Assessment
READY FOR THE NEXT ADVENTURE
Assessment
All children who apply for a place at the Prep are assessed in the January before entry. We are interested in each child’s potential, academic curiosity and readiness to thrive in a busy and ambitious school environment.
In standardised tests, Prep pupils are usually working at least one year above the national average. We will request a confidential reference from your child’s current school before entrance testing. Families of pupils with special educational needs should discuss their application with us before the entrance test so that appropriate access arrangements can be considered.
The Year 3 entrance testing will take place between Monday 11 and Friday 15 January 2027 (a half day assessment on one of those dates).
The Years 4, 5 and 6 entrance testing will take place on Saturday 16 January 2027 and would also be a half day assessment.
The entrance tests comprise elements of:
- English – reading, writing, comprehension
- Maths – including an element of mental maths
- Reasoning – verbal and non-verbal
Work content is appropriate for the child’s current year, but we expect children to cope comfortably with this.
We do not have formal interviews, but the Head will have a chat with the children in small groups.
- Attend an open event
- Register for the Year 2 taster morning
- Book a personal tour with the Head
- Complete some sample English and maths papers (for Year 3 entry only). Unfortunately, we do not provide sample papers for Year 4, 5 or 6 entry.
- Purchase some useful practice books available from online stores for English, maths and reasoning for your child’s current year group (e.g. CGP, Collins, Letts etc.)
- Engage fully with the work covered at your current school
- Read, read, read!
- Family board games, discussion, developing general interests
We provide a sample English and maths paper here for Year 3 only.
We will request a written reference from your child’s current school in early December. This is not an optional requirement and is sought in accordance with IAPS (Independent Association of Prep Schools) guidelines.
Please contact the Head’s PA at Prep@Perse.co.uk
Unfortunately, we do not hold overseas or online testing for this age of child.
Children and parents are invited to an induction event before the beginning of the new academic year.
If you cannot visit us in person, please take a look at our virtual 360 tour of The Perse Prep School.
We hold two open events each year, in the autumn and summer, for families interested in learning more about The Perse.
Please do not hesitate to get in touch and make an enquiry, we would be delighted to hear from you.
