Sir Joseph Williamson’s Mathematical School 11 Plus (11+) Exam Guide

About Sir Joseph Williamson’s Mathematical School

Sir Joseph Williamson’s Mathematical School, known locally as The Math, is a selective boys’ grammar school in Rochester, in the Medway Council area, with a sixth form.

It is one of six grammar schools in Medway, all of which select on the same test.

The other five Medway grammar schools are The Rochester Grammar School, Rainham Mark Grammar School, Fort Pitt Grammar School, Holcombe Grammar School and Chatham Grammar School. All six set the same test, and our guide to the grammar schools in Medway compares them side by side.

Key information for 2027 entry to Sir Joseph Williamson’s Mathematical School at 11 Plus (11+)

• Entrance exam: the Medway Test, set for Medway Council by GL Assessment
• Papers: English, mathematics and reasoning. Multiple choice, answers marked on separate answer sheets
• Timings: English 30 minutes, mathematics 50 minutes, reasoning 45 minutes
• No writing task: the Medway Test has no extended writing or creative writing element
• Intake: boys
• Published admission number: 203 places in Year 7, commonly 217 after appeals
• Registration for the September 2027 intake opened at 9am on Monday 18 May 2026 and closed at 5pm on Friday 12 June 2026
• Test dates: Tuesday 15 and Wednesday 16 September 2026 for children at Medway primary and junior schools, Saturday 19 or Sunday 20 September 2026 for everyone else
• Results: Wednesday 14 October 2026
• Secondary school application deadline: Saturday 31 October 2026
• Offer day: Monday 1 March 2027

Admissions information for 2027 entry to Sir Joseph Williamson’s Mathematical School at 11 Plus (11+)

The school offers 203 places in Year 7, a number it says commonly rises to about 217 after appeals. Admission is on the Medway Test.

There is no fixed pass mark. Medway sets the qualifying standard each year so that
roughly the top quarter of children at Medway maintained schools are assessed as suitable for grammar
school. The total weighted score needed was 481 for 2026 entry, when 25 per cent qualified, 482
the year before, and 492 for 2024 entry. Treat those as a guide to the standard rather than a target to
hit, because the figure moves with each cohort.

Medway Council is explicit that being assessed as suitable for grammar school does not guarantee a
place. Each school then applies its own oversubscription criteria, and for most children distance from
home decides the outcome.

The school is unusually direct about what decides a place once your child has qualified. It states that the size of the Medway Test score is not a determining factor and that it is only necessary to have passed, and that distance is the most frequently applied of its five oversubscription criteria. In practice that means a high score does not buy priority, and how close you live matters a great deal.

How can I register my child for the 11 Plus (11+) exams at Sir Joseph Williamson’s Mathematical School?

Registration for the September 2027 intake has closed. It ran from 9am on Monday
18 May 2026 to 5pm on Friday 12 June 2026, and the council states that registrations after the closing
date cannot be accepted, with no exceptions. If your child is registered, the test itself is still ahead:
it is sat in September 2026. If you are looking a year further out, the equivalent window opens in May
2027.

1. Register for the Medway Test with Medway Council, not with Sir Joseph Williamson’s Mathematical School. Registration is on the Medway
   Parent Portal.
2. Your child sits the test on Tuesday 15 and Wednesday 16 September 2026 if they attend a Medway
   primary or junior school, or on Saturday 19 or Sunday 20 September 2026 if they do not.
3. Results are sent on Wednesday 14 October 2026.
4. Apply for a secondary school place separately, listing Sir Joseph Williamson’s Mathematical School on the common application form.
   Applications open on Tuesday 1 September 2026 and close on Saturday 31 October 2026.
5. Offers are sent on Monday 1 March 2027.

Registering for the test and applying for a school place are two different things, and doing one does
not do the other.

What is the 11 Plus (11+) entrance exam format for Sir Joseph Williamson’s Mathematical School?

All six Medway grammar schools use the same test, so preparation is identical whichever
of them you are aiming for. The Medway Test is written for Medway Council by GL Assessment and is sat
in three papers, with a break of at least 20 minutes between them.

• English, 30 minutes. Comprehension, punctuation and grammar. The whole paper is completed in
  the 30 minutes, so there are no separately timed sections to pace.
• Mathematics, 50 minutes. Again a single block of time covering the whole paper.
• Reasoning, 45 minutes. This is really two tests in one sitting: spatial and non-verbal
  reasoning for 20 minutes, split into four timed sections, then verbal reasoning for 25 minutes in one
  timed section.

Answers go on separate answer sheets, which is worth practising in its own right. Transferring
an answer to the right row on a separate sheet, under time pressure, is a skill some children lose marks
on before they lose any on the questions themselves.

There is no writing task anywhere in the Medway Test. This is the single biggest difference
from the Kent Test next door, which does include one, so a Kent revision plan is not a Medway revision
plan.

Scores are standardised for age, then weighted: the English and mathematics standardised scores are
each doubled and the reasoning score is counted once, giving a total weighted score. English and maths
therefore carry twice the weight of reasoning, which should shape how you divide your time.

Sir Joseph Williamson’s Mathematical School 11 Plus (11+) top tips for your child

• Split practice in line with the weighting. English and mathematics count double, reasoning counts once.
• Practise on separate answer sheets. Marking answers in the right place under time pressure is its own skill.
• Do not spend time on creative writing for this test. The Medway Test has no writing task.
• Rehearse the reasoning paper in short blocks. Spatial and non-verbal comes first in four timed sections, then verbal reasoning in one.
• Work on pace in maths. Fifty minutes covers the whole paper with no section timings to fall back on.
• Do not chase a high score for its own sake here. The school says plainly that only passing counts, and distance decides most places.

How to prepare your child for the 11 Plus (11+) Sir Joseph Williamson’s Mathematical School exam

Preparation for Sir Joseph Williamson’s Mathematical School is preparation for the Medway Test. Despite the school’s name and its mathematical specialism, there is no separate maths paper of its own to prepare for.

The weighting is the practical point: English and mathematics count double, so a plan that spends equal time on all four skills is under-weighting the two that matter most. Reasoning still needs regular short practice, particularly the spatial and non-verbal section, which is split into four separately timed blocks and rewards speed.

Work on multiple-choice papers with a separate answer sheet rather than writing answers in the booklet. It is the closest match to the day itself.

For Sir Joseph Williamson’s Mathematical School 11+ preparation, we recommend the following packs: