Bookings are now open for 2023 mock exams!

All our mock exam days have a choice of GL Assessment or CEM (Durham University) exam style unless stated.
All mock exams will take place at Altrincham Football Club Community Hall, Moss Lane, WA15 8AP.

If the mock exam you want to book is sold out, please call Kieran on 07889524034 to enquire about any last-minute spaces that may have become available.

Current exam styles for Grammar Schools: –

*Loreto and St Ambrose have been known to write their papers using in-house specialists rather than official GL Assessment papers. However, this type of mock exam should be the most appropriate when preparing for the entrance exams for these schools. All Newell Tuition’s mock exams are multiple-choice papers; however, the final exam at Loreto and St Ambrose will likely contain non-multiple-choice papers.

The mock exam experience starts with your child’s registration (usually at 9:00 am). One of our staff will then show your child into the exam room after checking whether they need a visit to the toilet.

Once all the candidates are in the exam room, exam conditions prevail. The staff from Newell Tuition are presented to the children, and a short talk follows about the actual entrance exams. This short presentation lets your child settle in and control their nerves! Then, a short explanation of how the mock exam will be conducted is given.

The children are asked to check that they have bought two pencils and a rubber with them and that they have the correct paper in front of them. They are then instructed to write their name on the front of the question paper. Finally, the instructions on the front of the paper are read out loud, using pre-recorded audio similar to the actual exam, and the children begin the test. The audio track will give the time required for each section when the test begins and then are given time warnings halfway through the test and also when five minutes are left (this is slightly different with the Non-Verbal where there is half time warning and a minute warning, although this will probably not happen in the actual exam). Once the time is up, we end that test and collect the papers.  This procedure is repeated for all the papers.

There will be a short break during the mock exam, which usually takes place halfway through.  There will be a break during the actual exams, but this varies from school to school, depending on their schedule.

We ask parents to be present by the notified time to collect their children.

One of the main aims of the exams is to provide as much information as possible to allow planning of your child’s preparation for the actual entrance exams.

After the exam day, the papers go through a rigorous marking procedure. Once this has been done, the scores are entered into our exams database, where we calculate the group average and standardise the scores.

We aim to provide a full report on your child’s results within four days of the mock exam. This report is emailed to the email address provided to us, with a copy of the marking schemes and an explanation of standardisation.

After each set of the mock exam, your child’s papers will be taken home to enable you/your child’s tutor to go over the errors and improve on the necessary areas.

We usually undertake our mock exams in the morning, as this accurately reflects the actual exams’ schedule.

We aim to run the day as closely as possible to the exam’s schedule. However, as the actual entrance exams vary from school to school, we can’t reflect the format of every grammar school. If your child is taking a CEM-style exam, the mock will consist of two papers every 45 minutes.  For GL, the mock will consist of three papers (two 50-minute papers and one 30-minute paper).

Your exam confirmation email will detail when to drop off your child and pick them up, which may vary from each block.

When children sit the Grammar school entrance exams, they are still at a stage in their school life where they have not done any external exams. The opportunity to undertake mock exams allows them to gain this experience in an unfamiliar and potentially overwhelming environment without the pressure of the actual exam. As with any new experience, confidence grows with familiarity; thus, mock exam understanding can only advantage a child when they face their exams in September.

To keep the mock exam realistic to expectations, students will not be allowed help from the invigilators other than advising on how to enter answers into their answer sheets correctly. It is also imperative to guide the children concerning exam conduct and technique. Throughout the morning, the director in charge of the exam will give the children tips which may help them deal with the actual exams more confidently.

Your child should bring two pencils and a rubber to answer questions, although these will be supplied if forgotten. They may bring a water bottle, preferably a sports bottle, and a small snack.

Analogue watches or watches that don’t make a sound are allowed so long as they don’t cause a distraction for your child or other children. Smartwatches and digital watches are against recommendations for appropriate timekeeping and risk disturbing the exam hall.

Results will be emailed to you by the following midweek or within four days of the mock. You will receive an email containing your child’s total score alongside the average marks for the mock and a breakdown of each paper, including the correct answers for all questions and your child’s answers.

Whilst there is no official pass mark for the 11 plus due to standardisation, we believe the standard required to pass will range between 65-85% depending on the chosen school. This figure is just a prediction and is not official advice as each school will establish its pass marks and standardised score.

Yes, but only if you reply to the email containing your child’s score. These scores will be available two weeks after the mock.

We recommend booking upwards of three mock exams so your child will get the full benefit of exam practice before the September exam. These mock exams are most effective when spread out across the mock exam period, ideally having each mock one month apart, so improvements are easier to measure.

Yes, but we are looking into options to expand into other regions. Alternatively, you may contact Kieran at 07889524034 or kieran@newelltutors.co.uk if you feel a mock exam in your region would benefit you. He will then direct one of our staff members to liaise with you and research your requirements.

We have a no refund policy on our mock exams, but you have a 7-day cancellation period from the date you make your booking. If you wish to cancel, please contact Kieran at 07889524034 or kieran@newelltutors.co.uk with the block and date of the exam in the subject heading.