HBS, Tiffin Girls, NLCS and City of London Girls — compared on entry, results and culture.
London and its surrounding area are home to some of the most academically outstanding girls' schools in the world — but the landscape is complex. State grammar schools, highly selective independent schools, and selective academies all compete for the same pool of high-ability applicants, with overlapping examination windows and very different admissions processes. This guide focuses on four schools that generate the highest levels of parental interest from our families and represent the full range of academic selectivity, fee structure, and school character: Henrietta Barnett School (HBS), Tiffin Girls' School, North London Collegiate School (NLCS), and City of London School for Girls (CLSG).
Henrietta Barnett School is consistently ranked as the top state school for girls in England and regularly features in top-five lists of all schools nationally. It is a super-selective grammar school in Hampstead Garden Suburb, admitting around 93 girls per year from a pool of approximately 2,500 applicants — a ratio of roughly 27:1. Entry is based entirely on score in the consortium 11+ examination (shared with QE Boys Barnet and other North London grammar schools); there is no catchment area, no interview, and no other criteria beyond score.
HBS is free to attend as a state school, which makes it an outstanding option for families who cannot or do not wish to pay independent school fees. The school's GCSE and A-level results are exceptional — consistently among the very best in the country — and its Oxbridge and Russell Group progression is remarkable for a non-fee-paying school. The difficulty is that the score threshold is extremely high: candidates typically need to score in approximately the top 3% nationally to receive an offer.
For a detailed guide to HBS entry, see our Henrietta Barnett School Complete Admissions Guide.
Tiffin Girls' School in Kingston upon Thames is one of the most sought-after state grammar schools for girls in London. Unlike HBS, Tiffin Girls' uses a designated area as part of its admissions process — girls who live within the designated boroughs (Kingston, Richmond, Merton, Sutton, and parts of others) receive priority in the allocation of places, provided they pass the 11+ examination to the required standard.
Around 2,500 girls apply for approximately 140 Year 7 places. The school uses the GL Assessment 11+ examination and girls must sit and pass the test to qualify. Results at Tiffin Girls' are consistently outstanding — the school regularly appears in top 10 state school rankings nationally — and its sixth form has a strong Oxbridge record. The designated area makes it more accessible than HBS for families in South West London, but the test is still extremely competitive.
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NLCS is one of England's most prestigious independent girls' schools, with a history stretching back to 1850. It is fee-paying (currently around £22,000 per year for senior school) but offers substantial means-tested bursaries that can cover up to 100% of fees. NLCS runs its own entrance examination — English, Mathematics, and Reasoning papers, plus an interview — rather than using the grammar school consortium papers. Around 500 girls apply for approximately 60 Year 7 places.
What distinguishes NLCS from state grammar schools is the interview and the breadth of what the school looks for: intellectual curiosity, the ability to engage with ideas across disciplines, and a genuine love of learning. Academic scholarships are also awarded. Educationally, NLCS is considered peer-level to HBS and Tiffin Girls' — all three schools achieve outstanding results and send significant numbers of girls to the most competitive universities. For a detailed guide, see our NLCS 11+ Guide.
City of London School for Girls is an independent day school in the Barbican with approximately 55 Year 7 places, fees of around £22,000 per year, and a strong bursary programme backed by the City of London Corporation. Like NLCS, it runs its own entrance examination with an interview and looks for girls who are intellectually engaged and capable of independent thinking, not just high exam scorers. Results are consistently excellent and the school's location gives girls access to an exceptional range of cultural and professional enrichment opportunities. For a detailed guide, see our CLSG 11+ Guide.
The right school for any given family depends on several factors beyond raw academic prestige. Here are the most important dimensions to consider:
Cost: HBS and Tiffin Girls' are free state schools. NLCS and CLSG charge fees of approximately £22,000 per year but offer bursaries. For families eligible for significant bursary support, the independent schools may be more accessible than their fee levels suggest. Many families apply to both state and independent schools simultaneously.
Geography: HBS draws from across North London and beyond; Tiffin Girls' prioritises South West London boroughs; NLCS is in Edgware (north-west London); CLSG is in the Barbican (central London). Travel time should be considered seriously — a long daily commute for a Year 7 pupil is a meaningful quality-of-life issue.
