King's Bruton 13+ and 16+ Admissions: Entry, Scholarships and Fees

How do you get into King's Bruton? Families register online for 13+ entry into Year 9 (the 3rd Form) or for 16+ entry into the Sixth Form, and the school then requests a report from the child's current school and arranges an informal meeting with the Headmaster. The school states that it does not require pre-tests or entrance exams, and it describes itself as largely non-selective, offering places on a first-come, first-served basis.

Many UK applicants at 13+ sit Common Entrance, whose results help the school place them in the right sets on arrival. Scholarships at both entry points do carry their own assessments, and those are covered below with the fees, bursaries and registration steps.

Entry points and places

The school admits at 13+ into Year 9, which it calls the 3rd Form, and at 16+ into the Sixth Form, with its age range listed as 13 to 18. The pages read give no number of places or forms of entry for either point.

Offers are made on a first-come, first-served basis, so early registration is encouraged. The Admissions Office also runs a Fast-Tracked Admissions Process for families who need to move at short notice, for example after a relocation or a change of circumstances.

• 13+ entry: Year 9 (3rd Form)
• 16+ entry: Sixth Form
• Fast-tracked route for urgent moves

How the 13+ assessment works

The 13+ route has no entrance exam and no pre-test, because the school states that it does not require either. Many UK applicants joining the 3rd Form sit Common Entrance at their current school, and the results help the school place each pupil in the right sets on arrival.

Offers rest on three things: school reports, an interview with the Headmaster, and information from the child's current school. The report includes predicted Common Entrance results, which the school describes as an important part of deciding on a formal offer.

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Registration and the admissions timeline

Registration is completed online through the Registration and Next Steps page, and forms are accepted at any time. The pages read publish no application deadline for general entry.

The admissions sequence moves from a first visit through registration, a school report, a meeting with the Headmaster and a formal offer, ending with acceptance and the allocation of a boarding house, as set out in the steps below.

• Visit the school, ideally about two years before the intended entry point, or book one through the Head of Admissions
• Complete the online Registration Form and pay the non-refundable registration fee, which confirms the first admissions stage
• The school requests a report from the current school before the expected entry date
• Informal meeting with the Headmaster
• Formal offer in writing, sometimes conditional
• Accept by completing the Parent/School Contract and paying the acceptance deposit; parents normally resident outside the EU pay an additional deposit
• The Headmaster allocates a boarding house in the year before joining

Interviews, visits and references

There is no formal interview; the school describes an informal meeting with the Headmaster that forms part of the basis for offers. A visit usually lasts about two hours and includes a tour of the school, a tour of one boys' or girls' house and time with the Headmaster.

Meetings with other staff, such as the Director of Sport, the Director of Music or the Deputy Head Academic, can be added on request. Planned touchpoints during the application process include a Third Form Afternoon in the Easter Term and a House Night barbecue with family drinks in the Summer Term.

Scholarships and bursaries

Scholarships are offered at 3rd Form (13+) and Sixth Form (16+) entry, and the combined value of scholarships and awards is capped at 20% of fees. At 3rd Form the subjects are academic, art, design and technology, drama, music and sport, with exhibitions in music and sport; at Sixth Form they are academic, art, drama, music and sport, with the same exhibitions.

At 3rd Form, assessment takes place in the year before joining. The academic scholarship involves papers in English, mathematics, French, history, geography and science, with optional Latin and religious studies, and an interview with the Headmaster. Art and design and technology candidates submit portfolios and complete practical tasks on Assessment Day; drama candidates prepare a monologue and join a group workshop; music candidates perform on two instruments, including voice, and sit musicianship tests; sport candidates must have reached 1st Team level across all three terms, submit a short video and attend tasks on leadership, resilience, teamwork and athletic potential.

At Sixth Form, the academic scholarship involves a paper in a chosen A-Level subject, a short presentation and a Headmaster interview. Every Sixth Form scholarship application needs a one-page reference from the Headteacher or Head of Department, and Sixth Form assessment dates are arranged individually.

Means-tested bursaries are available to families who need support beyond scholarships. Applications are accepted at any time and go directly to the Bursar; the pages read publish no maximum share of fees.

Sixth Form (16+) entry requirements

Sixth Form entry runs through online registration, or through the Head of Admissions, followed by a report from the current school with predicted GCSE results. Offers are typically subject to achieving the required GCSE results, and the place is confirmed once those conditions are met.

The pages read publish no GCSE grade thresholds, and no entrance papers beyond the scholarship assessments. The school holds an Introduction to the Sixth Form Evening, with a talk in the Memorial Hall and a subject fair where families can speak with teachers, the Headmaster, the Deputy Heads and current Sixth Form pupils.

Fees and what they include

Fees are published termly on a Schedule of Fees and Supplemental Charges, with separate day and boarding rates, and the sheet is linked from the admissions pages. Termly fees include personal accident insurance, while day pupil lunches, music tuition, instrument hire, learning support, EAL lessons, transport and public examination entry fees are charged separately.

The sheet lists a non-refundable registration fee, an acceptance deposit and, for families normally resident outside the EU, an additional deposit equal to one term's fees. A sibling discount of 25% applies to the third youngest and subsequent children at the King's Foundation simultaneously, and the FAQ page lists a 25% discount for all service personnel.

Fees are payable on or before the first day of term, and written notice of withdrawal must reach the Headmaster before the start of the preceding term.

Where pupils join from

Hazlegrove is the sister school for ages 2 to 13 within the same Foundation, and pupils moving from Hazlegrove do not pay the registration fee again because their original fee carries forward. The pages read name no other feeder or partner schools.

Many 13+ applicants arrive from other preparatory schools sitting Common Entrance, which is why the school asks each current school for a report with predicted results.

How to prepare

Preparation at 13+ centres on the Common Entrance papers sat at the current school, since those results decide setting on arrival and the predicted results feed into the offer. Asking the current school early for a realistic prediction helps the report the school requests to be accurate and prompt.

The meeting with the Headmaster is informal, so a child who has visited, can talk about their interests and has questions about the house they may join tends to be at ease. Scholarship candidates can practise the specific components named for their subject, such as the monologue, the portfolio, the two-instrument performance or the chosen A-Level paper.

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• The ISEB Common Pre-Test explained
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• What is a bursary? Private school bursaries explained
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Preparing for the King's Bruton 13+ with Taylor Tuition

Families preparing for the King's Bruton 13+ 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 South and South West 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 13+. Families receive progress reports after sessions and have a dedicated point of contact.

Read more about our 13+ Common Entrance tutors, or send an enquiry and we will come back with tutor recommendations.