Joining King's

Children are assessed for entry into the Infant & Junior School. Assessments take place in the preceding January for September entry and at other times for mid-year entry depending on availability of places.

Registrations for the Pre-School class are accepted from birth – but not before! We recommend applying early, as year groups fill up quickly. Places in Pre-School are offered by date of application. Places in other year groups are offered based on availability of places and outcome of the assessment.

The relevant ages for entry to King’s Infants are as follows:

• Pre-School (age 3+) 
• Reception (age 4+) 
• Year 1 (age 5+) 
• Year 2 (age 6+) 

Transfer into King’s Juniors is by internal assessment and our Year 2 pupils have to satisfy the entrance requirements for Juniors.

Vacancies can arise for each age group, and we operate a waiting list system. Please contact Admissions to enquire about availability of places as early as possible, prior to completing a Registration Form.

To apply for a place, our Registration Form below should be completed. A registration fee of £75 is payable upon submission of the Registration Form.

Infant Registration Form

King’s is a selective school, and the admissions procedure is designed to ensure that pupils will enjoy a challenging academic curriculum. All candidates wishing to join King’s Juniors are required to sit an Entrance Assessment.

Entrance Assessments take place during January prior to the September of joining. Children come into school for a morning, and we aim to create a relaxed atmosphere for them to show their capabilities. The Assessment consists of age-appropriate papers to test literacy, numeracy and reasoning power set to standards normally expected of boys and girls of above average ability. Copies of past papers are not supplied, but we can supply guidelines as to what the assessment will cover.

Parents are required to register for the Entrance Assessment by the first Friday in December (prior to the assessment in January), by completing the Registration Form and returning it to the Admissions Department with a registration fee of £75. Offers of places will be made in late January for the following September.

In order to gain a fuller picture of a child’s suitability, we will contact the child’s present Headteacher to ask for details of academic progress, interests and future potential. This information, sought prior to the Assessment, forms an important part of the admissions procedure and it is assumed that parents will notify the current school and inform them that a reference request will be made in early January.

Junior Assessment Guidelines
Junior Registration Form

King’s aims to achieve a successful fit between the academic nature of the school and its students. The admissions process is designed to allow the school to gain a realistic picture of the prospective student; and the child and parents to gain one of the school. Our main point of entry to the Senior Division (boys and girls) is at age 11: into Year 7.

For pupils wishing to apply to join Year 7 in 2024, completed registration forms should be returned by no later than Friday 1 December 2023.  Bursary applications should be returned by Friday 24 November 2023.

We occasionally have a small number of vacancies for older children (aged 12–14 years) to join our Senior School in Years 8, 9 and 10.

We are currently holding waiting lists for entry into Years 8, 9 and 10 for mid-year and September 2023 entry.

If you would like us to place your child on our waiting list, please complete our Registration Form. Should a place become available, we will contact waiting list families and advise whether we are able to invite their child to sit King’s Entrance Examination.

For the Sixth Form, we offer a wide range of subject choices, modern facilities, a friendly co-educational year group of around 110+ students, excellent support for A Level study, small tutor groups of ~15 students, and outstanding preparation for university applications, higher-level apprenticeships and the world beyond school.

We are very proud of our students' achievements at A Level and of the breadth of courses that they go on to study.

Around 10 - 15% of our Sixth Form students join us from other schools and they very quickly settle in our friendly and vibrant Sixth Form. We believe in working hard and playing hard and, importantly, offer a diverse range of extra-curricular opportunities.

Children who joined King's Juniors prior to the start of Year 5 will qualify for a continually-assessed place in our Seniors. Assessed places are offered based on internal assessment data collated during Year 5 and 6. 

Any pupils joining King's Juniors after the October half-term of Year 5 will be required to take the 11+ Entrance Examination in order to gain entry to the Senior Division.

Please contact the Admissions Department for more information and advice.

Pupils in Year 11 at King's are required to obtain an average of grade 6 or higher across eight GCSE subjects, with a minimum of a grade 5 in both Maths and English Language.  Most subjects recommend a grade 7-9 in a subject to be studied at A Level, and this is compulsory for Maths or Science subjects. In addition subjects with a large mathematical content, such as Economics, require a minimum of grade 7 in Maths.

We recommend pupils discuss their subject choices with their teachers and Head of Year, who will be able to give tailored advice.