Torbay · Selective test maths · Live online, small groups or one to one

11 plus maths tuition in Torbay

Torbay's selective test is one of the simplest in England to describe. The schools say it is two papers of about fifty minutes, one English and one maths, set by GL Assessment, and Churston Ferrers Grammar School adds: "There are no verbal or non-verbal reasoning papers." What families receive afterwards is simpler still. Torquay Boys' Grammar School's admission policy says parents "will not be told their child's actual scores"; they get a Yes or a No, and the scores "will not be disclosed at any point". There is no mark to aim at and no number to compare with a neighbour's child. The only sensible target is maths that is secure across the whole of Year 5. This page sets out what the four schools and Torbay Council publish, then teaches a Year 5 area where many children are less secure than they look: area and perimeter.

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Maths only · We do not teach English for the test · No connection with any Torbay school

In short

Torbay Council says all the selective schools in Torbay use the same test results, so children sit the test once: Churston Ferrers Grammar School, Torquay Boys' Grammar School, Torquay Girls' Grammar School and the selective stream at The Spires College. The schools describe two GL Assessment papers of about fifty minutes, English and Maths, with no verbal or non-verbal reasoning, designed around primary learning up to the end of Year 5. For September 2027 entry the test was on Saturday 19 September 2026, with registration from 1 March and a preferred deadline of 15 July 2026. Families are told whether their child met the academic threshold, as a Yes or No, and not the scores. We teach the maths, live online. Lesson one costs nothing; after that tuition is USD 100 a month in a small group or USD 150 a month one to one.

Torbay starting points

Three courses for an English-and-maths test

Maths is one of only two papers. Choose by which parts of Year 5 your child is least sure of.

11 Plus Maths Prep course thumbnail

TORBAY / A

Torbay 11 plus maths

Every Year 5 strand, with measures and shape given as much time as number.

Open the syllabus →
Elementary Maths for Grades 1-5 course thumbnail

TORBAY / B

Shoring up the basics

For children whose Year 3 and 4 maths needs settling first.

Open the syllabus →
Mental Maths for Kids course thumbnail

TORBAY / C

Calculation without a calculator

Quick, reliable arithmetic for a fifty-minute paper.

Open the syllabus →

The Torbay test

What the schools and Torbay Council publish

Torbay Council explains the shared arrangement; the schools publish the details. Read on 26 September 2026.

The Torbay selective test for September 2027 entry
StepDateAs published
Registration opens1 March 2026Registration forms go to the schools, not the council.
Preferred deadlineMidday, Wednesday 15 July 2026The council and Torquay Boys' Grammar both give this date.
Latest deadlineEarly September 2026The council gives midday 2 September; Torquay Boys' Grammar gives midday 4 September.
TestSaturday 19 September 2026One day for all the grammar schools and The Spires selective places.
Alternative dateFriday 25 September 2026Offered by Torquay Girls' Grammar for illness or another accepted reason.
OutcomeOn or soon after 12 October 2026Yes or No, according to Torquay Boys' Grammar.

Torbay Council says "All selective schools in Torbay use the same test results. Students only need to sit the test once." The schools list the papers: Torquay Boys' Grammar describes "two tests (approx. 50 minutes each), one for English and one for Maths"; Torquay Girls' Grammar describes "papers designed by an external assessment authority (GL) in English and Maths".

Churston Ferrers Grammar School says the test "evaluates English and Maths. It is designed around standard primary school learning up to the end of Year 5", and that "There are no verbal or non-verbal reasoning papers". It adds that there is a standardised pass mark and that "the exact threshold changes year on year".

The latest registration deadline differs slightly between sources: the council gives midday on 2 September 2026, Torquay Boys' Grammar midday on 4 September. Both say 15 July is the date to aim for. Families should follow the school they register with and not rely on the later date.

Torquay Boys' Grammar describes its process as "testing before preference": children sit the test before families complete the council application. Places are then decided under each school's published policy, which we do not advise on.

Sources: Torbay Council, secondary applications and its application timetable; Torquay Boys' Grammar School, apply to join us, and its admission policy for 2027-8; Torquay Girls' Grammar School, admissions test; Churston Ferrers Grammar School, entry requirements. Modern Age Coders has no connection with any Torbay school, GL Assessment or Torbay Council.

A Yes or a No

No score to chase, so chase understanding

Most areas send families a number. Torquay Boys' Grammar's policy says Torbay families get a word.

