children sat on a bench

Assessments & Entrance Exams

Nursery and Lower School Assessments

Nursery Assessments take place all year round. Please contact us at office@pghs.co.uk or call 020 8886 1135 to find out more.

Our Reception Assessments for September 2024 places are now taking place. If you are interested in joining our Lower School, please register your daughter today. The Registration Form can be found here

At all ages the aim of the process is to identify potential for learning. Parents with children applying to join the Nursery are interviewed with their daughters. For entry into the Main School from Reception to Year 6 candidates are invited for an individual assessment with one of the specialist primary teachers. Candidates for entry into Years 5 and 6 undergo timed tests, whilst tests for those in Year 4 and below are less formal. Those candidates who demonstrate academic potential in their assessment are invited to spend time in the School with their peers when there is then a more general assessment of ability and aptitude. All parents will be given an appointment to meet with the Head.

Senior School Assessments

11+ Year 7 Entrance and Scholarship Examinations

Our 11+ 2024 Entrance and Scholarship Exam for entry into Year 7 in September 2024 was held on Saturday 11th November 2023.  If you missed this date and are interested in a place in Year 7 for September 2024, please complete the Registration Form found here and a member of the Admissions Team will be in touch to arrange a test session.

For 11+ entry, candidates sit examinations in English, Mathematics and Reasoning, which are designed for their age group. The Mathematics, English (Comprehension) and Reasoning (NVR and VR) assessments are done via the ISEB Common Pre-test.  In addition, pupils will sit a traditional written paper in Creative Writing. Familiarisation tests for the ISEB are available online here  and more general information can be found here.  Parents/guardians are required to register their daughters online directly with ISEB, in addition to completing the PGHS registration form. Families are encouraged to sign up to the ISEB mailing list, which can be done here. Online registration for the ISEB Common Pre-test will open in September.

Candidates who show promise in these academic tests are then invited for interview with the Head or another Senior member of staff. This is an opportunity for areas such as interests and hobbies to be discussed so that an overall picture of the prospective pupil can be achieved. Parents will be contacted with an interview date in the week following the examination. The dates by which results will be communicated to families and the closing date for acceptances will be available from the School Office.

Occasional Senior School Places

Candidates for entry into Years 8-10 sit an online assessment and a written paper in English. All parents will be given an appointment to meet with the Head.

No specific preparation for the entrance tests is needed, all candidates start on an equal footing, with identical opportunities to display their academic and other abilities. Selection is based upon merit and, in addition to entrance tests and interviews at the School, references from a candidate’s current or previous school(s) will be considered.