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Introduction
Withington Girls’ School in Manchester is an independent day school for girls aged 7 to 18. It was founded in 1890 by a group of Manchester families who wanted to provide their daughters with the same educational opportunities that were available to their sons.
The school has remained relatively small, with just 540 pupils in the senior school, and is proud of its fairly informal atmosphere and its ethos, based on the notion that ‘the pleasure of academic work should be its own reward.’ As such, the school offers no prizes or scholarships.
Withington is one of the top ten schools in the UK based on A-level and GCSE results, and the best-performing school in the North of England.
Withington Girls’ School 11 Plus (11+) Exam Information 2025
Address: 100 Wellington Road, Fallowfield, Manchester, M14 6BL
County: Greater Manchester
Admissions info: admissions@wgs.org or 0161 249 3371
School Type: Girls’ independent day school
Number of Pupils: 680 (approx.)
Open Day Date: November
Exam Date: 6th January 2025
Exam Type / Board: School’s own
Pass mark: Aim for 75%+ in our practice tests. See below for more details.
Withington Girls’ School 11 Plus (11+) Open Days
Before applying to Withington Girls’ School, it is highly recommended that families attend one of its open events. Whole school Open Days take place in November and booking is made through the Admissions Office. The events provide the opportunity to explore facilities and hear from the Head, as well as meet key staff members. You can view the school’s exact location on the map below:
Withington Girls’ School 11 Plus (11+) Admissions
The application form for Year 7 entry can be downloaded from the school’s website and should be returned before the December deadline in the year prior to entry. This includes a payment of a non-refundable registration fee of £50.
Withington Girls’ School is academically selective. All applicants for entry into Year 7 are required to sit an entrance exam, which takes place in January.
Following the entrance exam, short-listed candidates will be invited to attend a general interview with a senior member of staff. Interviews tend to take place in the 3 to 4 weeks following the exam. Withington will also request a written reference from the Head of your daughter’s current school.
Withington Girls’ School 11 Plus (11+) Scholarships and Bursaries
The school offers means-tested bursaries, which range from 10% to 100% of the annual fee. Parents must indicate on the application form if they wish to apply for a bursary. The school does not offer scholarships.
Withington Girls’ School 11 Plus (11+) Exam Format
The entrance exam for Withington Girl’s School consists of three tests:
- English:
- Comprehension (45 minutes)
- Essay (35 minutes)
- Maths (basic skills and problem solving)
- Paper 1 (30 minutes)
- Paper 2 (40 minutes)
- Verbal Reasoning (50 minutes)
The tests take place in classrooms in groups of 25 to try to make the process less intimidating. Calculators cannot be used.
The maths and English papers are written and marked by staff at the school
Please see below for further details and recommendations on how to prepare for the Withington Girls’ School 11+ entrance examination.
How to Prepare for the Withington Girls’ School 11 Plus (11+) Entrance Exam
One of the best ways of preparing for competitive entrance exams is to use practice papers. These help students familiarise themselves with the format and question types they will encounter in the actual test in an efficient and effective manner. They also provide an excellent opportunity for students to practise working under time pressure.
Our practice papers, which are available for immediate download, print and use after purchase, can be used to prepare for all aspects of the Withington Girls’ School entrance exam. They are designed to challenging to reflect the demands of the tests set by a competitive independent school. The papers provide practice in all the key skills and can be used to identify any weaker areas that require additional work before the exam and help build confidence.
Our 11+ practice papers are thoroughly researched and up to date. Every year, they are used successfully by hundreds of thousands of students targeting schools with a competitive entrance examination process. They are designed to be age appropriate but challenging, to reflect the demands of a competitive independent school’s entrance exam.
Withington Girls’ School 11 Plus (11+) Exam Pass Marks and Target Scores
Pupils who are able to score 75%+ consistently in our 11+ practice tests should be on track to pass the Withington Girls’ School 11+ test.
Whilst there are no guarantees, this has historically been a fairly strong indicator that your child should do well in the Withington Girls’ School 11+ exam.
Don’t worry if your child is not scoring well in our practice papers from the outset. With targeted practice and focus, it’s possible to make big improvements in a short amount of time!
Withington Girls’ School 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
To prepare for the English paper, we would highly recommend using the following resources, which will help to improve comprehension, composition, spelling and vocabulary:
Comprehension
11+ Complete Comprehension Guide
Writing
✅ You can now purchase a bundle of all of our recommended 11+ resources for the Withington Girls’ School English exam at a large discount. Click the button below to learn more:
11+ English Bundle - Save 30%
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
To prepare for the Withington Girl’s School maths papers, we would highly recommend using the following resources:
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 Withington Girls’ School mathematics exam at a large discount. Click the button below to learn more:
11+ Mathematics Bundle - Save 30%
Verbal Reasoning
Practice Tests
The following practice papers will provide excellent preparation for the Verbal Reasoning paper:
Skill Specific Practice
The following topic specific packs will help your child prepare for the various question types that could come up in the Withington Girls’ School 11+ Verbal Reasoning exam:
Masterclasses
11+ Verbal Reasoning XL Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Anagrams Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Analogies Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Codes Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Compound Words Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Embedded Words Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Form a Word Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Insert a Letter Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Letter Analogies Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Letter Calculations Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Letter Codes Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Letter Grids Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Letter Sequences Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Move a Letter Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Number Analogies Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Number Calculations Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Number Sequences Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Related Words Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Rhyming Synonyms Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Shuffled Sentences Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Synonyms Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Word Completion Mini Masterclass
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning: Word Match Mini Masterclass
✅ You can now purchase a bundle of all of our recommended 11+ resources for the Withington Girls’ School Verbal Reasoning exam and Masterclasses at a large discount. Click the buttons below to learn more:
11+ Verbal Reasoning Bundle - Save 30%
11+ GL Verbal Reasoning Mini Masterclass Bundle - Save 30%
Don’t forget to use the code eppdiscount at checkout to get 10% off orders over £70 and 20% off orders over £250 if you don’t buy a bundle.
Interviews
This interview guide covers all the key concepts your child needs to be aware of for the 11+ Interview:
11+ Interviews – The Complete Guide
Our practice tests aim to show what sort of questions have been included in Withington Girls’ School 11+ past papers. The information provided about Withington Girls’ School 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 Withington Girls’ School.
Other entry points for Withington Girls’ School:
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
Click here to learn about Year 5 entry via the 9 Plus (9+) Exam
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Author(s)
Louise Lang
Director of Learning