What is published

The policy says parents "will not be told their child's actual scores, they will be given a 'Yes' or 'No' indicating whether the child met the academic threshold to be eligible for admission". The selection test score "will not be disclosed at any point, including when places are formally offered in March".

Churston Ferrers adds that the threshold changes year to year with the cohort, and prefers to talk families through it rather than "reduce it to a number on a page".

What it means for maths

With no score ever shown, there is nothing to compare, predict or chase. Families sometimes find that unsettling. We find it clarifying: the one thing worth working on is the maths itself, across every part of Year 5, until it is secure.

It also removes a trap. Where scores are published, preparation drifts towards squeezing extra marks from favourite topics. Where they are not, breadth matters more: a child with no weak strands is the child most likely to hear Yes.

Because English and maths are the only two papers, the maths is a large part of what the schools see. We do not know how the two are combined, and the schools do not publish it. We simply make sure the maths half is as strong as it can be.

The lesson

Area and perimeter: same shape, different questions

The Year 5 curriculum asks children to "measure and calculate the perimeter of composite rectilinear shapes" and to "calculate and compare the area of rectangles". Mixing the two up is one of the commonest primary errors.

Area and perimeter in Year 5, with questions of our own
IdeaOur questionAnswer
RectangleA rectangle is 7 cm by 4 cm. Find its perimeter and its area.Perimeter 22 cm; area 28 cm²
Same area, different perimeterRectangles of 6 by 4, 12 by 2 and 24 by 1. Which has the longest perimeter?24 by 1: perimeters 20, 28 and 50, all with area 24
Composite shapeA 10 m by 4 m rectangle has a 3 m square joined to the middle of one long side. Find the total area.40 + 9 = 49 m²
Its perimeterWhat is the perimeter of that same shape?34 m: the rectangle's 28 m, plus the square's three outer sides, minus the 3 m they share
EstimatingAn irregular shape covers 18 whole squares and 8 half squares on 1 cm paper. Estimate its area.About 22 cm²

The second row carries the big idea: area and perimeter are different measurements, and one does not decide the other. Three rectangles with the same area of 24 have perimeters of 20, 28 and 50. The long, thin one has the longest edge. Children who believe "bigger area means bigger perimeter" get questions like this wrong confidently.

Units make the difference visible. Perimeter is a length, in cm or m. Area counts squares, in cm² or m². Writing the unit before the number forces the child to decide which one they are finding.

The composite shape is where care pays off. Area is easy to add up. Perimeter needs a walk round the outside: the 3 m edge where the square meets the rectangle is inside the shape now, so it no longer counts. We teach children to trace the outline with a finger, or a pencil, and add only what they touch.

Estimating irregular areas, the last row, uses the Year 5 approach of counting whole squares and pairing up halves. It is quick and sensible, and it guards against answers that are wildly too big or small.

Source: national curriculum in England, mathematics, Year 5 measurement (statutory requirements). The questions are our own.

Our approach

Breadth for a test with no published score

When the result is Yes or No, gaps matter more than peaks. This is how we plan a Torbay child's year.

Map the gaps

The first lessons find which Year 5 strands are shaky: number, fractions, measures, shape or data.

Fill them in order

Weakest strands first, then the rest, so nothing is left thin by the summer.

Fifty-minute practice

Timed practice papers only in the last weeks, once the content is secure.

Torquay Girls' Grammar points families to GL's free familiarisation material for English and maths, noting those are the only two areas tested. That is the right way to see the format. We do not reproduce GL material; our questions are our own.

English is the other paper. We do not teach it for the test, and families should plan for it separately.

The Spires College uses the same test for its selective stream. The schools' results process and admissions rules are theirs; we give no advice on them.

If your child is ill on test day, Torquay Girls' Grammar describes an alternative date for accepted reasons. Check the school you registered with.

Torquay, Paignton and Brixham

Four selective routes, one test, one online lesson

Torbay Council names the four schools that use the shared test. We list them only to show what this page covers.

Schools using the Torbay selective test, as Torbay Council lists them
SchoolSelective places
Churston Ferrers Grammar SchoolGrammar school
Torquay Boys' Grammar SchoolGrammar school
Torquay Girls' Grammar SchoolGrammar school
The Spires CollegeA selective stream

Lessons are live on video, so a child in Paignton, Brixham, Torquay or across the Dart is taught the same way, in groups of five to ten matched by level.

