King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Girls has its own admissions pattern, and the most effective preparation is the kind that fits exactly how this school selects. It is one of the six schools of the King Edward VI Foundation in Birmingham, and entry is decided by the Foundation's shared common entrance test. This guide walks through what that test involves, when to register, and a free, realistic practice plan you can start today without paying for a single resource. You can also see the grammar school directory and the full school profile for admissions links.
About King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Girls
Camp Hill Girls sits alongside Camp Hill Boys and shares many of the same traditions, sitting within a long-established Birmingham grammar foundation with a strong academic reputation. Selection is by the King Edward VI Foundation common entrance test, sat in the September of Year 6. The school offers a mixed sixth form, so girls who join in Year 7 study alongside boys from age 16.
- Location: Birmingham, West Midlands
- Intake: Girls (Mixed Sixth Form)
- Founded: 1883
- Type: Foundation Grammar (King Edward VI Foundation)
- Admissions test: King Edward VI common entrance test (GL Assessment)
Always confirm this year's exact dates, catchment rules and priority areas on the school's official website: kechg.org.uk. Admissions policies can change year to year, so treat the school's own site as the authority.
How selection works at King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Girls
Entry is decided by the King Edward VI Foundation's common entrance test, which is produced by GL Assessment. This is a single shared test used across the six King Edward VI Foundation grammar schools plus the Sutton Coldfield pair, so registering once puts a child in the running for several schools at the same time. Families list their preferred King Edward VI schools when they apply, and the same test result is considered against each.
The Foundation test is a GL-style paper covering the four 11+ skill areas: English (including comprehension), Maths, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning. In the Birmingham consortium model these are typically delivered as two roughly 50-minute papers that mix subjects together on a single test day, rather than four separate single-subject sittings. Questions are multiple choice, answered on a separate sheet, tightly timed, and no calculator is allowed. Scores are age-standardised, so summer-born children receive an appropriate age adjustment. We do not publish a guaranteed pass mark because the qualifying threshold moves each year with the cohort; passing the test and then being offered a place (which also depends on catchment and preference order) are two separate steps. Check the current arrangements on the school website and browse comparable centre-specific mocks to match the real format.
What to practise for this test
Because the Foundation test is GL-built, it is one of the more learnable formats: the question types are published and stable, so systematic type-by-type practice pays off directly. Cover all four skill areas rather than only the child's favourites.
- English and comprehension: reading unseen passages under time pressure, spelling, punctuation, grammar and vocabulary. Wide reading is the single biggest lever here.
- Maths: the KS2 syllabus up to Year 5 level — number, fractions, percentages, ratio, measures, geometry and simple data — done at speed with mental methods.
- Verbal Reasoning: the roughly 21 GL question types, including codes, letter sequences, hidden words, analogies, odd-one-out, closest-meaning and opposites, compound words, and number series.
- Non-Verbal Reasoning: series, matrices, analogies, odd-one-out, reflections, rotations and spatial folding.
Start with our free GL Assessment practice papers, drill weak spots with the worksheet library, and build stamina with full-length mock papers. Everything is free and no account is needed to begin practising.
A realistic preparation timeline
Steady preparation over two years beats a panicked sprint. There is no need for tutoring or expensive courses; consistency is what tells.
- Year 4: daily reading for pleasure, times tables to 12x12, and confident mental arithmetic. No formal papers yet — the goal is a strong, calm foundation.
- Year 5 autumn: 15-20 minutes of daily topic practice using the free worksheets, introducing verbal and non-verbal reasoning gently.
- Year 5 spring and summer: confirm registration windows on the school's site and our key dates page, then start weekly timed practice, reviewing mistakes more carefully than scores.
- Year 6 (test in September): switch to full-length centre-specific mocks in this test's format, working on pacing and answer-sheet accuracy.
On the day and after
By test week the aim is composure, not cramming. A child who has sat several timed mocks at the kitchen table walks into the hall treating the real paper as the next in a familiar series. Pack early: pencils, an eraser, water and the admission ticket. On the morning, a proper breakfast and an unhurried journey matter more than a final revision blast. Remind your child of the sensible exam habits practised all year: read each question fully, keep an eye on the clock, never dwell too long on one hard question, and transfer answers to the correct row on the sheet. If a question is baffling, make a best sensible choice and move on. Afterwards, resist post-mortems; results arrive on the Foundation's published timeline, and a place also depends on catchment and preference order, so the test is only one part of the picture.
Frequently asked questions
Which exam board does King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Girls use?
The King Edward VI Foundation common entrance test is produced by GL Assessment. It covers English, Maths, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning as multiple-choice papers on a single September test day.
Do I have to apply to each King Edward VI school separately?
No. One Foundation entrance test result is considered across the six King Edward VI Foundation schools plus the Sutton Coldfield pair. You list your preferred schools when you apply. Always confirm the current process on the school website.
What score is needed to pass?
There is no fixed published pass mark; the qualifying score is age-standardised and shifts each year with the cohort. We never invent a specific figure. Focus on accurate, timed practice across all four subjects rather than chasing a number.