Quest Assessment format, 236 qualifying score, 120 places, and a month-by-month preparation plan for Wirral's oldest grammar school
Book a Free ConsultationCalday Grange Grammar School in West Kirby is the oldest grammar school on the Wirral peninsula, founded in 1636, and one of the most sought-after selective schools in the North West. Entry at Year 7 requires passing the Wirral 11+ assessment, which is provided by Quest Assessments and administered by Wirral Local Authority. For the 2026 test cycle (entry in September 2027), the assessment takes place on Tuesday 15 September 2026. The school offers 120 Year 7 places and applies a qualifying score of 236 (age-standardised). This guide covers everything families need to know: the school's history and character, the full admissions process, the Quest Assessment format, competition levels, and a month-by-month preparation plan to give your child the best possible chance of a place.
Calday Grange Grammar School stands at Grammar School Lane, West Kirby, on the Wirral peninsula in Merseyside. The school was founded in 1636 by William Glegg, a local landowner, as a free grammar school on the present site — making it almost 390 years old and the oldest surviving grammar school on the Wirral. Starting with just 12 pupils, Calday has grown into a school of over 1,500 students across Years 7 to 13. It is a non-denominational boys' school from Year 7 to Year 11, and has admitted girls to the sixth form since 1985. The school site occupies grounds near the Wirral's Dee Estuary coastline and comprises ten buildings, including a Main Building with Assembly Hall, a Sports Hall, all-weather courts, and extensive playing fields.
The school hosts the Wirral Able Children Centre, a specialist provision for exceptionally able students across the Wirral borough, and has been awarded Sportsmark Gold and Investors in People status. Academically, Calday consistently achieves strong GCSE and A-Level results. The school's reputation draws applications not only from across the Wirral, but also from Liverpool, Chester, North Wales, and Warrington — a wide catchment that reflects both the school's standing and the quality of its sixth form provision for girls who join at Year 12.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Location | Grammar School Lane, West Kirby, Wirral, CH48 8GG |
| Founded | 1636 (William Glegg) — oldest grammar school on the Wirral |
| Type | Non-denominational boys' grammar (co-ed sixth form since 1985) |
| Year 7 places | 120 |
| Qualifying score | 236 (age-standardised) |
| Test provider | Quest Assessments (Wirral non-Catholic grammar consortium) |
| Test date 2026 | Tuesday 15 September 2026 |
| Results | Emailed to parents mid-October 2026 |
| CAF deadline | 31 October 2026 |
| Year 5 registration deadline | Assessment Request Form by 31 May of Year 5 (opens 1 May) |
Entry to Year 7 at Calday Grange Grammar School requires passing the Wirral 11+ assessment, which is administered by Wirral Local Authority and delivered by Quest Assessments. The process begins earlier than many families realise: in Year 5, not Year 6.
Year 5 — Registration (May): An Assessment Request Form must be completed by 31 May of Year 5. The form becomes available to download from 1 May each year, and must be submitted to Wirral LA before the noon deadline. For the 2026 test cycle (entry to Year 7 in September 2027), this registration deadline was 1 June 2026. Late applications are not accepted unless a child has moved to the Wirral after the closing date, in which case a paper registration form is available.
Year 5/6 — Special access arrangements: If your child has additional needs (an EHCP, English as a second language, or a medical or educational need that may affect performance), special access arrangements can be requested when submitting the registration form. Arrangements that are ordinarily in place at the child's primary school can be accommodated, including enlarged print, extra time (25%), smaller rooms, or short breaks. These must be requested in advance — for the September 2026 test, the deadline was 7 June 2026.
Year 6 — Test day (15 September 2026): All children sit the assessment at a Wirral-based grammar school venue. Parents are notified of their specific venue by the end of August 2026. The assessment takes place on a single day and cannot be retaken. If a child is unwell on the day, parents should email secondaryplaces@wirral.gov.uk immediately; children in this situation are invited to an alternative session. The assessment consists of two papers and is guided by an audio soundtrack, with children recording their answers on a separate computer-marked answer sheet.
Mid-October 2026 — Results: Results are emailed to parents in mid-October. If your child meets the qualifying standard for Calday Grange (a standardised score of 236 or above), you can proceed to name the school on your Common Application Form (CAF).
31 October 2026 — Common Application Form deadline: All families must apply for a secondary school place by 31 October 2026. Families living in the Wirral borough submit the Wirral Parental Preference Form online at wirral.gov.uk. Families living in Liverpool, Cheshire, or North Wales must apply through their own local authority AND complete a Wirral Parental Preference Form. Families outside England must use the Wirral application form to apply for Wirral schools. Calday Grange should be listed as first preference for the best chance of a place. See our 11+ exam dates and key deadlines guide for a full regional timetable.
