and any safeguarding information from the current school will inform admissions decisions.

International candidates whose first language is not English are required to provide a full UKISET report at registration, or to sit the OPT exam, the College's own EAL paper and CAT4 assessment, in addition to a Skype interview with a member of academic staff. This ensures candidates have sufficient English fluency to access the full breadth of the curriculum. Families applying from overseas should factor this into their preparation timeline, as the UKISET process requires advance booking.

The registration fee for Cheltenham College is £240 (non-refundable), payable online when the Registration Form is submitted. Families should contact the College Admissions team directly at admissions@cheltenhamcollege.org or on 01242 265 600 to discuss the timeline for their child's intended entry year.

What subjects does Common Entrance cover for Cheltenham College Year 9 entry?

The ISEB Common Entrance 13+ examinations cover a broad curriculum assessed through individual subject papers. Cheltenham College uses these results internally for setting purposes in Third Form, so performance across the full range of subjects matters — not only in English and Mathematics. Candidates should be prepared to sit papers across the core and optional CE subjects.

The standard ISEB CE 13+ syllabus is available in two levels for most subjects (Level 1 and Level 2), with Level 2 being the more demanding. Well-prepared candidates aiming for Cheltenham College should expect to sit Level 2 papers in English, Mathematics and Science, where the College's academic expectations are high. The CE syllabus is standardised across ISEB, so official past papers and preparation materials are readily available — the ISEB website provides the current syllabuses for each subject.

For full subject-by-subject syllabus details and past papers, the Cheltenham College admissions page and the ISEB website are the authoritative sources. Our blog post on Common Entrance 13+ marks and requirements provides a detailed subject-by-subject breakdown that is directly relevant to Cheltenham College entry.

When should families register and begin preparing for Cheltenham College 13+ entry?

The College's own Admissions Policy confirms that its early assessment of external Year 9 candidates takes place during Year 6, "32 months in advance of entry." The College's separate Application Timetable for 2027 entry put the Entrance Day, Entrance Exams and Interviews for that cohort on 21 November 2024, with applications for that stage closing on 7 November 2024 — both dates have since passed. Families targeting September 2028 or later entry should register with the College well before their child reaches Year 6, since the College had not yet published that cohort's Entrance Day date as of September 2026. The registration fee for a Year 9 or Year 10 place is £240, non-refundable, payable online when the Registration Form is submitted. Documents required at registration include the child's most recent school report, birth certificate and passport.

Once registered, the most strategically important milestone for external candidates is the Year 6 Entrance Day. Candidates who perform well receive a conditional offer and a House allocation, usually within around two weeks, subject to a satisfactory school reference and to Common Entrance results averaging 55% in June of Year 8. Families who miss their cohort's Entrance Day window risk finding that the College's year group is closer to capacity when they approach later.

In terms of academic preparation, the ideal timeline is as follows. Preparation for the Year 6 Entrance Day assessment should begin in Year 5, focusing on English comprehension, mathematical problem-solving and general verbal reasoning skills. From the beginning of Year 7, formal CE subject preparation should be underway across English, Mathematics, Science and at least one Modern Foreign Language. Year 8 is the critical year for tightening performance across all CE subjects, working through past papers under timed conditions and addressing any remaining gaps before the CE examinations in June.

Families considering boarding should also factor in the house allocation process. Cheltenham College has six boys' boarding houses and five girls' boarding houses, with places allocated according to stated preferences at registration. Day boarding places are also available and are allocated in order of registration date. Waiting until Year 7 to register reduces the likelihood of securing a preferred house or day boarding status.

The College's admissions page names Jane Butler as Admissions Manager for ages 13-18 (01242 265600, admissions@cheltenhamcollege.org), the first contact for registration questions.

What is the Cheltenham College early assessment and why does it matter?

