Cheltenham Ladies' College 11+ Entry: A Parents' Admissions Guide

Getting into Cheltenham Ladies' College at 11+ means registering through the school's Admissions Portal in Year 5 or early Year 6, submitting an Entrance Exam Form, and then bringing a daughter to an Assessment Day in Year 6 that combines group activities with written and adaptive online tests in maths, English and verbal reasoning. Around 75 girls join Year 7 (LC1) each September, about 50 boarders and 25 day girls, and offers follow a few weeks after the Assessment Day.

Decisions draw on assessment performance, how a candidate takes part on the day, and a reference from her current Head Teacher, so no single paper determines the outcome. Families applying for a Beale Award bursary or an Academic or Music Scholarship follow the same registration route but complete an additional form or further assessment alongside the standard process.

How entry to Year 7 works

Cheltenham Ladies' College admits girls at four points: 11+ into Year 7, 13+ into Year 9, 14+, and 16+ into Sixth Form. At 11+, around 75 girls join Year 7, known internally as LC1, each September, roughly 50 as boarders and 25 as day girls, coming from junior schools across Gloucestershire, the rest of the UK and overseas.

New joiners are placed into one of eight junior Houses, six boarding and two day, and taught in mixed-ability groups for most subjects in their first year, with Lower College tutors supporting the settling-in period.

• 11+ (Year 7): around 50 boarding and 25 day places
• 13+ (Year 9), 14+ and 16+ (Sixth Form) also open for entry
• An international assessment centre in Hong Kong runs on a fixed October date

How the 11+ assessment works

The 11+ assessment centres on an Assessment Day at the school in early October of Year 6, combining group discussions and activities with written tests in maths, English and verbal reasoning, plus adaptive online tests. The day also gives candidates a chance to meet peers and see the school.

Alongside the Assessment Day, the school asks for a reference from the candidate's current Head Teacher. Decisions weigh exam performance, engagement and participation on the day, and the school reference together.

Registration and admissions timeline

Families are encouraged to register as soon as the school becomes an option, since early registration through the Admissions Portal keeps the family informed of open events and deadlines. Registration and a separate Entrance Exam Form, which confirms the family wants to proceed to assessment, both need to be completed by a September deadline in Year 6, ahead of entry the following September.

The Assessment Day itself follows a few weeks after the registration deadline, with offers made in the following weeks and a spring deadline for accepting a place. Families applying for a Beale Award bursary complete a bursary registration form instead of the standard one, and undergo means-testing alongside the entrance assessment.

• Register via the Admissions Portal
• Submit the Entrance Exam Form
• Attend the Assessment Day in Year 6
• Receive an outcome
• Accept the place by the published spring deadline

Scholarships and bursaries

The school offers Academic and Music Scholarships at 11+ entry, alongside a wider range at 13+ and 16+. All 11+ candidates are automatically considered for an Academic Scholarship, with selected girls invited to further assessment; Music Scholarship candidates audition separately, typically to around Grade 4 standard.

Scholarships recognise ability and come with a bespoke Scholarship Programme but carry no fee remission. Families needing help with fees apply for a Beale Award, a means-tested bursary running from a small percentage up to 100% of fees, open to UK taxpayer and resident families, with pro-rated help toward uniform and co-curricular costs for those who receive one.

Fees and what they cover

Fees are charged termly in advance and cover teaching, curriculum trips, pastoral care, Personal Accident Insurance, and meals and snacks; boarding fees additionally cover accommodation, breakfast and overnight essentials. Day Houses open at 7.30am on weekdays and term-time Saturdays and stay open until 7pm, with day pupils able to board occasionally, up to two nights a week, with supper and breakfast included.

How to prepare for the assessment

Because the Assessment Day blends written papers, adaptive online tests and group activities, effective preparation covers all three elements. The school publishes a Briefing Paper each cycle summarising the subject content and skills assessed, together with a suggested reading list and a verbal reasoning familiarisation exercise, and working through these gives a clear steer on what to expect.

Since the day also includes group discussion and a Head Teacher's reference, building general confidence in speaking up in a group and sustaining reading habits over time tends to matter alongside practising maths, English and verbal reasoning questions.

Related guides

• Independent school fees compared

Preparing for the Cheltenham Ladies' College 11+ with Taylor Tuition

Families preparing for the Cheltenham Ladies' College 11+ usually come to us a year or so before the assessment, though shorter runs work where the foundations are already sound. Having prepared pupils for entry to leading independent and grammar schools, with placements including Westminster, St Paul's, Wycombe Abbey and Eton, our tutors build each programme around the format the school actually uses, whether a written paper, an online pre-test, an interview or a combination of them.

More than half of our tutors hold Qualified Teacher Status and around three in five hold a master's degree or doctorate, and the pool includes former heads of department, exam-board examiners and teachers from independent and boarding schools, so the preparation is led by people who know how selective schools assess. Every tutor who works with children holds an enhanced DBS check.

Families in the West Midlands and the Cotswolds and further afield work with us online, and in person in central London. Fees start from £50 per 50-minute session and depend on tutor level and subject, with no registration fee and a free initial consultation to talk through your child's current level and the timeline to the 11+. Families receive progress reports after sessions and have a dedicated point of contact, and we reply to enquiries within one working day with tutor recommendations.

Read more about our 11+ entrance exam tutors, or send an enquiry and we will come back with tutor recommendations.