Calday Grange Grammar School, along with all non-Catholic grammar schools on the Wirral, uses Quest Assessments for its 11+ test. This is an important detail: several competitor guides and revision platforms continue to refer to the Wirral test as a GL Assessment exam, but Quest Assessments is the official provider — confirmed both on the school's own admissions page and on the Wirral Council website. Families and tutors should use Quest Assessments' own preparation materials rather than generic GL-branded resources.
The assessment consists of two papers taken on the same day. Both papers are timed, multiple-choice format, and guided by an audio soundtrack. Children record their answers on a separate computer-marked answer sheet. There are no long written answers, and readers and scribes are not provided.
Verbal Reasoning: Verbal reasoning questions test understanding of words, language patterns, and codes. Typical question types include word analogies, odd-one-out, code-breaking, missing letters, and logical deduction from language-based information. A strong reading habit — across fiction, non-fiction, and a variety of genres — builds the vocabulary breadth that verbal reasoning requires. Children who read widely tend to recognise unusual word patterns and analogies more quickly under timed conditions.
Non-Verbal Reasoning: Non-verbal reasoning assesses logic, pattern recognition, spatial awareness, and visual problem-solving. Question types include pattern sequences, mirror images, shape rotations, matrices, and spatial folding. Unlike verbal reasoning, non-verbal reasoning is less directly correlated with school curriculum content — it responds well to targeted practice in the specific question formats used by Quest Assessments.
Mathematics: The mathematics section covers problem-solving and reasoning using Key Stage 2 (KS2) maths skills. This includes number and arithmetic (fractions, decimals, percentages, ratio), shape and space (perimeter, area, volume, angles), data and statistics (reading tables and charts), and word problems requiring multi-step reasoning. The questions do not simply test recall of maths facts — they test the ability to apply mathematical reasoning to novel problems, often under time pressure. Children who are comfortable with their KS2 maths curriculum will have a solid foundation, but will also benefit from timed practice with Quest-style maths questions specifically.
Free familiarisation materials in all four subject areas (English, Maths, Verbal Reasoning, Non-Verbal Reasoning) are available from Quest Assessments at questassessments.com/parent-guidance. The Wirral non-Catholic grammar schools consortium also provides free preparation resources via Atom Learning for Pupil Premium eligible students — families should check the school's admissions page for details. For more about the 11+ and grammar school entry, see our introduction: What is the 11 Plus Exam?
Preparing for Calday Grange Grammar School 11+ Entry?
Our specialist tutors deliver focused one-to-one 11+ preparation for the Wirral Quest Assessment, covering verbal reasoning, non-verbal reasoning, and mathematics using Quest-style practice materials. We build personalised programmes tailored to each child's current strengths and the specific question types that appear on the Calday Grange assessment.
Rated 4.8/5 on Trustpilot. Leading Tuition has helped hundreds of families across the UK prepare for selective school entry.
Book a Free Consultation Message us on WhatsAppCalday Grange Grammar School offers 120 Year 7 places each year. The school is consistently oversubscribed, drawing applicants from a wide geographical area: the Wirral itself, Liverpool, Merseyside, Chester and Cheshire West, North Wales, and Warrington. This breadth of the catchment area means that Calday is competing for applications not only with other Wirral grammar schools — Wirral Grammar School for Boys and Wirral Grammar School for Girls — but also drawing from families across the wider North West and North Wales region who regard Calday as the leading choice given its history, facilities, and academic reputation.
The qualifying standard is an age-standardised score of 236 or above. Age standardisation adjusts scores for date of birth within the year group, so a child born in August is not disadvantaged against one born the previous September. The standardised score accounts for this difference, meaning the 236 threshold represents the same relative level of ability regardless of when in the year a child was born. Achieving 236 qualifies a child as meeting the grammar school standard — but this does not guarantee a place at Calday specifically.
When the school is oversubscribed — which is the normal position — places are allocated in the following order:
For families outside the Pupil Premium and sibling priority groups, distance from the school is the determining factor once the qualifying score threshold is met. Families living closest to Grammar School Lane, West Kirby have an advantage if the school is oversubscribed, but given the geographic breadth of applications, the effective distance cutoff varies year by year. Families living further afield — in Liverpool or North Wales, for example — should also apply to other qualifying grammar schools on the Wirral or in their local authority area as additional preferences. For families in the Greater Manchester area considering Wirral alongside other selective schools, our guide to Altrincham Grammar Schools covers the parallel TAME consortium admissions process.
