Guide to grammar schools and the Secondary Transfer Test

A Selection Review is your opportunity to explain, in writing, why you think your child would be best suited to a grammar school even though they did not reach the qualifying score of 121 in the Secondary Transfer Test.

Selection Review cases are considered by a Selection Review Panel (SRP). If the SRP agrees that your case demonstrates your child would be best suited to a grammar school, your child will then be considered qualified for a Buckinghamshire grammar school – the same as if they had scored 121 or higher in the test.

A Selection Review may be submitted for any child who did not reach the qualifying score, however it should be noted that most successful Selection Reviews historically have been for children whose score was between 110-120. Children with lower scores are rarely successful at Selection Review. You can view data for previous years on The Buckinghamshire Grammar Schools (TBGS) website.

On each Selection Review Panel (SRP) there are two grammar school headteachers and one primary school headteacher.

All headteachers who sit on the panels receive training. They understand the nature of the decisions they are taking. They will not consider cases of children known to them or from schools in which they have an interest. The SRPs are not told which secondary schools you have applied for.

Sometimes, the SRP will be joined by an Educational Psychologist (EP), or similar education professional with an understanding of the technical content of specialist reports. This will happen if a child’s case includes an Educational Psychologist report, or another specialist report (e.g. from a medical consultant) where it is felt that a specialist’s input would be beneficial. If your child was considered for reasonable adjustments to the Secondary Transfer Test, their Selection Review will also be heard by a panel supported in this way.

If you receive your child’s Secondary Transfer Test Score (STTS) on 11 October, you must submit your child’s Selection Review case in full by 1 November.

We will only accept a late Selection Review request if:

• You received your child’s test result later than 11 October (in which case you should submit a Selection Review request within 3 weeks of being told your child’s STTS), or;
• You have exceptional reasons for not being able to meet the deadline, in which case we will require independent evidence before we can agree to accept a late Selection Review request.

If your child sits the test late, the last date you will be able to request a Selection Review is 14 February 2025. If your child sits the test late and you receive their results after this date, you cannot request a Selection Review, but you will have the opportunity to lodge an Admission Appeal.

Start by completing the Selection Review Request form on our website. To complete this form, you will need the following information:

• Your child’s Student ID number (you will find this in your child’s results email)
• The email address for your child’s school or Headteacher (make sure you enter this accurately)

When you submit this form, you will be sent an email explaining the Selection Review process, with a link to a further online form where you can submit your child’s Selection Review case and supporting evidence.

An email will also be sent to the email address you provide for your child’s school or Headteacher. This email will tell them you are considering a Selection Review for your child, and they will be provided with a link to complete the Headteacher’s Selection Review Summary Sheet.

You should arrange to speak with your child’s headteacher, to discuss the Selection Review, and to request that they complete the Headteacher’s Selection Review Summary Sheet. The Summary Sheet gives the Selection Review Panel up-to-date information about how your child is doing at school.

You will be sent a copy of the Headteacher’s Selection Review Summary Sheet by email once your Headteacher has completed the form. This will automatically be included as part of your child’s Selection Review application unless you advise us you do not want it included.

A successful Selection Review will usually include strong academic evidence that shows your child is working to the level expected of a potential grammar school pupil, as well as evidence of exceptional reasons showing why your child did not perform as well as expected in the test.

The purpose of the evidence is to demonstrate to the Selection Review Panel (SRP) that your child’s results were not as expected: in other words, your child would have qualified, if not for the exceptional circumstances.

Academic evidence could include (but is not limited to):

• The Headteacher’s Selection Review Summary Sheet
• School reports
• Supporting letters from your child’s class teacher

Please do not include examples of school work, as the SRP will not be able to consider this. Evidence of participation in extra-curricular activities, whilst commendable, is also not information the SRP will take into account.

Evidence of exceptional reasons for not qualifying could include (but is not limited to):

• A medical letter (from a GP or hospital) in relation to illness of your child or a close family member
• A letter from an employer to explain a lengthy parental absence (particularly for forces families where a family member has been serving in a combat zone)
• Evidence that shows significant issues – such as the death of a family member – near to the time of the test
• A very recent house or school move

The Selection Review Panel (SRP) will be provided with your child’s final score, as well as their scores in the verbal, mathematical and non-verbal sections of the test.

If your child attends a state funded Buckinghamshire primary school, or a Partner school, we will also provide the SRP with a recommendation from your child’s headteacher.

Headteachers of state funded Buckinghamshire primary or Partner schools are asked – before the test results are known – whether they would recommend your child for a grammar school. They also provide information about your child’s attitude to learning. If your child attends any other school, your child’s headteacher will have the opportunity to add their recommendation as part of the Headteacher’s Selection Review Summary Sheet.

The headteacher can give a child’s grammar school suitability recommendation as:

(1) Exceptionally able so very highly recommended, or;

(2) Very able so recommended without any reservation, or;

(3) Recommended with reservation, or;

(4) Not recommended for grammar school.

Your child’s attitude to learning will be described as:

(1) Enjoys a challenge and is a highly motivated independent learner, or;

(2) Consistently hard working and reliable, or;

(3) Output varies, or;

(4) Lacks self-organisation, requires support.

This information is valued by the SRP, because it gives them an idea of the context in which your child is working in school. It can also help to show if a child’s result was unexpected when compared to their recommendation.

Most Selection Reviews are heard between November and January.

If your child’s Selection Review is heard within this period, we will tell you the outcome on 14 February 2025, once all cases have been heard.

If your child attends a state funded Buckinghamshire primary school or Partner school, we will tell your child’s school the outcome at the same time.

If your child’s Selection Review is successful, this means that your child is now treated the same as a child who scored 121 or more in the Secondary Transfer Test: they are considered qualified for a Buckinghamshire grammar school.

If you included a Buckinghamshire grammar school (or schools) in your child’s secondary school application, your child will therefore be able to be considered for a place, subject to the school’s admission rules.

If you found out on 14 February that your child’s Selection Review was successful, this outcome will be taken into account for National Offer Day (1 March). For later Selection Reviews, we will take the outcome into account in the next available school place allocation round.

If your child’s Selection Review is unsuccessful, they remain unqualified for a Buckinghamshire grammar school, which means they cannot be considered for a place.

You do have the right, however, to lodge an Admission Appeal for any grammar schools you included in your child’s secondary school application, once you have received the outcome of their application (for most families, this will be National Offer Day – 1 March).

The deadline to lodge a timely appeal will be near the end of March, and appeal hearings will take place from May.

As you chose to submit a Selection Review, the Independent Appeal Panel (IAP) will be limited at first to considering whether the Selection Review was carried out in a ‘fair, consistent and objective’ manner, and you will need to explain why you believe this has not been the case for your child:

• If the IAP believe that the Selection Review was ‘fair, consistent and objective’, you will not be able to proceed any further with your appeal for that school.
• If the IAP agree with you that the Selection Review was not ‘fair, consistent and objective’, you will be able to proceed with the rest of your appeal.

Historically, the IAP tend to find that nearly all Selection Reviews are ‘fair, consistent and objective’, so bear this in mind if you are considering lodging an Admission Appeal.

Our website provides further information about the appeals process.