Westonbirt School 7+, 11+, 13+ and 16+ Admissions: CAT4, Interview and Fees

You get into Westonbirt School by registering, sitting an online CAT4 cognitive ability test, attending an interview with the Head or a senior leader, and receiving a satisfactory reference from your child's current school. That sequence applies to senior entry at 11+, 13+ and 16+, whilst Prep School entry from Year 3 relies on two informal taster days instead of a test.

Applications are accepted throughout the school year, subject to availability, so there is no single closing date to plan around. The sections below set out each stage, the scholarship routes at Years 7, 9 and 12, the sixth form grade requirements and the practical steps that help a child arrive at assessment settled.

Entry points and places

The school takes pupils at several points from Nursery to the sixth form, and for families looking from age 7 upwards the main routes are Year 3 in the Prep School, Year 7 (11+), Year 9 (13+) and Year 12 (16+). Placement follows the child's age at the start of the school year, so most applicants join their chronological year group.

The school does not publish a set number of places for each year. Classes are capped at 20 pupils in most cases in both the Prep and Senior schools, and where a year group is full a waiting list is kept, with siblings of current pupils and transfers from other Wishford Schools given priority where possible.

• Year 3 (7+): Prep School, informal taster days
• Year 7 (11+): Senior School, CAT4 and interview
• Year 9 (13+): Senior School, CAT4 and interview
• Year 12 (16+): Sixth form, CAT4, interview and GCSE grades

How the 11+ and 13+ assessment works

The 11+ assessment is an online CAT4 cognitive ability test that every senior school applicant is required to take, followed by an interview with the Head or a member of the Senior Leadership Team. CAT4 measures reasoning ability, so there is no set syllabus or subject paper to revise.

The 13+ assessment into Year 9 follows the same senior process, and the admissions pages describe no Common Entrance papers or separate pre-test in an earlier year. The policy does not publish the test length, question counts or a pass mark. Results are considered with recent school reports, and the Director of Admissions and Marketing then confirms whether an applicant is accepted, conditionally accepted or not accepted.

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Registration and the admissions timeline

Senior admissions follow seven steps, beginning with an enquiry and ending with an invitation to events before the first day. Registration comes after the visit stages, and the registration fee must be received before interviews and tests can be scheduled and documents reviewed.

The school lists the steps in this order on its senior admissions page, and the deposit and signed acceptance form are returned once an offer has been made.

• Enquire by online form, email or phone
• Book a personalised tour with the Head, led by a current pupil
• Attend a taster day or transition event, or follow a timetable with current pupils
• Complete the registration form and pay the registration fee
• Attend the entry assessment once registration is received
• Receive an offer with the relevant forms after a successful assessment
• Return the signed acceptance form and parent contract with the deposit to be enrolled

Interviews and references

Every senior applicant is invited to an interview with the Head or a member of the Senior Leadership Team, and an online interview can be arranged for those who cannot travel. The school also seeks a reference from the candidate's current school, and it may ask previous schools about unpaid fees.

Applicants submit a passport or birth certificate, recent school reports, any specialist reports such as educational psychologist or medical reports, and a signed application form. For Prep School entry from Year 1 to Year 6 the reports cover the previous academic year, and a reference from the current Head is sought before arrival.

Scholarships and bursaries

Scholarships are offered in academic, art, drama, music, sport, equestrian and polo, together with an all-rounder Westonbirt Award and a Head's Award given at the Head's discretion. Entry points are Years 7 and 12 for internal and external candidates, and Year 9 for external candidates only. Awards typically give a 10% fee reduction, and some larger named awards exist.

Shortlisted candidates are invited to a scholarship assessment, and the supporting material depends on the award, for example a portfolio, a performance video or sporting highlights. External applicants register with the school before applying. Bursaries are means-tested, reviewed by a panel including the Head and the Finance Director, and typically range from 10% to 40% of day fees, with up to 100% only in rare circumstances. They are mainly for the senior school, and families enquire by email to the admissions office.

Fees and what they include

Fees are set per term and published in separate Nursery, Prep and Senior schedules on the school's fees page, with the Senior schedule listing day, full, weekly, flexi and international boarding rates by year group. Fees cover the normal curriculum, catering and most books and stationery, and are payable in three equal termly amounts in advance.

Extras charged to the pupil's account can include school transport, public examination entry fees, theatre tickets, activities and excursions, and set texts for GCSE and A Level. A registration fee is payable on applying and a deposit, returnable at the end of the pupil's studies, is due before joining. Siblings attending at the same time receive a 5% reduction on the second and later children, and children of serving members of HM Forces can receive a reduction of up to 10%.

Sixth form entry requirements

Sixth form entry requires a minimum of four GCSEs at grade 5 or five GCSEs at grade 4, including grade 4 or above in English Language and Maths, with resits required if that is not achieved. Applicants also go through the senior process of the CAT4, an interview and a school reference.

Individual subjects set their own bars. A grade 6 is needed in a chosen A Level subject if it was taken at GCSE, Further Mathematics asks for grade 8 in GCSE Maths, and Maths and Latin each ask for grade 7. Physics, Chemistry and Biology ask for grade 6 in the relevant science, with grade 6 in Maths for Physics and Chemistry. The school considers admission to Year 13 on a case-by-case basis.

Where pupils join from

Pupils join the Senior School from the school's own Prep School, from other schools and from overseas, and every Prep School pupil is eligible to apply to the Senior School unless the Head of Prep or the Head of Senior advises otherwise. Pupils moving up from Nursery are likewise eligible for a Prep place.

The school belongs to the Wishford Schools Group, and the first child moving from a Wishford Group prep school to the Senior School receives a fee reduction. The school runs ten daily bus routes for day pupils, and international applicants take the CAT4, submit a hand-written letter and have an online or in-person interview.

How to prepare

Preparation for the CAT4 is best kept light, because the test measures reasoning and has no syllabus. Short practice with verbal, non-verbal, quantitative and spatial reasoning questions, plus a quiet device and a reliable connection for the online format, usually leaves a child comfortable on the day.

For the interview, a child can rehearse talking about favourite subjects, books and activities, and a tour or taster day beforehand makes the surroundings familiar. Prep School applicants spend two consecutive taster days in their current year group, so settling well with a buddy matters more than any practice papers. Scholarship candidates should gather the portfolio, video or highlights that their chosen award asks for.

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Preparing for the Westonbirt School 11+ with Taylor Tuition

Preparation for the Westonbirt 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.

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