The Reading grammar schools
Reading School
Boys' grammar school, founded 1125. One of the oldest schools in the country, and consistently among the top-performing UK state schools at GCSE and A-level. Admits a small number of pupils each year; heavily oversubscribed.
Kendrick School
Kendrick School is the girls' grammar, founded 1877. Consistently among the top-performing girls' schools in the country. Admits a small year-group each year; equally heavily oversubscribed.
Both schools use the same GL-format test administered through the Reading Consortium. Each then operates its own oversubscription criteria: typically distance from school, sibling priority, and looked-after-children priority.
The Reading 11+
GL Assessment-format. Four sections covering English (comprehension and language use), Maths (KS2-level problem-solving under time pressure), Verbal Reasoning (language-based pattern recognition), and Non-Verbal Reasoning (visual and spatial pattern recognition). Sat in September of Year 6. Registration falls in the summer term of Year 5; deadlines are published annually.
How tutoring usually focuses
Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning fluency
Both Reasoning sections aren't covered in school curriculum. Tutors drill the standard GL question types until pattern recognition is fast and accurate. Reading's high pass threshold means students need top-quartile reasoning fluency, not just adequacy.
Maths under time pressure
Reading's Maths section rewards both correctness and speed on KS2-level material. Tutors drill arithmetic fluency, fraction operations, percentage problems, and multi-step reasoning. The differentiator at the top of the cohort is consistent speed-and-accuracy.
English comprehension and writing
Reading-comprehension passages with varied question types. Wider reading helps consistently. Strong tutors supplement reading with explicit comprehension-skill drilling and broaden students' vocabulary range.
Past-paper density
Commercial publishers (Bond, CGP, Letts) provide GL-style practice papers. Past-paper density should be high in the final 2-3 months before the September test; multiple full-paper mocks per week is typical for ambitious Reading-target students.
Choosing a Reading 11+ tutor
Given how competitive Reading School and Kendrick are, look for tutors with specific previous-student success at these schools. Beyond track record, strong tutors know the GL question patterns intimately. Given Reading's oversubscription, qualified candidates often miss out due to distance criteria, so strong tutors will give realistic appraisals of whether a child's home location supports a Reading School or Kendrick application.
Reading's pass-mark expectations are high enough that weakness in any single section can sink an otherwise strong candidate, so prefer tutors comfortable across all four (Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning, Non-Verbal Reasoning) rather than narrow specialists.