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What is the CSSE exam?
The CSSE 11+ Test is the 11+ exam used by the Consortium of Selective Schools in Essex.
These are 10 schools:
- King Edward VI – Grammar School
- Colchester County High School – for Girls
- Colchester Royal – Grammar School
- Southend High School – for Girls
- Southend High School – for Boys
- Westcliff High School – for Girls
- Westcliff High School – for Boys
- St. Bernards High School – for Girls
- St. Thomas More – High School
- Shoeburyness – High School
It is a standardised exam covering maths and English, including a continuous writing (creative writing) section. CSSE removed its Applied Reasoning questions from the English paper from 2025 entry, so the exam no longer tests verbal or non-verbal reasoning. The skills and topics which you need to practice are similar to other 11+ exams, but the CSSE exam has a unique style and structure which you should familiarise yourself with if you plan on applying to one of these schools.
These schools are highly competitive. You will not only need to pass the CSSE exam, but score very highly in it, if you want to get into the school of your choice.
UPDATED practice tests for 2026 CSSE exam format
Dates and application information 2026
The CSSE exam usually falls in mid-September. Registration opens earlier in the year, so make sure you check the dates and deadlines on the CSSE website.
Dates for 2027 entry:
Registration opening: May 2026
Registration deadline: end of June 2026
Exam date: September 2026
Results: mid-October 2026
Deadline for completing Local Authority Application form: October 2026
Application Process
- Complete an application form on the CSSE website
- Apply to Essex County Council for your preferred secondary schools with the Essex Common Application Form (CAF)
This can be submitted online OR you can download a paper version of the application form and send it by post.
CSSE exam format 2026
The CSSE exam is divided into 2 papers: maths and English.
Maths
The maths test lasts 60 minutes.
There is space to do workings out on the paper and clearly marked boxes where you should write your answers.
The test covers key aspects of the KS2 maths National Curriculum.
A rough guide to topics covered:
- Arithmetic – operations, number properties, decimals, BIDMAS
- Algebra, simple linear equations
- Fractions and Percentages
- Measurements – unit conversions, area and volume
- Graphs – Venn diagrams, line graphs, pie charts, pictograms
- Statistics – mean, median, mode, range
- Geometry – 2D shapes, angles, coordinates
- Word questions
English
The English exam is divided into two sections and will have a time limit of 60 minutes with an additional 10 minutes of reading time.
Section 1: Comprehension – roughly 40 minutes
Candidates will be given a passage to read (this could be fiction, non-fiction or poetry), which will be followed by some comprehension questions.
The questions are a mixture of multiple choice and written answer questions.
These questions will test your understanding of the passage, ability to make inferences, knowledge of literary devices and vocabulary knowledge, as well as spelling, punctuation and grammar.
Section 2: Continuous writing/creative writing – roughly 20 minutes
The second section will be a writing task based on a prompt. These usually ask you to describe a situation, person or event.
This section tests your accuracy, spelling, punctuation, grammar, creativity and originality.
CSSE top tips
- Make sure you are familiar and confident with the KS2 maths syllabus, as this is what the questions will be based on
- Read the questions carefully! In the comprehension section, you will often be asked to write a sentence explaining or describing something in your own words. For these questions it is essential that you:
a) do not simply lift words from the text
b) pay attention to your spelling, punctuation and grammar, as marks are awarded for these - In the comprehension section, look at the marks available for each question. Make sure you don’t write 5 sentences for a question only worth one or two marks. If the question asks you to write 1 sentence, just write 1 sentence!
- Pay attention to the time! As with any exam, time management is key
-For the English test, try to follow the time guidelines on the front of the booklet as much as possible
-For the maths test, remember that each question is only worth one mark. Keep an eye on the clock and do not spend too much time on one question if you are finding it tricky. You can always come back to it at the end if you have time.
How to prepare for the 2026 CSSE exam
The most useful way to prepare is to do practice and past papers to familiarise yourself with the style of exam.
You can access some free, official past papers from our page here or from the official CSSE website.
For more invaluable practice, have a look at the expert CSSE practice papers available in our shop. We include answers for all of our papers and step-by-step explanations for the Maths questions.
Free GL Assessment style Maths paper
Get a full free Maths paper, written in the GL style by our in-house team, with answers included. We'll email it straight to you.
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