ISEB FAQs

The ISEB Common Pre-Test is an adaptive digital exam taken by students in Year 6 in the autumn term. This test is age-standardised, meaning that results are compared to those of other children of the same age, allowing for a fair comparison of abilities.

The adaptive nature of the test means that as students answer questions, the difficulty adjusts in real-time based on their performance – harder questions appear after correct answers, and easier ones follow incorrect answers. This ensures that the test can more accurately assess a student’s ability by responding to their performance, helping to provide a balanced and tailored evaluation for each student.

The test covers four key areas:

Mathematics: Assessing numerical understanding and problem-solving skills.

English: Evaluating comprehension, vocabulary, spelling, and punctuation.

Verbal Reasoning: Testing the ability to understand and reason using words.

Non Verbal Reasoning: Assessing the ability to understand and analyse visual information, identifying patterns and relationships.

If occasional place vacancies are available, entry will be based on assessments in English, Mathematics, and Science, as well as an interview with our Head.

Please use the link below to register for a free ISEB account. Once registered, you will need to provide us with your daughter’s unique ISEB testing code.  

No, there is no fee for families and registration is free.

The ISEB registration window typically opens in early to mid-June. For families who have already applied to us, we will let them know when it will be possible to sign up for the ISEB assessment. For families who apply to SCHS after the ISEB registration window has opened, you will need to provide their ISEB registration code to us at the point of applying to our school.

The easiest way to provide your daughter’s ISEB code is to log into your SCHS Admissions Portal using the link below.

If you submitted a registration to SCHS before 10 June 2025, we will contact you after the ISEB registration window opens to request your daughter’s testing code.

If you applied to us after 10 June 2025 then you must provide to us the ISEB testing code at the point of submitting a registration form. To do so, you will need to register for a free ISEB account using the information provide above. 

The Common Pre-Test is taken online, either at your daughter’s own school or at a prospective future school, under exam conditions. It’s designed to be convenient for schools and families, as it can be taken at any point during the assessment period set by the ISEB, usually between October and early January of Year 6.  

When registering for an ISEB account, you will need to choose where your daughter will take the test.

If your daughter can take the ISEB at her current school, she should do so there. However, if she is fully registered for Streatham & Clapham High School and her current school does not offer the ISEB, she may sit the test at our Senior School by selecting us as the invigilation centre. There is no need to contact us before choosing this option.

Alternatively, your daughter can take the ISEB at another school where she is also registered, provided they use the test as part of their admissions process.

There is a testing window in the autumn term of Year 6. Pupils applying to SCHS are required to take the ISEB assessment between November and December, with a final deadline of Monday 8 December 2025. If your daughter is sitting the ISEB at her current school or another invigilation centre, please check with them to confirm the test date.

At SCHS, our on-site ISEB test will take place on Saturday 6 December 2025. This is the only date we will host the assessment. If you are applying to multiple schools that administer the ISEB, we recommend choosing the earliest available test date.

Due to limited capacity on our test day, we will prioritise pupils for whom SCHS is the only school they are applying to that administers the ISEB, and who are unable to take the test at their current school.

Please click the link below to visit the Parents’ section of the ISEB website for more details.

Please click the link below to access a practice assessment.

All offers, including academic scholarships, will be based on a holistic admissions review. This review will take into account ISEB results, data from the group observation activity, the creative writing task, and other available information about candidates, such as school reports and references. Every candidate is automatically considered for an academic scholarship, with no need for a separate application.

Applicants with SEND may be eligible for additional time on each test. Guardians should request this through the ISEB Guardian Portal during registration. Before doing so, you must confirm the required documentation – typically an Educational Psychologist’s report – with the senior schools you are applying to. Since SEND policies vary, it is recommended to consult with the SENCO (Special Educational Needs Coordinator) at each prospective school. This documentation must be uploaded when submitting the extra time request on the ISEB portal. Senior schools will review the evidence, and if it does not meet their criteria, they may challenge the request as outlined in the ISEB Common Pre-Tests SEND Guidance.

We are unable to provide specific ISEB scores, as there is no set grade or pass mark for the test. However, we can offer verbal feedback on your daughter’s overall performance in our admissions assessments, but only after the acceptance deadline has passed.