Dauntsey's School 11+ Entrance Exam: A Guide for Parents

Dauntsey's School's 11+ entrance exam determines entry to First Form each September, combining a creative writing paper set by the school with further components delivered online via Atom Learning, and is usually sat in January of Year 6, with registration closing during the preceding autumn term.

Successful candidates are invited to interview, and children applying for First Form Scholarships follow a separate assessment route.

The key facts table on this page carries the current dates.

About Dauntsey's School

Dauntsey's is a co-educational school in West Lavington, Wiltshire, with roughly 854 pupils on the roll. Alongside its academic subjects, the school owns and runs the Jolie Brise, a tall ship used for its maritime programme, giving pupils practical experience of sailing and seamanship. Music, drama and sport also form part of the school's co-curricular offer.

The entrance exam

The assessment brings together five components, each contributing to the school's view of a candidate's readiness for First Form. Dauntsey's own staff set and mark the creative writing paper, giving the school direct oversight of how candidates write under timed conditions, whilst English, maths, verbal reasoning, and puzzles and problem solving run online through Atom Learning's platform, with maths and verbal reasoning adapting in difficulty as a candidate answers each question. Together the components total roughly two hours, delivered as a series of short separate sessions. Shortlisted candidates are also invited to interview, which sits alongside the written and online elements as part of the school's overall assessment.

• Creative Writing: 30 minutes, written; choice of story or description based on a photograph
• English (Comprehension & SPaG): 30 minutes, online, non-adaptive
• Maths: 30 minutes, online, adaptive
• Verbal Reasoning: 10 minutes, online, adaptive
• Puzzles & Problem Solving: 15 minutes, online, non-adaptive

Registration and key dates

Registration for the 11+ Entrance Assessment usually closes during the autumn term of Year 6, with the assessment itself sitting in the new year, in January. Families who register receive access to the Atom Learning platform ahead of the online papers, whilst the creative writing paper and interview are arranged separately by the school. Offers are usually issued a short time after the assessment, in early February, giving families time to respond before the September start of First Form. The key facts table on this page carries the exact current dates.

• Registration: closes in October of Year 6
• Written and online assessment: sat in January of Year 6
• Offers: issued in early February of Year 6
• First Form entry: begins in September, at the start of Year 7

Current dates are in the key facts table at the top of this page, taken from the school's own admissions pages below, which remain the reference for each round.

• Entry at 11+
• Admissions
• Fees and scholarships

Past papers and familiarisation

Dauntsey's does not publish past papers for the creative writing element, though families can use the Atom Learning taster linked from the school's Entrance Assessment FAQs page, which lets a child try the online question types and interface before test day. Working through this taster helps a candidate get used to adaptive online papers, where question difficulty shifts as they answer, alongside timed non-adaptive papers such as puzzles and problem solving. Beyond the taster, families preparing for this format generally focus on comprehension, mental maths and reasoning under time pressure, the skills the online components are testing.

Preparing with Taylor Tuition

The Dauntsey's 11+ rewards steady preparation over a year or so, with the last term given to timed practice and interview confidence. Having prepared pupils for entry to leading independent and grammar schools, with placements including Westminster, St Paul's, Wycombe Abbey and Eton, our tutors match the programme to the school's assessment format and to where the child is starting from.

Because the pool includes former heads of department, exam-board examiners and teachers from independent and boarding schools, and more than half of our tutors hold Qualified Teacher Status, families get a tutor who understands what the assessors are looking for. Every tutor who works with children holds an enhanced DBS check.

Families work with us online from anywhere in the UK or abroad, 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.