Poole Grammar School

Use this site for specific admissions and 11 Plus exam information for Poole Grammar School. We hope to help you to find out how to be successful with an 11 Plus exam application to Poole Grammar School.

11 Plus Entry Information for Poole Grammar School

Poole Grammar School is a consistently oversubscribed selective grammar school for boys. Although average in overall size, it has a large sixth form. Almost all pupils are from a White British background, with very few from minority ethnic backgrounds or who speak English as an additional language. The number of pupils eligible for free school meals is well below average. The number of pupils with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, including those with a statement of educational needs, is also well below that seen nationally. The school has been a designated specialist mathematics and computing college since 2003 and was awarded a second specialism, in cognition and learning, in 2007. The school gained Trust status in 2008.

County Dorset
Address Poole Grammar School, Gravel Hill, Poole BH17 9JU
Type Boys’ Grammar
Pupils 997
Places in Year 7 170
Open Days July
Competition 5+ applicants for every place
Exam Format GL 11 Plus – Verbal Reasoning, Maths, English 
School Website www.poolegrammar.com

Poole Grammar School 11 Plus Exam Format

The 11 Plus Exam format for Poole Grammar School is written by GL Assessment. The format of the exam is as follows:

Paper 1 55 minute long English paper. All questions are multiple choice and includes: comprehension as well as questions on spelling, punctuation and grammar.
Paper 2 55 minute long Mathematics paper which includes a 5 minute long practice section. All questions are multiple choice.
Paper 3 50 minute Verbal Reasoning paper split into sections. At the beginning of each section there is a practice section with an explanation. All questions are multiple choice.

Poole Grammar School 11 Plus Exam Paper

Some publishers do have access to the exam format and produce their own mirror papers which aim to replicate what an 11 Plus exam for this school might look like.

We understand that these publishers get the information from familiarisation packs sent to parents, teachers, local tutors and pupils who have sat the test. The tests can of course change at any time and these papers only aim to give a good idea of what to expect, however, they are very useful and most parents use them at some point.

The ones we would suggest are from Learning Street. They are of high quality and cheaper than any others we have seen. Direct links to the papers are below and Learning Street produce them as mock exams which is unique (so you can run your own mock exam at home). Links to the papers are below:

Dorset 11 Plus Mock Exam 1

Dorset 11 Plus Mock Exam 2

Dorset 11 Plus Mock Exam 3

Dorset 11 Plus Mock Exam 4

Dorset 11 Plus Mock Exam Papers Bundle (packs 1-4)

How to prepare for the Poole Grammar School 11 Plus Exam

Essentially you have 5 options when it comes to helping your child to prepare.

1/ Some parents use a Private Tutor. If you want to start your search for a suitable one, we provide links to some Private tutors in Dorset to help you. These can cost between £2500 and £6000 a year. For help thinking about which private tutor might be right for you see our guidance page.

2/ Other parents use a Tuition Centre with group tuition. If you want to start your search for a suitable one, we provide links to some Tuition centres in Dorset to help you. These can cost between £1500 and £3500 for a year. For help thinking about which tuition centre might be right for you see our guidance page.

3/ If you are thinking of preparing at home using books then our 11 Plus Exam papers and books section provides lots of links and advice to help you choose which books to use and what to focus on. Preparation plans are also provided. Using this method is great for those parents prepared to take a more hands on approach. The average parent using this method spends about £300 on books and papers during the final year of preparation.

4/ A great option is a structured course. These courses gradually build up skills so you can focus on helping your child with the work provided. The best supplier is Learning Street which helps you prepare your child from home, ranging in price from £12 to £89 ( full cost – not monthly cost) it is the cheapest method of preparation. To find out their course suggestions for Poole Grammar School 11 Plus preparation click the link.

5/  Online preparation. This is not something we recommend. Online solutions are growing more useful and reliable and for some aspects of preparation they can be useful but certainly not for all your preparation needs. They are also very expensive for what they provide with some coming in at £600- £1000 for a year depending on which options you select. For our rationale on why we believe online preparation is not a good solution yet click through to the page 11 Plus online preparation.

Poole Grammar School 11 Plus Exam – Further Help

This website has lots of information which can help you aside from the ones we have directed you to above:

If you are thinking about doing an 11 Plus Mock Exam, then we have a page with 11 Plus Mock Exams in Dorset.

We have all sorts of pages related to preparing for the exam and getting ready for the exam day itself including:

Top Ten 11 plus Preparation Tips

Last Minute Preparation Solutions

11 Plus Exam Day Tips

11 Plus Exam Forum – Dorset Pages- where we have pre-answered the most common questions

And of course there is a wealth of information including preparation plans in our exam papers and books section for Dorset.