Free tool
11+ open day planner
Every grammar school open day and 11+ deadline in one place. Choose the schools you're interested in to see a month-by-month timeline of open evenings, test registration, test day, results, the secondary application deadline and offer day, with the steps to apply to each school.
Academy11+ open day planner · September 2028 entry
Your timeline: September 2028 entry
The dates every family in England needs. Choose schools above to add their open days and test dates.
October 2027
- ApplySun 31 Oct 2027usual date: check
Secondary school applications close
Usually 31 October in England: check your council's date. Apply through your own council, listing every school you'd like.
March 2028
- Offer dayWed 1 Mar 2028
National Offer Day
Councils tell families which secondary school place they've been offered.
Secondary school applications in England usually close on 31 October: you apply through your own council on GOV.UK, even for schools in another area. Always check dates with the school, test organiser or council.
Schools with confirmed open days
We're checking open day dates for this round
We add each school's open days once we've checked them on the school's own website. In the meantime, search for a school above to see its test dates and how to apply, and check its website for open days. The national dates are in the timeline above.
Open days and applying: questions parents ask
When are grammar school open days?
Most grammar schools hold open days and open evenings in the summer term and in September and early October, often before or around the 11+ test, so many families visit while their child is in Year 5 or at the start of Year 6. Each school sets its own dates, so check the school's website. This planner lists the dates we've checked against each school's own website.
Do I need to book a place at an open day?
Often, yes. Many popular grammar schools ask families to book a time slot for tours and open evenings, and places can go quickly. Where a school asks for booking we show a 'Book a place' button that goes to the school's own booking page.
What is a supplementary information form (SIF)?
Some grammar schools ask for their own short form as well as your council application, for example to confirm you want your child to sit their test or to check a priority such as faith or a sibling. It goes to the school and has its own deadline. Not every school needs one: each school card says whether it does, or that it isn't confirmed yet.
When do I apply for a grammar school place?
In England there are two separate steps. First you register for the 11+ test, usually in the spring or summer of Year 5. Then you apply for secondary school places through your own local council (where you live), usually by 31 October of Year 6, listing grammar and non-grammar schools in order of preference. Offers are sent on National Offer Day, 1 March. In Northern Ireland, children sit a transfer test and families apply through the Education Authority, on different dates.
Where do these dates come from?
Open events and how-to-apply details are taken from each school's own website and checked by our team before they appear. Test dates are shown only once we've checked them against the test organiser's official page. If something isn't confirmed yet we say so and link to the school, so always check important dates with the school, test organiser or council.