School of St Helen & St Katharine 11 Plus Entrance Exam Information 2024
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Table of Contents
Introduction
In the late 1930s, two girls’ schools in Oxfordshire – St Helen’s in Abingdon and St Katharine’s in Wantage – were forced to merge due to a decline in student numbers. The result was St Helen and St Katharine and the school hasn’t looked back since.
Based in the outskirts of Abingdon, St Helen and St Katherine is a high-achieving independent girls’ school that has grown considerably over the past 80 years – it now educates around 720 girls aged 9–18 and boasts many new facilities; the most recent additions being a Science Centre, 3D Design Centre and Sport Centre.
St Helen & St Katharine 11 Plus (11+) Exam Information 2024
Address: Faringdon Road, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, OX14 1BE
County: Oxfordshire
Admissions info: admissions@shsk.org.uk or 01235 530593
School type: Girls’ independent day school
Number of students: 730 (approx.)
Open Day date: September
Exam date: January of Year 6
Pass mark: Aim for 75%+ in our practice tests. See below for more details.
St Helen & St Katharine 11 Plus (11+) Open Days
Before applying for a place at St Helen and St Katherine, parents and guardians are advised to visit the school with their daughter (at least one year prior to entry). Whole School Open Day is held each October, consisting of guided tours of facilities and one-on-one meetings with key members of staff. Other open events are held throughout the year. You can view the school’s exact location on the map below:
St Helen & St Katharine 11 Plus (11+) Admissions
Parents or guardians of all girls wishing to be considered for a place at St Helen and St Katharine must complete a registration form and send it to the admissions office, with the non-refundable registration fee of £150 (£250 for overseas candidates), by the closing date in mid-November of the year prior to entry.
St Helen and St Katherine is an academically selective school. As part of the entrance assessment, all candidates must attend a ‘taster day’ held in October–December of the year prior to entry (while in Year 6), during which they will be interviewed individually by the Head and take part in group activities.
A paper-based entrance exam takes place in January. Please note that a reference from your child’s current school will also be obtained. The school will notify you of the outcome of the entrance assessment within ten days of the tests. The closing date for acceptances is in early March.
St Helen & St Katharine 11 Plus (11+) Scholarships and Bursaries
Academic and All-Rounder scholarships may be offered to students who stand out due to excellent performance in the entrance assessment. These awards are valued at £500 and £300 per annum, respectively.
11+ applicants can also be considered for Music Scholarships, which provide free tuition for one instrument. Auditions take place in January of the calendar year of entry.
Bursaries, valued at 20-100% of fees, are offered to families in financial need following a rigorous means-testing procedure. These awards are reviewed annually and may vary in value, depending on changes in your circumstances.
St Helen & St Katharine 11 Plus (11+) Exam Format
The entrance assessment for St Helen and St Katharine includes the following three tests:
- English: Reading
The reading paper consists of a passage of text followed by a variety of questions to fully test comprehension, including an understanding of the way in which language is used and insight into the author’s intentions.
- English: Writing
The writing paper offers a choice of tasks to test creative writing or discursive (persuasive / argumentative) writing skills. Candidates will be assessed on formal skills, such as structure, grammar, spelling and punctuation, as well as creativity.
- Maths
The maths paper covers content and skills mainly found on the Year 6 Programme of Study of the National Curriculum and includes questions that will test arithmetic, problem solving and reasoning. Candidates should show full working and/or reasoning for all questions to ensure that they achieve as many marks as possible. No calculators are allowed.
How to Prepare for the St Helen & St Katharine 11 Plus (11+) 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, offer excellent practice and preparation for St Helen and St Katharine’s 11+ tests. They cover all the key skills for English and mathematics and can be used to identify any weaker areas that require additional work ahead of the tests 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.
St Helen & St Katharine 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 St Helen & St Katharine 11+ test.
Whilst there are no guarantees, this has historically been a fairly strong indicator that your child should do well in the St Helen & St Katharine 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!
St Helen & St Katharine 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 St Helen and St Katharine’s English papers, we would highly recommend using the following practice papers, which will help to improve comprehension and writing skills, including spelling and vocabulary:
Comprehension
11+ Complete Comprehension Guide
Writing
✅ You can now purchase a bundle of all of our recommended 11+ resources for the St Helen and St Katharine 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 maths test, we would highly recommend using the following practice papers:
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 Helen and St Katharine mathematics exam at a large discount. Click the button below to learn more:
11+ Mathematics 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 were included in School of St Helen & St Katharine 11+ past papers. The information provided about School of St Helen & St Katharine was 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 post.
Other entry points for School of St Helen & St Katharine:
Click here to learn about Year 9 entry via the 13 Plus (13+) Exam
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