The Judd School 11+ Admissions: Kent Test, Catchment and Fees

Entry to The Judd School at age eleven depends on a boy's score in the Kent Test, the selective assessment set and administered by Kent County Council, which then determines his rank within the school's Inner Area or Outer Area allocation of its 180-place Year 7 intake. Parents register their son for the Kent Test in the summer term before he sits it in September of Year 6, then name The Judd School on the Secondary Common Application Form once results arrive, with offers confirmed on National Offer Day the following spring.

The process combines a single set of test papers with strict area-based quotas, so families benefit from understanding both the assessment format and the catchment rules well before the registration window opens.

How entry works at 11+

Judd admits 180 boys into Year 7 each year, split between 157 places for boys resident in its Inner Area and 23 for those in its Outer Area; if either area is undersubscribed, the spare places transfer to the other. Alongside this intake, the school runs a Specialist Resource Provision for up to four boys with an Education, Health and Care Plan naming autism; places are allocated by the local authority, separately from the standard admissions round. Entry to the school also occurs at 16+, when the sixth form admits external applicants alongside boys transferring internally from Year 11.

How the Judd 11+ assessment works

Selection for Year 7 places at Judd rests entirely on performance in the Kent Test, known formally as the Procedure for Entrance to Secondary Education (PESE); the test is set and administered by Kent County Council on the school's behalf. The test covers English, mathematics and reasoning, sat once by every boy seeking a grammar school place in Kent, whichever Kent grammar schools he hopes to apply to. The school's published criteria rank applicants by aggregate score on these papers; academic ability is the sole substantive factor before area-based quotas and tie-breaks apply, so there is no separate interview or additional test set by the school itself.

Applying for a Year 7 place at Judd

Parents first register their son for the Kent Test online with Kent County Council, in the summer term of Year 5, before he sits the papers in September of Year 6, either at his own primary school if it is in Kent or at a grammar school over a weekend if not. Kent County Council emails results to parents in October, after which families name Judd as a preference on the Secondary Common Application Form by the national closing date in the autumn. Offers are issued on National Offer Day the following spring, and parents must then accept or decline within the deadline given.

Inner and Outer Area catchment and oversubscription criteria

The Inner Area covers Tonbridge and the surrounding postcodes from TN1 to TN15, plus ME18 and ME19, parts of TN16 and DA4, and the civil parish of Halstead; the Outer Area is everywhere else within England. Within the Inner Area, up to five places are set aside for boys eligible for free school meals or Pupil Premium, ranked by Kent Test score once families have submitted a Supplementary Information Form; any unused places return to the main Inner Area pool. Both the main Inner Area allocation and the Outer Area rank remaining applicants first by academic ability, then by home-to-school distance, then by random selection if scores and distance are equal.

Financial support and pupil premium places

As a state grammar school, Judd charges no tuition fees at any stage, though families still face costs such as uniform, trips and equipment. Boys eligible for free school meals or Pupil Premium can access reserved places within the Inner Area admissions round, as well as free preparation resources for the Kent Test through the school's partnership with Atom Learning, verified through their primary school. In the sixth form, the means-tested School Bursary Scheme supports students with additional costs such as travel and equipment, and the Lawrence Atwell Fund, a charity linked to the Worshipful Company of Skinners, provides further confidential support for boys across Years 7 to 13 who are unable to afford essential school costs.

Preparing for the Kent Test at Judd

The Kent Test covers English, mathematics and reasoning in a single sitting, and Judd applies no interview or further assessment of its own, so preparation is best focused squarely on those three areas, with no need for interview technique. Boys eligible for Pupil Premium can use the school's free Atom Learning access to build familiarity with the question types well before September, and all families benefit from practising under timed conditions, since the test is sat on a fixed date regardless of a child's primary school. Registering promptly within the window Kent County Council sets each year avoids any last-minute administrative pressure.

Waiting lists and appeals at Judd

Boys who are not offered a place after the initial allocation can ask to be added to the school's waiting list, which stays open until the end of January and is re-ranked against the published oversubscription criteria every time a boy joins or leaves it. Parents who wish to challenge a refusal can appeal through the school's independent appeals process, details of which are published on the school's admissions pages; after the January cut-off, any further application must be made as an in-year admission, with the waiting list no longer available.

Related guides

• Kent grammar schools guide
• Tutors for families in Kent
• Grammar schools in England: the full directory

Preparing for the Judd School 11+ with Taylor Tuition

Preparation for the Judd School 11+ tends to go best when it starts early and stays steady, and most families who work with us begin between twelve and eighteen months out. Our tutors, who have prepared pupils for entry to leading independent and grammar schools including Westminster, St Paul's, Wycombe Abbey and Eton, plan the work backwards from the school's own assessment format and registration deadline.

The tutors we match to 11+ preparation are drawn from a pool in which more than half hold Qualified Teacher Status, around three in five hold a master's degree or doctorate, and which includes former heads of department, exam-board examiners and teachers from independent and boarding schools. Every tutor who works with children holds an enhanced DBS check.

Families in Kent 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.