Mayfield School 11+, 13+ and 16+ Admissions: Assessments, Scholarships and Fees

Admission to Mayfield School is at Year 7 (11+), Year 9 (13+) and Sixth Form (16+), with a small number of places at 12+ and 14+, and the main assessment is the school's own set of entrance papers sat in November of the year before entry. At 11+ those papers cover English, Mathematics and Reasoning, and an interview with senior staff follows.

The school is an independent Catholic day and boarding school for girls aged 11 to 18 in East Sussex, so Year 7 is the youngest entry. Families register online, complete an Examination Entry Form that lets the school contact the current school for reports and a reference, and then sit the assessments, which the sections below set out entry point by entry point.

Entry points and places

The main entry points are Year 7 (11+), Year 9 (13+) and Sixth Form (16+), with a small number of places at 12+ and 14+ for which the school asks families to contact the Director of Admissions. The school takes girls from 11 to 18, so there is no entry below Year 7. The number of places at each entry point is not published.

Year 9 has two routes. Deferred Entry is for girls in Year 6, and is also open to girls in Year 7 who want to join in Year 9; Standard Entry is for girls in Year 8. Girls moving mid-year register, sit the school's own tests, and need their current headteacher to know about the application, with school reports and a confidential reference supplied.

How the 11+ assessment works

The 11+ assessment is made up of the school's own papers in English, Mathematics and Reasoning, sat in November of the year before entry. The scholarship information gives the format as English for one hour, Mathematics for one hour, and Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning for 30 minutes, followed by a short group interview.

Candidates are interviewed by the Headmistress and the Head of Lower School. Offers rest on the assessment results, the interview, a progress report from the current school and a confidential Headteacher's reference, and every candidate who sits the papers is automatically considered for an academic scholarship, where scholars are expected to be working at National Curriculum Level 5 or above.

Once a place is accepted, the Head of Lower School visits the girl at her current school in the summer term, and an Induction Day follows in June, with each new girl given a buddy.

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How the 13+ assessment works

Standard 13+ entry is assessed in the autumn term of Year 8 through the school's own papers in English, Mathematics, Science and Reasoning, for entry the following September. Candidates are interviewed by the Headmistress and the Head of Middle School, and the school also asks for a confidential reference and a progress report from the current school. Paper lengths are not published.

Deferred 13+ entry is for girls in Year 6, who apply by October of Year 6 and sit either the 11+ entrance papers or the ISEB Common Pre-Test, which can be taken at their current school. They meet a senior member of staff and need a supportive reference, and they are automatically considered for an Academic Scholarship.

Standard Entry scholarship candidates additionally sit scholarship papers in English, Mathematics and Science plus one humanities paper chosen from History, Geography or Religious Studies, with a group interview, and are expected to be working at National Curriculum Level 7 or above.

How the 16+ assessment works

Sixth Form entry is based on predicted GCSE grades and a personal interview, and candidates sitting the November assessments take three 45-minute papers. The first is a General Paper testing critical, logical and creative thinking and coherent writing; the other two are subject papers chosen from the list below. Grade thresholds and the number of places are not published.

Offers draw on the paper results, an interview with the Head of Sixth Form and senior staff, and the progress report and confidential Headteacher's reference from the current school. Girls with equivalent qualifications from other educational systems are also considered, and the school offers a wide range of A Levels alongside electives such as the Extended Project Qualification.

• Biology, Chemistry, Physics
• English, History, Religious Studies, Geography
• Mathematics
• French, Spanish
• Latin and Greek, one paper in which candidates may take either section or both

Registration and the admissions timeline

Registration happens online, and candidates sitting the entrance assessments must be registered by October of the year before entry. Registration places a girl on a provisional list for the right year group and does not constitute an offer.

Late entry remains possible: places may still be available for candidates who missed the November assessments, and the Director of Admissions is the contact. The deposit is a fixed sum for UK residents and a term's fees for non-UK based parents, refunded at the end of the girl's time at the school subject to the terms and conditions.