The Cheltenham College Entrance Day for external Year 9 candidates takes place during Year 6. The College's Admissions Policy states this early assessment happens "32 months in advance of entry"; for the September 2027 entry cohort, the College's own Application Timetable records the Entrance Day, Entrance Exams and Interviews as having taken place on 21 November 2024, with applications for that stage closing on 7 November 2024. This formal assessment event is the gateway to a conditional offer and a house allocation. Understanding exactly what it involves — and preparing specifically for it — is a key part of a well-planned 13+ strategy. Our Cheltenham College 13+ Guide walks through the whole admissions journey in more detail.

The Entrance Day involves English and Mathematics tests alongside a series of discussions and group activities. The College evaluates candidates holistically, assessing not only academic attainment but attitude, participation, collaboration, behaviour, depth of knowledge and quality of expression during interview. This breadth of assessment reflects the College's stated aim to admit pupils capable of accessing the full academic and co-curricular curriculum — not simply those who perform well in timed tests.

Candidates who pass the Entrance Day assessment receive a conditional offer and house allocation within approximately two weeks, subject to satisfactory school references and, where applicable, SEN information being provided in advance. These conditional offers are confirmed when CE results arrive in June of Year 8. The College's policy specifies that where CE results fall below the expected pass mark of 55%, parents are invited in to discuss monitoring and support arrangements rather than having an offer automatically withdrawn. In practice, this means the early assessment is the harder gate to pass — CE performance, with appropriate preparation, is more straightforward to achieve.

The strategic advantage of securing a conditional offer in Year 6 is significant. It gives families a two-year window — Years 7 and 8 — to build CE performance in a focused and confident way, knowing the destination is secured. It also eliminates the uncertainty of applying to multiple schools as a backup, which many families find stressful. Our specialist tutors work with candidates from Year 5 through Year 8, building the English comprehension, mathematical reasoning and verbal skills required for strong Entrance Day performance, then sustaining that work through the CE preparation phase. Explore our full 13+ preparation hub to understand how we structure this process from Year 5 onwards.

What are Cheltenham College's fees for Year 9 entry?

Cheltenham College publishes its fees on an academic-year basis. The figures below are for 2026-27 and include VAT, which now applies to Cheltenham College and Cheltenham Prep fees other than the Nursery School; our guide on independent school bursaries after the VAT change explains how bursary support has adjusted since. Fees are reviewed annually and the College's own Fees page should always be checked for the current figures.

These termly and annual fees are separate from the one-off £240 Year 9/10 registration fee described above. Occasional boarding on a day place is charged at £66 inc VAT per night, and a day boarding supplement applies where a day pupil boards regularly. The College also offers a 10% sibling discount; see the scholarships and bursaries section below for how this is calculated.

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What scholarships and bursaries are available at Cheltenham College for Year 9 entry?

Cheltenham College offers five categories of scholarship for Third Form (Year 9) entry: Academic, Art, Drama, Music and Sport. Families wishing to apply for a scholarship should indicate this on the Registration Form; the College then sends details of the specific assessment arrangements and deadlines for each award type. Scholarship applications run on a separate timeline from the standard admissions process and families should engage with the Admissions team early to understand the requirements for their chosen award.

Academic scholarships at Cheltenham College reward intellectual breadth and genuine depth of engagement across subjects. Candidates typically sit demanding scholarship papers in a range of subjects and may also be interviewed. The standard expected is meaningfully above the CE pass threshold, and academic scholarship candidates should be undertaking enhanced preparation that goes beyond standard CE work — engaging with material at a higher level of difficulty, reading widely, and developing the ability to discuss ideas in depth.

Music Awards at Third Form (Year 9) require performance ability of approximately Grade 5 in the candidate's principal study, assessed through audition, prepared performances, sight-reading and aural tests. Drama and Art Awards focus on demonstrated creative ability and potential: Drama candidates perform a prepared monologue and take part in a workshop and interview, while Art candidates submit a portfolio before a creative assessment and an interview with the Head of Art. Sport Awards assess candidates in at least two core sports (boys: rugby, hockey, cricket and tennis; girls: hockey, netball, cricket and tennis) alongside athletic development testing.