Effective preparation for the Calday Grange 11+ requires a structured approach beginning in Year 4 or early Year 5. The Wirral Quest Assessment rewards children who have built solid foundations in verbal reasoning, non-verbal reasoning, and KS2 mathematics over an extended period — not those who cram in the final weeks before the September test. The following month-by-month framework gives families a realistic timeline for preparing a child who is starting in Year 4.
Year 4 (September – July): Foundation building. In Year 4, the focus should be on building the underlying skills that the 11+ tests — not on exam technique. Strong reading habits are the single most valuable investment at this stage: daily reading across a wide range of genres and difficulty levels builds vocabulary, inference skills, and the ability to process unfamiliar language quickly. For mathematics, ensure KS2 curriculum topics are progressing solidly — times tables to 12 should be fully memorised by the end of Year 4. A first introduction to verbal reasoning question types (word analogies, letter sequences) in Year 4 helps children begin to recognise patterns without the pressure of an approaching exam.
Year 5 (September – April): Structured skill development. In Year 5, preparation becomes more systematic. This is the time to introduce non-verbal reasoning question types in a structured way: shape sequences, matrices, mirror images, and spatial reasoning. For verbal reasoning, progress from introductory question types to more challenging formats. For mathematics, begin working on the problem-solving style of questions that appear in the 11+ — multi-step word problems and data interpretation — not just standard curriculum exercises. The Assessment Request Form must be submitted by 31 May of Year 5 to register for the September 11+ assessment. Make sure this is in your family calendar from 1 May when the form becomes available.
Year 5 (May – July): Registration and summer consolidation. Submit the Assessment Request Form on time and keep a copy. Over the summer between Year 5 and Year 6, maintain preparation at a steady pace — aiming for 3–4 sessions per week of 20–30 minutes each in the three subject areas. The goal over summer is to consolidate skills already developed and begin introducing timed practice elements. Free Quest Assessments familiarisation materials are available at questassessments.com/parent-guidance and should be introduced at this stage so your child is familiar with the specific question format and answer-sheet style.
Year 6 (September – June): Intensive preparation with timed practice. From the start of Year 6, preparation shifts to timed, exam-style practice. Begin running full timed practice papers under test conditions at least once a week. Analyse performance carefully after each session: which question types are your child finding most challenging? Allocate focused practice time to those areas. Non-verbal reasoning and verbal reasoning should both be practised using Quest-style questions specifically — not generic 11+ paper packs that are designed for GL Assessment or CEM, which have different question styles. Our specialist tutors at Leading Tuition use Quest-specific materials developed for the Wirral consortium. For more on the wider 11+ calendar across the UK, see our 11+ exam dates 2025–2026 guide.
July – August Year 6: Final preparation. In the final six weeks before the September test, the priority is exam technique and pacing rather than learning new content. Practise full two-paper mock test sessions under timed, test-day conditions. Review any remaining weak areas but avoid introducing entirely new topics at this stage. Ensure your child is familiar with the audio-guided format of the Quest Assessment papers and comfortable recording answers on a separate answer sheet. The test cannot be re-sat, so a confident, practised approach on the day is the goal.
15 September 2026: Test day. Children sit both papers at their allocated Wirral-based venue. Bring the notification letter and any confirmation documents. Ensure your child has a good breakfast and arrives early. The audio soundtrack guides the pace of the assessment, and children should be familiar with this format from their timed practice sessions.
Mid-October 2026: Results. Results are emailed to parents in mid-October. If your child achieves the qualifying score of 236 or above, proceed to name Calday Grange on your CAF. If multiple Wirral grammar schools are named, list them in genuine order of preference — offer allocation follows oversubscription criteria, not the order on the form.
31 October 2026: Common Application Form deadline. Submit your CAF to your local authority by the deadline. Wirral residents use the online Wirral Parental Preference Form; families from outside Wirral apply through their own local authority AND complete the Wirral Parental Preference Form at wirral.gov.uk. School place offers are released on 1 March 2027.
Leading Tuition provides specialist 11+ preparation for children targeting Calday Grange Grammar School and the wider Wirral non-Catholic grammar school consortium. Our specialist tutors are experienced in the Quest Assessments format and deliver focused, one-to-one sessions tailored to each child's strengths and the specific question types that appear on the Wirral assessment.
Our preparation programmes cover all three subject areas of the Quest Assessment: verbal reasoning (word patterns, analogies, codes, and logical language tasks), non-verbal reasoning (pattern sequences, matrices, spatial reasoning, and shape manipulation), and mathematics (KS2 problem-solving, multi-step word problems, and data interpretation). We do not use generic GL Assessment preparation packs — all our Wirral preparation is built around Quest-specific question formats to ensure your child is practising exactly what they will see on test day.
