Sir William Perkins's School 11 plus guide

Are you thinking about applying to Sir William Perkins's School for 11+ entry? Find out everything you need to know about the admissions process and how to prepare for the entrance exam.

Key information for Sir William Perkins's School

• School type: co-educational independent day school
• Location: Chertsey, Surrey
• Admissions contact: admissions@swps.org.uk
• 11+ exam: school-set Maths and English papers, plus a meeting with a senior member of staff
• Financial assistance: means-tested bursaries
• Scholarships: academic, art, drama, music, sport and STEM

Important dates for 2027 entry

• Thursday 15th October 2026 (noon): registration deadline
• Saturday 14th November 2026: entrance exam (Maths and English) and meeting with a senior member of staff

How to apply to Sir William Perkins's School

Sir William Perkins's School is selective. This means that your child will need to sit an entrance exam to be eligible for a place.

You must register your child for Year 7 entry via the school's online application portal. Registration for September 2027 entry closes at noon on Thursday 15th October 2026. A non-refundable registration fee applies.

All applicants are invited to sit the entrance exam at the school in November. On the same day, your child will also meet with a senior member of staff as part of the admissions process.

You will receive your child's results in December. If they are offered a place, you will have until March to accept, at which point a deposit is required to secure it.

What will my child be tested on?

The Sir William Perkins's School entrance exam takes place over one day and includes both English and Maths assessments, alongside a short meeting with a member of staff.

English

The English assessment is split into two papers: a reading comprehension task based on an extract, and a separate creative writing task. Together, these assess your child's comprehension and inference skills, as well as their ability to write clearly and creatively.

Maths

The Maths assessment is also split into two papers, one covering general mathematical skills and the other focused on problem-solving. These are designed to test your child's numeracy and their ability to apply maths to unfamiliar questions.

Specimen papers for both English and Maths are available on the school's website to help your child feel familiar with the format ahead of the assessment day.

Meeting with a senior member of staff

Alongside the written assessments, all applicants meet with a senior member of staff. This is a conversation designed to help the school get to know your child, their interests, and their aspirations, rather than a formal interview.

How are places decided?

Places are offered based on your child's performance in the English and Maths assessments, along with their meeting with a senior member of staff.

Decisions are emailed to parents in December. If your child is offered a place, you will have until March to accept, when a deposit is required to secure it.

Financial information

Sir William Perkins's School is a fee paying school. Take a look at the school website for a full breakdown of fees per year group.

Scholarships

When exploring independent schools for your child, scholarships and bursaries are worth considering. They can ease the pressure of school fees and open doors to opportunities that might otherwise feel out of reach.

Scholarships are awarded for a child's talent or achievement. While many schools focus on academic excellence, some offer awards in music, sport, drama, art, or other specialist areas.

Scholarships often come with a small fee reduction and acknowledge your child's talents, motivating them and boosting their confidence. Some schools automatically consider all applicants, while others may request an additional application, assessment or audition.

Visit Sir William Perkins's School's website to see the scholarships available and how to apply.

For more information, read: Your guide to independent school scholarships.

Bursaries

Bursaries are means-tested awards (based on a family's financial situation) designed to make independent education more accessible. Depending on your circumstances, a bursary could cover part or all of the school fees and sometimes extras like uniforms, lunches or school trips.

Families provide financial information to qualify, and awards are reassessed each year. For many families, bursaries make an excellent education possible that might otherwise seem out of reach.

Visit Sir William Perkins's School's website to find out what bursaries are available and how to apply.

For more information, read: Bursaries: a parents' guide

How can I help my child prepare for the test?

Applying to senior school can feel like a big milestone, but preparation doesn't have to be overwhelming. Here's how you can help your child prepare for test day.

Stay on track with a clear plan

One of the hardest parts of exam preparation is knowing what to focus on, when, and how to make steady progress without it taking over family life.

A clear, structured plan helps your child feel less overwhelmed and more in control. It ensures they build skills in the right order, cover everything they need, and avoid last-minute cramming.

Atom's exam plan makes this easier. Enter your child's target schools and exam dates, and we'll create a personalised weekly plan tailored to the topics they'll be tested on. It shows them what to work on and when, adapts as they improve, and helps them build progress in a calm, manageable way, little and often.

That means less guesswork for you, less stress for them, and a clearer path all the way to exam day.

Build smart exam technique

As your child's knowledge grows, practice tests can help them feel more comfortable with the real exam format.

Atom's mock tests are exact replicas of real entrance exams. They're also unlimited, so your child can take the same test repeatedly and see new questions each time. This helps them practise without repeating the same content.

Atom's mock tests are automatically marked. You'll see your child's standardised age score (SAS), where they're doing well, and what they should focus on next. You'll also learn how they compare to other children applying to the same school.

Encourage regular reading

Strong reading skills play a big role in preparation for entrance exams.

Encourage your child to read every day, even for just 10–15 minutes. The key is variety. Mix fiction and non-fiction, different genres, and a range of authors. This helps them become more confident in understanding tone, purpose, and meaning across different texts.

Over time, regular reading will:

• broaden their vocabulary
• improve comprehension and inference
• build confidence in tackling unseen texts

And just as importantly, it can help them enjoy reading, not just see it as exam preparation.

Looking for inspiration? Atom's reading and writing starter kit has suggestions spanning fiction and non-fiction for Years 3–6.

Celebrate progress, not just scores

When you're supporting your child through exam preparation, what really matters is knowing they're moving in the right direction, not just how they scored on a single test.

Atom's progress tracking gives you a clear, simple picture of how your child is doing in each topic and the direction they're moving in. You can see where they're on track, where they might need more practice, and spot progress as it happens.

That makes it easier to give meaningful encouragement, keep motivation steady, and focus on what matters most: consistent improvement, not just one-off results.