In addition to scholarships, Cheltenham College operates a means-tested bursary programme available from Year 6 onwards; any child who meets the College's baseline entrance requirements can apply, and eligibility is not limited to pupils who show exceptional talent. The value of any scholarship is taken into account alongside bursary assessment, and the two can be combined. Bursary applications for September entry must be received by the College by 31 January of the same year; applications received after that date will not be considered. The College also offers a 10% fee reduction for the third child (and any subsequent children) where three children are in the school at the same time, or where an older sibling has attended Prep or College for five years or more. Families serving in HM Forces who receive the Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA) pay only 10% of the fees for a boarding place; those not in receipt of CEA can apply for a separate military bursary, and Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) families receive dedicated support from the Admissions team.

Families pursuing scholarship entry should be aware that scholarship preparation requires dedicated coaching over and above standard CE work. Our specialist tutors help academic scholarship candidates engage with harder material and develop the intellectual confidence required. For Music scholarships, we can coordinate preparation alongside instrumental tuition, ensuring the candidate is in the strongest possible position for audition.

For September 2027 entry, Cheltenham College's published Third Form (Year 9) Award timetable is: Sport Awards, application deadline Monday 26 October 2026 and assessment Monday 9 November 2026; Art, Drama and Music Awards, application deadline Thursday 7 January 2027 and assessment Thursday 21 January 2027; and Academic Awards, application deadline Monday 8 February 2027 and assessment Monday 22 and Tuesday 23 February 2027. Award timetables run independently of the standard Common Entrance and Entrance Day calendar, so families should confirm exact dates with the College Admissions team.

What are the boarding options and co-curricular opportunities at Cheltenham College?

Cheltenham College offers full boarding, weekly boarding and day boarding. At registration, families state a first and second preference from the College's eleven boarding houses: six for boys (Boyne House, Christowe, Hazelwell, Leconfield, Newick House and Southwood) and five for girls (Ashmead, Chandos, College Lawn, The Queen's House and Westal). The College endeavours to honour house preferences but cannot guarantee placement. Day boarding places are allocated in order of registration date, alongside full boarding and weekly boarding options.

The co-curricular programme is a central part of life at Cheltenham College. The school's ethos, articulated through its "5Cs" framework, places a strong emphasis on breadth of engagement beyond the classroom. Sport, music, drama and the arts are all well-resourced and operate at a high level. The College competes nationally in a range of sports, and the College's music and drama communities are large and active. The campus is located on Bath Road in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire (GL53 7LD), adjacent to Cheltenham Prep, enabling a coherent educational journey for families who join the prep pathway from Year 3 or younger.

Academically, the College offers 22 GCSE subjects and more than 30 Sixth Form qualifications, providing pupils with extensive choice as they progress through the school. In 2026, 77% of A Level, CTech and BTEC grades at Cheltenham College were graded A*-B, with 50% at A*-A and 19% at A* (Cheltenham College, Sixth Form Results 2026). These figures confirm a school at which academic ambition and breadth of opportunity coexist. The College also runs a dedicated Oxbridge preparation programme within its Sixth Form. To understand how Cheltenham College compares with other leading 13+ schools, see our Common Entrance guide and our ISEB Pre-Test overview. Families in Cheltenham also weighing the co-educational College against the single-sex Cheltenham Ladies’ College can compare our Cheltenham Ladies’ College 13+ tutoring page and our Cheltenham Ladies’ College 13+ Guide.

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Day boarding places are limited. The College's Admissions Policy says: “A limited number of Day Boarding places are available each year. Normally 25% of any year group, unless there is bed availability.”

Reviewed September 2026: admissions process, fees, registration, scholarship and bursary details checked against Cheltenham College's own Admissions Policy, Application Timetable, Fees, Scholarships & Exhibitions and Finance pages.

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