If King Edward VI Five Ways School is on your child's list, preparation should be shaped around how this school actually selects — not generic 11+ advice. Five Ways admits through the King Edward VI Foundation common entrance test, a GL Assessment paper, so the smartest plan is to practise the exact question types that test uses, in the timed conditions the real exam demands. This guide walks through the school, how its selection works, what to practise, and a calm term-by-term timeline you can start today.
About King Edward VI Five Ways School
Five Ways is the largest of the King Edward VI foundation grammars and one of only two co-educational schools in the group. That makes it a popular first choice for families across Birmingham and the wider West Midlands who want a strong, mixed selective environment. Selection is by the foundation common entrance test, sat by thousands of children each autumn, so competition for places is keen and thorough preparation matters.
- Location: Birmingham, West Midlands
- Intake: Mixed (co-educational)
- Founded: 1883
- Type: Foundation grammar (King Edward VI Foundation)
- Admissions test: King Edward VI common entrance test (GL Assessment)
You can read the full school profile on Quest Arena, and always confirm this year's admissions timeline, catchment priorities and open events on the school's own site: kefw.org. Five Ways is one of six King Edward VI Foundation schools plus the Sutton Coldfield pair, all of which share a single common entrance test held in September, so a place here often forms part of a wider set of foundation applications.
How selection works at King Edward VI Five Ways School
Entry is decided by the King Edward VI Foundation common entrance test, produced by GL Assessment and taken by all applicants to the foundation grammars on a single test day in September of Year 6. Because the foundation runs one shared test, sitting it can put your child in the running for several King Edward VI schools at once, depending on how you rank your preferences on the application.
The Birmingham-style GL common entrance test typically covers all four core skill areas — English, Maths, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning — usually delivered as two tightly timed papers that blend the subjects, rather than one long single-subject paper for each. Questions are multiple-choice, with answers marked on a separate sheet, and the pace is brisk: roughly a question a minute, no calculator allowed. Scores are age-standardised, meaning a younger, summer-born child is not disadvantaged against an autumn-born classmate who is nearly a year older; the raw mark is converted onto a standardised scale that adjusts for age in months.
We will not quote a specific pass mark, because the qualifying score and the way places are then allocated by catchment and preference change year to year — the school's official site and the foundation's admissions pages are the only reliable source for the current figures. For the format itself, our GL Assessment papers guide and the wider grammar school directory give you the accurate picture of what to expect.
What to practise for this test
GL papers are the most learnable of all the 11+ boards: the question types are published and stable, so systematic, type-by-type practice pays off directly. Focus your child's effort on four fronts:
- Verbal Reasoning: the roughly 21 named GL question types — codes, letter sequences, hidden words, analogies, odd-one-out, closest-meaning and opposites, compound words, move-a-letter, and number-based logic. Drill each type until it is automatic.
- Maths: KS2 arithmetic fluency, times tables to 12✕12, fractions, percentages, ratio and multi-step word problems, all worked at speed.
- English and comprehension: reading unfamiliar passages quickly, inference, and — above all — a wide vocabulary, which is the single best predictor of both verbal-reasoning and comprehension scores.
- Non-Verbal Reasoning: series, matrices, analogies, odd-one-out, reflections, rotations and cube nets — spatial patterns that reward exposure and pattern-spotting.
Build the foundations with our free worksheet library, which is organised by exactly these question types so you can target a weakness the moment a mock exposes it. When your child is ready for full-length practice, move to timed mock papers, and in the final stretch switch to centre-specific mocks matched to the King Edward VI test format so the real paper feels familiar. Everything is free, and no account is needed to start practising.
A realistic preparation timeline
The families who cope best spread the work over two years rather than cramming into the summer before the test. A calm build-up looks like this:
- Year 4 into the summer: daily reading for pleasure and casual conversation about new words; secure the times tables to 12✕12. No formal papers yet — the goal is a confident, curious reader.
- Year 5 autumn: begin 15–20 minutes of daily topic practice using the free worksheets, introducing one reasoning type at a time.
- Year 5 spring: broaden into all four subjects and start light, untimed practice papers. Check registration windows early on our key dates page and on the school's site — the September test means applications close months in advance.
- Year 5 summer and Year 6 autumn: one full timed mock paper a week, reviewing errors far more carefully than the score.
- Final six weeks: switch to centre-specific papers in this school's exact format, and taper the workload in the last few days so your child arrives fresh.
On the day and after
By September, a child who has sat ten timed mocks at the kitchen table treats the real hall as the eleventh. Keep the morning ordinary: a good breakfast, the usual routine, and no last-minute cramming, which only raises anxiety. Remind your child of the simple mechanics that win marks in multiple-choice GL papers — mark answers cleanly on the separate sheet, keep the question number and answer row aligned, and never leave a question blank when time is short, because a sensible guess costs nothing. Pace matters most: aim to finish each timed section without rushing the final third, and skip and return rather than stalling on one hard item.
Afterwards, resist the urge to interrogate them about individual questions. Whatever the result, remember that one test on one morning does not define a bright child, and that the confidence, vocabulary and study habits built over two years are genuinely valuable wherever they go to school next.
Frequently asked questions
Which exam board does King Edward VI Five Ways School use?
It uses the King Edward VI Foundation common entrance test, produced by GL Assessment. GL question types are published and predictable, which makes systematic practice especially effective.
What subjects are tested?
The test covers English, Maths, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning, usually across two timed multiple-choice papers sat on a single day in September. Scores are age-standardised so summer-born children are not disadvantaged.
When does my child sit the test and when do I apply?
The foundation test is held in September of Year 6, but registration closes months earlier — often in the spring or early summer beforehand. Confirm the exact dates on the school's official website and our key dates page.