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Introduction
St. Bede’s College is an independent Roman Catholic co-educational school in Whalley Range, Manchester. Founded in 1876 by the Bishop of Salford, Herbert Vaughan, the school admits children from both Roman Catholic and non-Catholic families.
The broad curriculum comprises art, biology, business, chemistry, classical civilisation, computing, design technology, drama, economics, English, French, German, Spanish, geography, geology, history, Latin, mathematics, music, physical education, physics, photography, religion, science and statistics.
Co-curricular activities include Mythology Society, Science Club, Art Club, Chamber Choir, Boys’ Football, Girls’ Hockey and many others.
The school’s Catholic heritage and extensive pastoral provision ensure that pupils leave as well-rounded individuals guided by respect, dignity and compassion. The school’s excellent record in pupils’ personal development suggests that St. Bede’s College’s efforts to make each school day interesting, challenging and stimulating have paid off.
St. Bede’s College 11 Plus (11+) Exam Information 2025
Address: Alexandra Park, Manchester M16 8HX
County: Greater Manchester
Admissions info: admissions@stbedescollege.co.uk or 0161 226 3323
School type: Independent co-ed day school
Number of students: 700 (approx.)
Open day: Throughout the year
11+ Exam date: January of Year 6
11+ Exam type / Board: School’s own
Open Events for St. Bede’s College 11 Plus (11+) Entry
Open Days are held throughout the year, while the school’s annual open events take place in October and December. These offer you and your child the best opportunity to meet staff and pupils, as well as explore the College’s departments through guided tours. You can view the school’s exact location on the map below:
St. Bede’s College 11 Plus (11+) Admissions
The admissions process for Year 7 entry starts with registration, which should be done at least one year prior to entry. This includes a payment of a £50 non-refundable fee.
Places are offered on the basis of your child’s performance in the entrance examination, their conduct during Taster Day and the quality of their current-school reports/references. The Head makes the final decision about whether or not your child will be admitted.
Entrance assessment results and offers of places are usually made known in the first week of March. You will be asked to accept or decline the offer within the following twelve days. Please note that acceptance includes a payment of a deposit.
St. Bede’s College 11 Plus (11+) Scholarships and Bursaries
The school offers a limited number of means-tested bursaries of up to 50% of fees. Assistance is calculated on a sliding scale and is reassessed annually. The awarding of a bursary is discretionary and is based on a range of factors, including your income (from all sources), assets (including personal property) and other family circumstances.
The evaluation process includes a home visit. Offers of financial support are sent out in writing. To apply for this type of assistance, you must fill out an application form, obtained from the Bursar. Please follow this link to learn more.
St. Bede’s College 11 Plus (11+) Exam Format
The St. Bede’s College 11+ exam consists of the following papers:
- English
- Mathematics
The English paper examines both comprehension and writing skills, including inference, spelling, vocabulary and punctuation. Marks will be awarded for good use of imagination, creativity, form, purpose, organisation, cohesion and sentence structure.
The maths exam assesses your child’s problem-solving abilities and arithmetic skills. The paper may include questions on number, measurement, geometry, algebra and statistics.
Please see below for further details and recommendations on how to prepare for the St. Bede’s College 11+ entrance examination.
How to Prepare for the St. Bede’s College 11 Plus (11+) Exam
One of the best ways to prepare for a competitive entrance exam is to use our practice tests. Getting to know the types of questions and the format of the actual exam will help boost your child’s confidence. Aside from becoming familiarised with the exam format, our practice tests will ensure that your child responds to the questions in an efficient and effective manner.
They also provide an excellent opportunity for your child to practise working under time pressure. Whilst doing the tests under timed conditions, children can get used to answering questions quickly, with a close attention to detail.
Our 11+ practice tests are thoroughly researched and up to date. They are designed to reflect the demands of a competitive entrance exam and are successfully used by hundreds of thousands of students every year. Our recommendations to help your child prepare for the St. Bede’s College 11 plus entrance examination can be found below.
St. Bede’s College 11 Plus (11+) Exam Practice Papers
NOTE: The following English and Mathematics practice tests are in standard format, which means that students need to write in their own answers rather than choose from a list of multiple-choice options. This matches the 11+ Exam format used by the school.
English
We highly recommend the following packs to prepare successfully for the St. Bede’s College 11+ English paper. They will help improve your child’s comprehension skills, such as inference, and writing skills, including spelling, vocabulary and punctuation:
Comprehension
11+ Complete Comprehension Guide
Writing
✅ You can now purchase a bundle of all of our recommended 11+ resources for the St. Bede’s College English exam at a large discount. Click the button below to learn more:
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If you’d like to have your child’s writing assessed and marked, you may be interested in our Writing Marking Service. Please click here to learn more.
Mathematics
We highly recommend the use of the following packs to help develop your child’s arithmetic and problem-solving skills within the examination context of the St. Bede’s College 11+ maths test:
Full Practice Tests
Skill Specific Practice
11+ Fractions, Decimals & Percentages
11+ Reflection, Rotation & Symmetry
✅ You can now purchase a bundle of all of our recommended 11+ resources for the St. Bede’s College mathematics exam at a large discount. Click the button below to learn more:
11+ Mathematics Bundle - Save 30%
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Our practice tests aim to show what sort of questions have been included in St. Bede’s College, Manchester 11+ past papers. The information provided about St. Bede’s College, Manchester is believed to be correct at the time of publishing. However, please be aware of future changes. We advise you to contact the school directly if you are unsure of anything. School contact details are provided within the article.
Please note that Exam Papers Plus is an independent publisher of practice tests and resources, and is not affiliated with or endorsed by St. Bede’s College, Manchester.
Other entry points for St. Bede’s College:
Click here to learn about Year 3 entry via the 7 Plus (7+) Exam
Click here to learn about Year 4 entry via the 8 Plus (8+) Exam
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Author(s)
Louise Lang
Director of Learning
