Frequently Asked Questions

The 11+ (eleven plus) is an entrance examination taken by children in Year 5 or Year 6, typically at age 10 or 11. It is used to determine admission to grammar schools, selective state schools, and many independent (private) schools across England and Northern Ireland.

The exam tests academic ability across subjects like mathematics, English, verbal reasoning, and non-verbal reasoning, though the exact format varies depending on the school and exam board.

The 11+ can cover up to four subjects:

• Mathematics – arithmetic, fractions, decimals, geometry, word problems, algebra, and data handling
• English – reading comprehension, grammar, punctuation, spelling, and vocabulary
• Verbal Reasoning – word puzzles, codes, analogies, synonyms, antonyms, and logical word-based problems
• Non-Verbal Reasoning – pattern recognition, sequences, spatial awareness, and shape-based puzzles

Not every school tests all four subjects. Some focus on maths and English only, while others include verbal and non-verbal reasoning as well.

CEM (Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring, run by Durham University) and GL Assessment are the two main exam boards that produce 11+ papers for grammar schools in England.

GL Assessment papers tend to follow a more predictable format with separate sections for each subject. They often include standard multiple-choice questions that are similar in style from year to year.

CEM papers are designed to be less predictable. Questions are often mixed together rather than grouped by subject, and the format can change between sittings. CEM exams are generally considered harder to prepare for because of this variety.

Check with your target school to find out which exam board they use – this will help you focus your child’s preparation.

Most families begin some form of preparation in Year 4 (age 8-9), roughly 12 to 18 months before the exam. This allows enough time to build familiarity with the question types without putting too much pressure on a young child.

Starting too early can lead to burnout, while leaving it too late can mean your child feels underprepared. A steady, consistent approach tends to work better than intensive cramming.

If your child is already in Year 5, it is not too late – regular, focused practice can still make a significant difference.

Little and often works best. Three to four short sessions per week (20-30 minutes each) is more effective than one long session at the weekend. Regular practice helps build confidence and keeps skills sharp without causing fatigue.

As the exam date gets closer, you might increase to daily practice, but always keep it manageable. If your child is getting frustrated or upset, take a break – a positive attitude towards learning is just as important as the practice itself.

Yes, completely free. There are no hidden charges, no premium tiers, and no limits on how many papers you can generate. Simply register with your email address and you have full access to everything on the site.

We built Free 11 Plus Papers because we believe every child deserves a fair chance at the 11+, regardless of their family’s budget. Too often, the best preparation materials are locked behind expensive subscriptions or only available through costly tutoring companies. We want to level the playing field so that access to quality practice is not determined by what a family can afford to spend.

Our generator creates a unique practice paper every time you use it. Here is how it works:

• Choose one or more subjects (Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning, Non-Verbal Reasoning)
• Set the number of questions you want per subject
• Optionally turn on a countdown timer to simulate exam conditions
• Click generate and your paper is ready

Each paper draws from our bank of over 2,000 questions, so your child gets fresh practice material every time. Once finished, the paper is marked instantly with a score and detailed explanations for every answer.

No. Every paper is generated fresh from our bank of over 2,000 questions. The questions are selected at random each time, so the number of possible paper combinations is vast. Even if your child generates a paper every day for the entire preparation period, they will not run out of new material.

This is a major advantage over traditional paper packs, where your child can only use each paper once before they remember the answers.

Yes – this is one of the most powerful features of the generator. Instead of working through a generic mixed paper, you can create targeted practice that focuses on exactly where your child needs improvement.

For example, if your child is struggling with verbal reasoning analogies or maths fractions, you can generate a whole paper of just that question type. This concentrated practice is far more effective than hoping the right questions come up in a general paper.

You can also mix and match – perhaps a full maths paper alongside a focused verbal reasoning paper on a specific weak area. It is completely flexible.

Our question bank contains over 2,000 questions across all four subjects, covering 78 different question types. This is one of the largest free 11+ question banks available anywhere.

With a bank this size, the number of possible paper combinations is enormous – your child can generate paper after paper and never see the same one twice. The bank is regularly updated with new content to keep practice fresh and challenging.

Yes. You can print any generated paper using your browser’s print function. The papers are designed to be print-friendly with clean layouts that work well on paper.

If you prefer your child to work on screen, the interactive mode lets them select answers and get instant feedback – which can be especially useful for self-study.

Yes, every single one of our 2,000+ questions comes with a detailed explanation of the correct answer. This is one of the most important features – it helps your child understand why an answer is right, not just what the right answer is.

Explanations are shown after the paper is marked, so your child can review their mistakes and learn from them straight away. This is where the real learning happens – many parents tell us the explanations are the most valuable part of the site, because they turn every wrong answer into a teaching moment.

Our questions cover the types and difficulty levels that appear across the main 11+ formats in the UK, including:

• GL Assessment – used in many grammar school areas including Kent, Buckinghamshire, and others
• CEM (Durham University) – used in areas like Birmingham, Gloucestershire, and others
• Independent schools – many private schools set their own papers, but the core skills tested are similar

While no single resource can perfectly replicate every school’s exact paper, regular practice across all four subjects will build the broad skills your child needs regardless of the specific format.

We ask for your email address so we can send you helpful 11+ preparation tips, let you know when we add new resources, and share relevant recommendations. Registration is completely free and you can unsubscribe at any time.

We will never sell your data or spam you. See our Privacy Policy for full details on how we handle your information.

Absolutely. We built this resource with tutors and small tutoring companies in mind, not just parents. We know that many independent tutors and smaller 11+ preparation businesses are competing against large companies with huge budgets, and we want to help level the playing field.

With over 2,000 questions, you can generate a completely different paper for every session – no two students will ever get the same paper. You can print papers in advance, have students work through them interactively on a device, or focus on specific question types to target areas where a student needs extra practice.

The 78 technique guides also make excellent teaching resources for explaining question types and methods to students who are encountering them for the first time.

Our Techniques Hub is a library of 78 in-depth teaching guides – one for every question type that appears in the 11+. Each guide covers all four subjects: Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning, and Non-Verbal Reasoning.

Every guide follows the same clear structure:

• What is this question type? – a plain-English explanation of what your child will be asked to do
• Step-by-step method – a reliable approach for tackling the question
• Worked examples – the method applied to real questions so your child can see it in action
• Common mistakes – the traps and errors to watch out for
• Top tips – practical advice to improve speed and accuracy
• Related techniques – links to similar question types for broader practice

The guides are especially helpful if your child is struggling with a particular topic. Use the guide to teach the technique, then follow up with targeted practice papers to reinforce it.

Yes. The practice paper generator and all our technique guides are fully responsive and work on mobile phones, tablets, laptops, and desktop computers. For the best experience when answering questions, we recommend using a tablet or larger screen so your child can see the full question and answer options clearly.