St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School 11+

How to get into St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School

St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School is a selective secondary school in Bromley, London. To get into St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School children need to pass the school's 11+ entrance test. Here is the step-by-step guide to getting your child into St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School with all the important information you need to know.

School Background

St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School is a highly selective secondary school for boys located in Orpington, Greater London ^[1]. Founded by royal charter in 1571, the school relocated to its current site in Orpington in 1968 ^[1]. Since 1998, the school has admitted girls to its sixth form ^[1].

The school achieves some of the best exam results in the country, with nearly all students progressing to university and more than 100 students attending Oxford or Cambridge in the last five years. The student community is diverse and inclusive of all faiths and backgrounds.

Admission Requirements

All boys must complete a St Olave's Supplementary Information Form (SIF) by the deadline to take the school's Selective Eligibility Test (SET). The school offers 124 places annually for Year 7 entry ^[1]. In 2024, the school received 459 applications and made 126 offers, resulting in approximately 4 applications per place.

There is no catchment area for St Olave's Grammar School. The school embraces applications from all boys, regardless of their residential address, and does not consider location when applying oversubscription criteria. The deadline to register for the SET is 9th July 2025 (see key dates).

• Complete the online Supplementary Information Form (SIF) on the school's website before July 2025
• Name the school as one of preferred schools on the secondary school common application form
• Submit the common application form by 31st October 2025 (see key dates)
• As a grammar school, there are no admission fees
• For specific contact information, refer to the school information section

Examination Process

The admissions process consists of two stages for 2026 entry to Year 7. The SET will take place on Friday 19th September 2025 (see key dates). The SET has a time limit of one hour and consists of approximately 60 questions split across four sections.

All questions in the test are multiple-choice, with candidates told when to start and finish each section. The 450 boys with the highest scores from the SET are invited back to the school for the second stage tests. Stage 2 tests will take place on 14th November 2025 (see key dates).

• Stage 1 consists of 4 sections: A, B, C and D
• Stage 2 consists of English and Maths tests
• Families find out if children are shortlisted for second-stage exam in mid-October 2025
• English and maths scores in Stage 2 are age-standardised and aggregated with SET marks to create final ranking
• Offers of places are based on this final ranking order

Oversubscription Criteria

Many grammar schools are often oversubscribed with qualified children. All children who are looked after or previously looked after and who have been placed in the initial 450 and taken the subsequent second-stage exam are admitted to the school ^[1].

St Olave's also reserves up to 10 places for boys who receive Pupil Premium, allocated in rank order ^[1]. All boys must meet the school's required academic criteria to be considered for a Year 7 place.

• Boys with an Education, Health and Care Plan naming the school are admitted as priority
• Looked after and previously looked after children
• Boys in receipt of pupil premium, in rank order (up to 10 places)
• Remaining places allocated in rank order
• Up to 4 places available for Wakeham Choristership scheme, requiring voice test alongside entrance exams

Examination Day Preparation

There is no requirement to wear school uniform ^[1]. Families should ensure boys are dressed appropriately for weather conditions as they may be asked to remain outside until their colour group is ready to proceed ^[1].

Boys must bring the front page showing colour group and candidate details ^[1]. Candidates need to bring 2 HB pencils and an eraser in a clear pencil case or clear bag ^[1].

• Mobile telephones, wristwatches, dictionaries, and calculators are not allowed
• Only water in a clear plastic bottle with label removed is permitted
• No food allowed unless required for medical reasons (must inform school beforehand)
• Any medication must be placed in a clear plastic bag
• Parents cannot enter school buildings and there are no facilities for waiting on site

Preparation Guidance

Pupils who consistently score 75% or higher in Stage 1 practice tests should be on track to pass this stage, while 80-85% in Stage 2 recommendations is historically a strong indicator of success. Mock tests are designed for children in Year 5 who will be sitting secondary school entrance exams in the next school year.

Practice tests help students become familiar with the exam style and layout, boosting confidence and identifying weaker areas requiring additional work. Taking practice papers under timed conditions helps students get used to answering questions quickly under time pressure.

• Free preparation resources are available through practice papers
• Professional tutoring support can be found via tutor services
• St Olave's produces sample questions for both Stage 1 and Stage 2 tests, available for download
• Families are encouraged to attend Open Morning in June to assess if the school provides an appropriate learning environment
• Year 7 Open Evening will be held on Thursday 26 June 2025 from 3:30pm-7:30pm with Headteacher talks requiring tickets (see key dates)

Transportation and Location

Families are encouraged to use public transport or walk to St Olave's Grammar School for the SET^[1]. There is plenty of parking (some free and some paid) in local Orpington town centre ^[1].

The Park Avenue entrance to the school is approximately a 15-minute walk from the top end of the High Street ^[1]. Entry into the school is via the pedestrian entrance in Park Avenue only.

Practical Advice

If a child is affected by illness or circumstances that may affect results, families should not let them sit the test as no allowance can be made for under-performance and must inform the school by the day of the test ^[1]. Documentary proof such as a doctor's certificate will be required, and subject to receiving appropriate evidence, an alternative day will be offered ^[1].