Admissions process: HBS and Tiffin Girls' select purely on 11+ exam score (plus designated area for Tiffin). NLCS and CLSG use a proprietary exam plus interview. If a girl performs well in high-stakes standardised tests, HBS is a strong choice. If she thinks well under conversational pressure and has broad intellectual interests, the independent school interview process may favour her.
School culture: All four schools have strong academic cultures but distinct characters. HBS has a comprehensive state school framework with outstanding results; Tiffin Girls' combines academic rigour with a focus on community; NLCS and CLSG are full independent schools with substantial co-curricular provision and significant investment in sport, arts, and enrichment.
Most families applying to London's top girls' schools apply to several simultaneously. A sensible strategy is to apply to both state grammar schools (HBS, Tiffin Girls') and at least one independent school (NLCS and/or CLSG), since the examination windows overlap and preparation is largely complementary. The grammar school consortium 11+ is taken in the autumn; independent school examinations take place in January. A child who begins preparation in Year 5 can realistically prepare for all of these simultaneously with good tutoring support.
At Leading Tuition, we specialise in integrated preparation programmes that cover multiple applications. Our tutors understand the specific demands of each school's process — from the consortium 11+ to independent school interviews — and we tailor our programmes to each child's strengths and target schools. Book a free consultation to discuss your daughter's application strategy.
Parents researching London's top girls' grammar schools often underestimate how differently each school tests its applicants. One of the most widespread mistakes is treating every entrance exam as interchangeable. The Henrietta Barnett School's two-stage process — a CEM-style first round in September followed by a bespoke second paper in October — demands a very different strategy from Tiffin Girls' School, which uses GL Assessment verbal and numerical reasoning alongside English and maths papers. Preparing exclusively with one exam board's materials while ignoring the other leaves significant gaps.
A second common error is leaving vocabulary and reading comprehension too late. These skills, tested heavily in both HBS and Tiffin Girls' papers, cannot be crammed in a few weeks. Families who begin structured reading in Year 4 — choosing challenging fiction, non-fiction and classic texts — build the analytical depth examiners are looking for. Similarly, many pupils over-invest in maths drills while neglecting non-verbal reasoning, which appears in the NLCS and City of London School for Girls assessments and requires its own systematic practice. Finally, sitting fewer than five or six full mock exams under timed conditions is a mistake: London's most selective girls' schools are oversubscribed by ten to fifteen applicants per place, so exam technique and composure on the day are as important as raw ability. Build in at least one mock per half-term from Year 5 onwards, and always review every error before moving on to the next paper.
By raw numbers, HBS is harder: around 2,500 girls apply for 93 places (ratio ~27:1), compared to 500 applying for ~60 places at NLCS (~8:1). However, the pool of applicants differs significantly. HBS candidates include the full range of grammar-school-aspiring families; NLCS candidates are self-selected to a higher degree. In practice, the very top candidates — girls scoring in the top 2–3% nationally — tend to be offered places at both, and the choice comes down to fee vs. free and school character.
Yes. The examination calendars for grammar schools and independent schools run on different timelines — grammar school 11+ tests take place in September/October of Year 6, while independent school examinations take place in January of Year 7. There is no conflict in applying to both, and most families applying to the top London girls' schools apply to several simultaneously. Preparation for the two types of examination overlaps substantially, though independent school preparation should also include interview practice.
Leading Tuition provides specialist preparation for London's most competitive girls' grammar schools, including Henrietta Barnett School, Tiffin Girls' School, Nonsuch High School, and Wallington High School for Girls. Each school uses a different examination format — GL Assessment consortium, independent Tiffin papers, or the Sutton SET — so preparation must be tailored to the target school or schools. Our specialist tutors have deep knowledge of all these formats and work with girls from Year 4 through to the examination. We are rated 4.8/5 on Trustpilot. To build a preparation plan matched to your daughter's target schools, book a free consultation at leadingtuition.co.uk/consultation or message us on WhatsApp.
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