We offer structured programmes that can begin as early as Year 4, and intensive Year 6 preparation packages for families starting closer to the September test date. All sessions are delivered online, one-to-one, and fully tailored to your child's current level and target score. Progress is tracked throughout the programme so you always know exactly where your child stands relative to the 236 qualifying threshold. Families who have worked with our specialist tutors report significant gains in both verbal and non-verbal reasoning confidence in the months before the test.
Rated 4.8/5 on Trustpilot, Leading Tuition has supported families preparing for selective schools across the UK, including Wirral grammar school applicants. Our tutors understand the specific pressures of the September test window and the importance of building exam confidence and pacing skills alongside content knowledge. The Calday Grange 11+ rewards prepared, confident children — and building that preparation over the right timeline makes the difference between meeting the qualifying standard and not. Book a free consultation to discuss your child's preparation needs and timeline with one of our specialist tutors.
Related guides: West Kirby Grammar School 11+ Guide 2026 and St Anselm's College Wirral 11+ Guide 2026.
Calday Grange Grammar School is a selective boys' grammar school in West Kirby on the Wirral peninsula and the oldest grammar school on the Wirral, founded in 1636. Entry at Year 7 requires passing the Wirral 11+ assessment, administered by Wirral Local Authority and delivered by Quest Assessments. The test takes place on a single day in September — for September 2027 entry, the test date is Tuesday 15 September 2026. The assessment consists of two papers covering verbal reasoning, non-verbal reasoning, and mathematics, all in multiple-choice format. There is no re-sit; if your child is unwell on the day, contact Wirral LA immediately at secondaryplaces@wirral.gov.uk to request an alternative session.
Children must achieve an age-standardised score of 236 or above to be eligible for a place at Calday Grange Grammar School. The standardised score adjusts for a child's date of birth so younger children in the year group are not disadvantaged compared to those born in September. Achieving 236 qualifies a child for grammar school consideration across the Wirral consortium, but does not guarantee a place at Calday specifically. The school offers 120 Year 7 places and when oversubscribed applies its oversubscription criteria: looked-after children first, then medical or social priority cases, then up to 15 Pupil Premium places allocated by walking distance, then siblings, then remaining places by shortest walking distance from the school.
The Wirral Quest Assessment for September 2027 school entry takes place on Tuesday 15 September 2026. All children sit the test at a Wirral-based grammar school venue — parents are notified of their specific venue by the end of August 2026. Registration for the September 2026 test closed at 12 noon on 1 June 2026; new registrations after that date are only accepted from children who have moved to Wirral after the closing date, via a paper registration form from Wirral LA. Results are emailed to parents in mid-October 2026, and the Common Application Form must be submitted to your local authority by 31 October 2026.
Calday Grange Grammar School offers 120 Year 7 places each year. The school is consistently oversubscribed, drawing applications from the Wirral, Liverpool, Chester, North Wales, and Warrington. When oversubscribed, the school applies its oversubscription criteria in order: looked-after and previously looked-after children; children with a professional-supported medical or social reason; up to 15 places for Pupil Premium children allocated by shortest walking distance; siblings of current students; and remaining places offered to children with the shortest walking distance from the school. Calday Grange has been a highly sought-after school since its foundation in 1636, and competition for its 120 places is consistently strong.
Preparation for the Wirral Quest Assessment should begin in Year 4 or early Year 5. The assessment covers verbal reasoning, non-verbal reasoning, and mathematics in multiple-choice format. Effective preparation combines daily reading to build vocabulary for verbal reasoning, targeted non-verbal reasoning practice covering pattern recognition and spatial awareness, and consistent KS2 maths work. Quest Assessments provides free familiarisation materials at questassessments.com/parent-guidance including sample questions in all subject areas. The Wirral non-Catholic grammar schools also provide free Atom Learning accounts for Pupil Premium eligible children. Children should practise under timed conditions from at least six months before the test date to build pacing and exam technique.
Leading Tuition provides specialist 11+ tuition for children preparing for the Wirral Quest Assessment and entry to Calday Grange Grammar School. Our specialist tutors deliver focused one-to-one sessions in verbal reasoning, non-verbal reasoning, and mathematics, using Quest-style practice materials to ensure children are familiar with the specific format and pacing required on test day. We offer structured programmes starting as early as Year 4, along with targeted Year 6 preparation in the months before the September test. All sessions are delivered online and are fully tailored to each child's strengths and areas for development. Rated 4.8/5 on Trustpilot. Book a free consultation at leadingtuition.co.uk/consultation or message us on WhatsApp.
Leading Tuition provides specialist 11+ preparation for the Wirral Quest Assessment. Our tutors are experienced in Quest-style verbal reasoning, non-verbal reasoning, and mathematics. Rated 4.8/5 on Trustpilot.
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