- Who uses it
- Most Essex grammar schools, in and around Chelmsford, Colchester, Southend and Westcliff
- When
- A Saturday in September of Year 6, after registering in the summer of Year 5
- Subjects
- Maths and English. No verbal or non-verbal reasoning
- Format
- Two written papers of about an hour each, not multiple choice; English includes a writing task
- Results
- Mid-October, before the 31 October deadline for secondary applications
What is the CSSE?
The Consortium of Selective Schools in Essex is a group of grammar schools that share one entrance test. You register once with the CSSE and choose which school your child sits the test at. The scores are then used by each consortium school you apply to, with its own pass mark and admissions rules.
Not every Essex grammar school is in the consortium. Chelmsford County High School for Girls, for example, now uses the FSCE test. Check each school's admissions page.
The two papers
Maths
About an hour of Key Stage 2 maths, with answers written in the booklet rather than chosen from options. Questions range from quick arithmetic to multi-step problems, covering number, fractions, decimals and percentages, ratio, measures, geometry and statistics. Because nothing is multiple choice, there is nothing to guess from: every answer must be worked out.
English
About an hour, with extra reading time at the start. The first part is comprehension of a passage, testing what it says, what it suggests and the effect of the writer's choices. The second part is a continuous piece of writing, marked for vocabulary, spelling, punctuation, grammar and structure.
How to prepare for the CSSE test
- Use the free familiarisation papers on the CSSE website, which show the real layout.
- Practise maths with written answers. Show working on paper, and check each answer, because there are no options to compare against.
- Practise writing to a time limit: plan for a few minutes, write, then save time to check spelling and punctuation.
- Read widely and notice how writers use words. Comprehension questions often ask why a writer chose a word or phrase.
Other 11+ tests
- GL AssessmentMost of EnglandEnglish, maths, verbal and non-verbal reasoning on paper.
- Quest AssessmentsGrowing; Kent from 2028Paper multiple-choice tests; Kent, Slough and Dorset switch to it for 2028 entry.
- FSCEAbout ten schoolsMaths, English and, at some schools, the wider curriculum and creative writing.
- CSSEEssexWritten maths and English papers, including a writing task.
- SEAGNorthern IrelandThe transfer test: two papers of English and maths in November.
- ISEB Pre-TestIndependent schoolsAn adaptive on-screen test, sat once a year.
- CEMSome independent schoolsShort timed sections. No longer used by grammar schools.
Read the full 11+ guide for parents
Practise for the CSSE test with 11++
11++ has CSSE-style maths papers where every answer is typed, not chosen, and English papers you can follow with a timed piece of creative writing.