Passing the second stage exam does not guarantee that children will be allocated a place. Passing both stages of the St Olave's Grammar School 11 plus process doesn't guarantee a place at the school as it is heavily oversubscribed. Families should consider backup school options in the Bromley area.

St Olave's SET Information

In order to get into St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School, children need to pass the St Olave's SET. This 11+ test is written internally for exclusive use by the school (rather than by an external company like GL Assessment, CSSE or CEM).

St Olave's SET Subjects & Structure

The St Olave's SET requires children to complete tests in the following subjects:

• English comprehension
• Maths
• Verbal reasoning
• Non-verbal reasoning
• English (reading and writing)

The admissions process for St Olave's Grammar School is a two-stage procedure. In the first stage, all applicants take the school's Selective Eligibility Test (SET), which consists of approximately 60 multiple-choice questions covering English comprehension, maths, verbal reasoning, and non-verbal reasoning. The test has a time limit of one hour.

The top 450 performers in the SET are then invited to participate in the second stage, which involves two one-hour papers taken on the same day with a short break in between. The first paper is an English test that evaluates reading comprehension and writing skills, including a creative writing task. The second paper is a maths test that assesses the understanding of Key Stage 2 concepts, with potentially more challenging questions than the applicants are accustomed to.

Throughout the admissions process, the school aims to identify students with the highest academic potential and suitability for the rigorous curriculum offered at St Olave's Grammar School.

St Olave's SET Marking Process

The reality of 11+ tests, selective education and academic institutions such as St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School is that only children with particularly high marks are admitted. Hence why it is important that children perform well in their 11+ papers.

Different schools (and different 11+ tests) have different marking processes. Some tests are marked in person, some remotely, while others utilise computer-based optical recognition technologies for quickly marking multiple-choice answer sheets.

Many 11+ tests are age-standardised to ensure younger children are not disadvantaged (i.e. their marks may be moderated depending on the month in which they were born). While creative writing papers can be used as tie-breakers, multiple-choice tests in Maths, Comprehension, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning normally make up the bulk of a child's marks. The specific details and weightings can vary from year to year.

It's worth remembering that once children's 11+ tests are being marked, the admissions process is completely outside of the parents' control. Hence, parents should not worry themselves about whether their child has got a place!

St Olave's SET Pass Mark

The pass mark for the St Olave's SET changes every year and isn't generally made public knowledge. This is due to the academic strength of the children taking the test varying and how challenging the test ends up being (as well as plenty of other smaller variables).

Hence, as a vague rule-of-thumb, it's recommended that children aim for roughly 75-80% in their practice tests. Whilst this won't guarantee them a place at St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School, it's a ballpark exam result figure for successful candidates.

11+ Tutor for St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School

As the St Olave's SET entrance process is particularly gruelling, we would highly recommend using an 11+ private tutor.

Why use a private 11+ tutor?

Personal tutors have the experience and expertise to help children pass their 11+ exams. They know the requirements of the 11+ tests inside-out and can provide tailored support to give children the best possible chance of success. It's also important to bear in mind that plenty of other children will be using private tutors too.

11+ tutors don't need to be face-to-face, plenty of children use online 11+ tutors.

11+ tutors can also provide regular progress reports and feedback, helping parents to monitor their child's progress and make any necessary adjustments to their preparation.

Most importantly, using an 11+ tutor helps ensure that the preparation work gets done!

Private 11+ Tutors for the St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School 11+ Tests

We have a range of private tutors who specialise in preparing children for the St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School 11+ entrance tests. Please click here to be put in touch with a range of excellent 11+ private tutors from our friends at exams.courses.

11+ Past Papers for St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School

Unfortunately, St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School has not made any of their 11+ past papers publicly available. However, you can use However, you can use 11+ practice papers from other exam boards (such as GL Assessment, CEM and CSSE) to help your child prepare.

11+ Practice Papers for St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School

Unfortunately, there are no targeted 11+ practice papers for St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School available. However, you can use 11+ practice papers from other exam boards (such as GL Assessment, CEM and CSSE) to help your child prepare.

School Information

Below you will find further information about St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School together with their admissions contact details.

St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School is a boys only school. It is also a local authority maintained school, meaning the local authority oversee the funding, admissions, and overall performance of the school.

In total 1,089 pupils attend St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School and it's led by the Head Teacher, Mr Andrew Rees.

St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School Location

Below you will find a map showing the school's location:

Ofsted Information

St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School was last inspected by Ofsted on 06/03/2014 and the inspection only lasted one day. Ofsted published their report on 28/03/2014, declaring that the school was 'Outstanding'. This information is summarised in the table below along with a link to the full report.

Last Ofsted Report Data

GCSE & A-Level Subjects

Below you will find a complete list of GCSE and A-Level subjects offered to pupils at St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School for the 2022-23 academic year.

GCSE & A-Level Performance

Below are the individual GCSE and A-Level performance tables for St Olave's and St Saviour's Grammar School per subject. Note that this may include children taking GCSEs early (e.g. taking a language GCSE in Year 10) or indeed a child in Year 12 retaking a GCSE.

GCSE Results Information (2022-23)

A-Level Results Information (2022-23)