• Request a prospectus, then book an open morning or a private tour.
• Choose the UK or International registration route, read the Terms and Conditions, and submit the signed Registration Form.
• Complete the Examination Entry Form, which allows the school to contact the current school for progress reports and a confidential reference, and which enters the candidate for scholarships.
• Sit the entrance assessments in November; creative, performing arts and sport scholarship assessments for 11+ and 13+ follow in January.
• Receive the offer letter, with academic scholarship and place offers following the November assessments.
• Return the Acceptance Form with the deposit within the fixed period to secure the place.

Scholarships and bursaries

Scholarships are offered at 11+, 13+ (Standard and Deferred) and 16+ in academic, creative arts, performing arts, sport and riding categories, alongside a Headmistress's Scholarship awarded at her discretion to girls with strong academic results who can contribute to school life. Awards generally reduce fees or provide complimentary tuition, and last for the whole of a girl's time at the school provided her performance is satisfactory.

Bursaries are means-tested and aimed at talented pupils who could not otherwise afford the school. Finances are assessed by Bursary Administration Limited through application forms, both parents sign the Examination Entry Form, and the governors decide whether to award a bursary and at what level, with the outcome given in the offer letter. The maximum share of fees is not published.

The Jubilee Bursary gives a 20% fee discount at Year 7 to practising Catholic pupils from a primary school in the Arundel and Brighton Diocese who show academic potential, and it can be topped up with further bursary support.

• Creative Arts: a portfolio and a timed still-life
• Dance: two solo pieces and a discussion
• Drama: a workshop, a prescribed monologue and a set text
• Music: auditions, sight-reading and aural tests
• Organ (Year 12 only): Grade VII standard, sight-reading, transposition, a theory paper and an interview
• Sport: a skills assessment in major sports and a group interview
• Riding: a dressage display and jumping, plus an interview

Fees and what they include

Fees are charged per term and published on the school's fees page, with separate rates for day pupils in Years 7 and 8, day pupils in Years 9 to 13, full boarders in Years 7 to 13, and flexi-boarding by evenings per week or by the night. Each table shows the net fee, VAT and the gross fee, and a fees in advance scheme is available through the fees office.

Day fees include tuition with the option of Supervised Study, break, lunch and tea, loan of most textbooks and all necessary stationery, Days of Recollection, careers and higher education advice, subject tutorials and daytime nursing care. Boarding adds all meals and accommodation, general nursing care, a laundry allowance and storage of possessions in the holidays.

• Uniform and sports equipment
• School trips, excursions and weekend events
• External examination fees and books on permanent issue such as revision guides
• Art, ceramics and food and nutrition materials in Years 10 to 13
• External-coach activities, language lessons, Duke of Edinburgh Award and instrument hire
• Counselling, taxi and bus travel, and International English Tuition

Where pupils join from

The school has no junior or prep school of its own, and its admissions pages name no feeder or partner schools, so girls join from their current schools at each entry point. The pages refer only to the candidate's current school, which provides the progress report and confidential reference.

Primary schools in the Arundel and Brighton Diocese are named only in the Jubilee Bursary criteria for Year 7. Deferred 13+ entry lets girls in Year 6 secure a Year 9 place early, and the school does not define a catchment area; it sits in East Sussex about an hour from London.

How to prepare

Preparation works best when it follows the papers the school names. For 11+, that means timed practice in English and Mathematics at one hour each and a 30-minute Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning paper, so the pace of all three feels familiar. Reading widely and writing in full sentences supports the English paper.

For Standard 13+, practise the four subjects of English, Mathematics, Science and Reasoning; Deferred candidates can check with their current school whether the ISEB Common Pre-Test will be sat there. For 16+, practise the General Paper's structured argument and revise the two chosen subjects, remembering that the interview and predicted GCSE grades carry weight as well.

Every route includes an interview with senior staff, so talking through favourite subjects and activities aloud tends to help. An open morning or private tour beforehand gives a girl a picture of the school, which usually settles nerves on the day.

Related guides

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• The ISEB Common Pre-Test explained
• 13+ Common Entrance explained
• The 11+ entrance exam explained
• 11+ and 13+ scholarship exams explained
• What is a bursary? Private school bursaries explained
• Boarding schools in the UK

Preparing for the Mayfield School 11+ with Taylor Tuition

The Mayfield School 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.

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