GrammarPrep

Lancashire 11+ preparation: a parent's guide

How selective entry works at Lancaster Royal, Lancaster Girls', Clitheroe Royal and Bacup & Rawtenstall — and how to prepare without a county-wide test to anchor to.

School-run 11+ entrance exams (each Lancashire grammar tests separately): key facts

Typical test date
Autumn term of Year 6 — typically September or October; each school publishes its own date
Papers
Varies by school — typically 2-3 papers
Duration
Typically 45-60 minutes per paper — confirm in each school's admissions guidance
Subjects
English, Mathematics and reasoning are the common core; the exact mix varies by school
Indicative qualifying threshold
No county-wide pass mark — each school sets its own qualifying standard and admits in line with its published oversubscription criteria
Registration window
Usually spring to early autumn of Year 5 — registration is direct with each school, so track every target school's deadline

Why Lancashire is different

Lancashire has four grammar schools spread across three distinct areas: Lancaster Royal Grammar School and Lancaster Girls' Grammar School in the north, Clitheroe Royal Grammar School in the Ribble Valley, and Bacup and Rawtenstall Grammar School in Rossendale. Unlike Kent or Buckinghamshire, there is no local-authority-wide 11+ — each school runs its own entrance arrangements, which means separate registrations, separate test dates and potentially different formats.

That school-by-school structure cuts both ways. It gives families flexibility — a child in the Ribble Valley might realistically sit for Clitheroe and one of the Lancaster schools in the same season — but it puts the deadline-tracking burden entirely on parents. Missing a single school's registration window closes that door for the year, and the windows do not all align.

Families near the Greater Manchester border sometimes weigh Lancashire options against the Trafford grammar system, which is separate and covered on our Trafford page. The preparation core is similar, but registration, test dates and formats are entirely independent — treat them as two different campaigns.

How the School-run 11+ entrance exams (each Lancashire grammar tests separately) is structured

  • There is no single Lancashire 11+ paper — each grammar school publishes its own test arrangements for the year.
  • The common core across the county's schools is English, Mathematics and reasoning-style content, typically sat as two or three papers in the autumn of Year 6.
  • Scoring is age-standardised where standardised tests are used, so autumn-born and summer-born children are compared fairly.
  • Some schools give distance or catchment weight in their oversubscription criteria alongside test performance — read each school's admissions policy, not just its test page.
  • Registration is direct with each school (not through the local authority), usually in the months before the autumn test date.

Notable grammar schools in Lancashire

4 grammar schools across the county.

  • Lancaster Royal Grammar School
  • Lancaster Girls' Grammar School
  • Clitheroe Royal Grammar School
  • Bacup and Rawtenstall Grammar School (Rossendale)

How to prepare your child for the Lancashire 11+

Anchor your plan to specific schools, not to 'the Lancashire 11+' — it does not exist as a single test. List your target schools, pull each one's current admissions arrangements, and build a small calendar of registration deadlines and test dates before buying any materials. This one evening of admin prevents the most common Lancashire mistake: preparing well but missing a school-specific deadline.

Prepare the shared core deeply: Mathematics to the upper end of Key Stage 2, reading comprehension with strong vocabulary, and verbal reasoning question families. Add non-verbal reasoning if any target school includes it. A child fluent in the core can adapt to any individual school's format with focused practice papers in the final six to eight weeks.

Use timed mock papers from the summer before Year 6 to build pacing, and keep a simple errors log by topic. Because Lancashire schools admit against their own criteria rather than a county rank, the goal is a comfortable margin above each school's typical standard — consistency across papers matters more than a single spectacular score.

Frequently asked questions about the Lancashire 11+

Which grammar schools are in Lancashire?

Four: Lancaster Royal Grammar School (boys, with boarding), Lancaster Girls' Grammar School, Clitheroe Royal Grammar School (co-educational) and Bacup and Rawtenstall Grammar School in Rossendale (co-educational). Nearby Trafford's grammar schools are a separate Greater Manchester system.

Is there a single Lancashire 11+ test?

No. Each Lancashire grammar school runs its own entrance exam with its own registration process, date and format. If your child is applying to more than one, you will register with each school separately and your child may sit more than one test.

When are the Lancashire 11+ entrance exams?

Typically in the autumn term of Year 6 — most commonly September or October — with registration in the preceding months. Exact dates vary by school and by year, so confirm each target school's published timetable rather than assuming they align.

What subjects do Lancashire grammar school tests cover?

English, Mathematics and reasoning are the common core across the county's schools, though the exact paper structure varies. Check each school's current admissions guidance for the season's format, and prepare all core strands until you have confirmed what your specific targets examine.

Can my child sit for more than one Lancashire grammar school?

Usually yes — because each school tests separately, families often register for two or more in the same season, and naming multiple schools on the local-authority application form keeps options open. Watch for clashing test dates and separate registration deadlines.

Do Lancashire grammar schools have catchment areas?

Policies vary. Some schools give weight to distance or defined priority areas in their oversubscription criteria alongside test performance; others admit primarily on score. Read each school's published admissions policy — the answer genuinely differs school to school.

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