For Plymouth's grammar schools, which use a different test, see our Plymouth 11 plus page.

For coding lessons across the south west and the rest of the country, our UK page lists every area.

We have no connection with any of these schools, GL Assessment or Torbay Council, and we do not advise on applications or places.

Towards September 2027

Four stages, no strand left thin

For today's Year 5, registration should open around March 2027 and the test fall in September of Year 6. The schools publish the dates.

From finding gaps to a full paper
WhenStageEvidence
Autumn, Year 51. Find the gapsA clear picture of which Year 5 strands are weak
Winter and spring2. Fill themEach weak strand brought up to secure, one at a time
Summer term3. Measures and shapeArea, perimeter, angles and conversions as reliable as number
Summer holiday4. Fifty minutesA timed maths paper completed calmly

A late start

The later the start, the more important it is to find the gaps first rather than practise papers.

We will tell you honestly at the free lesson what the time allows.

After the Yes or No

Measurement and geometry grow into secondary maths and science. Some pupils continue with maths through coding, calculating areas in code.

Others enjoy the problems on our competitions calendar.

Courses

Maths and coding for Torbay families

Grouped by stage, each linked to a full syllabus.

I

For the Torbay test

Years 3 to 5

TBM / 03

Mental arithmetic practice

Quick calculation, no calculator.

Open the syllabus

TBM / 04

Abacus-based maths

A tactile start for younger children.

Open the syllabus
II

Secondary

Year 6 onwards
III

Coding

Shapes in code

TBM / 08

Maths through coding

Compute area and perimeter in Python.

Open the syllabus
IV

Later

Teenagers

Timetable

After-school and weekend lessons

Our teachers are in India and teach live. Torbay primary pupils are booked into after-school or Saturday and Sunday morning slots, fixed in UK time; when the clocks change, we move, not you.

After school

An early-evening hour.

Weekend mornings

A calm start to the day.

Summer holiday

Extra sessions before September.

A familiar face

One teacher for the year.

Honest words

What is secure and what is not, briefly.

Small, matched classes

Five to ten, grouped by level.

Written in-house

No GL papers copied.

Private sessions

For a specific strand.

Maths is our job

No English coaching; no admissions advice.

Student work

Shapes today, projects later

Four things our students have built and published, each resting on primary maths like area and number. The student labs page has more.

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Fees

Fees

One monthly US dollar price for families outside India. Nothing to join; stop at any time.

Free first class

USD 0

no card required

  • A taught lesson
  • A frank view
  • No card required
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Group batch

USD 100

a month, billed in US dollars

  • Five to ten pupils, one level
  • A regular teacher
  • Work checked together
  • Certificate at the end
Start here

One to one

USD 150

a month, billed in US dollars

  • One child, one teacher
  • Gaps first
  • Flexible timing
Enquire

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Torbay questions

What Torbay families ask us

What is in the Torbay 11 plus?

The schools describe two GL Assessment papers of about 50 minutes each, one English and one Maths. Churston Ferrers says there are no verbal or non-verbal reasoning papers.

Do we sit the test for each school?

No. Torbay Council says all selective schools in Torbay use the same test results, so children only sit it once.

Will we be told our child's score?

Torquay Boys' Grammar's policy says parents are told Yes or No, whether the child met the academic threshold, and that scores are not disclosed at any point.

What maths is tested?

Churston Ferrers says the test is designed around standard primary school learning up to the end of Year 5.

When is the registration deadline?

For 2027 entry, the council and Torquay Boys' Grammar asked for registration by 15 July 2026, with a latest date in early September (2 September according to the council, 4 September according to the school).

When is the next test?

Dates for 2028 entry had not been published when we checked on 26 September 2026. For 2027 entry, the test was on Saturday 19 September 2026.

Does The Spires College use the same test?

Yes, for its selective stream, according to Torbay Council.

Do you teach English?

No. We teach maths only, and we do not advise on applications or places.

Do you use GL papers?

No. We write our own questions. GL publishes free familiarisation material for the format.

What do lessons cost?

The first lesson is free. After that, USD 100 per month in a small group or USD 150 per month individually.

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Book a free maths lesson for Torbay

Tell us your child's year and which parts of maths feel least secure. We teach a real lesson and give you an honest verdict afterwards.

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