FAQs

Our entry points are year 6 (10+), year 7 (11+) and sixth form (16+).

Every pupil at Emanuel is part of a form group and is led by a form tutor, who oversees their holistic life and represents a consistent adult relationship. There are typically between 22 and 24 pupils in each form in the lower school, 20 in each form in the middle school, and 16 in each form in the sixth form.

In year 6 (10+), there are usually 48 pupils (two form groups of 24). From year 7 to upper sixth, there are approximately 144 pupils per year group.

There are just over 1,000 pupils in the school from years 6 to upper sixth (10-18 years old).

Registration for 2026 entry will open in late May 2025, closing in mid-October. Please visit the year 6 (10+), year 7 (11+) and sixth form (16+) pages to register your child.

Applicants will be required to submit their last full year school report. We will also request a reference from their current headteacher (or equivalent) – we will contact the school directly for this. Pupils will sit entrance exams and some will be invited to have an interview with a member of staff and to be part of a group experience. Please refer to the relevant entry point for more information:

• year 6 (10+)
• year 7 (11+)
• sixth form (16+)

For year 6 (10+), year 7 (11+) and sixth form (16+) entry, pupils who do well in our written assessments will be invited in for an in-person interview and a group experience with other applicants led by a member of teaching staff.

Siblings of existing pupils are given priority, although admission is not automatic and the applicant must meet the admissions criteria set out in our admissions policy. See here for more information.

We are lucky to have more applicants than places, but please don’t let this put you off registering your child. We work very hard to find pupils who are a great fit for Emanuel. All pupils are invited to sit the written assessments and we read every report and reference in great detail before making selections for later stages of the process.

Sport is a significant part of the lives of many of our pupils. We offer a range of activities, but our focus is on our performance sports which for boys are rugby, football, cricket and rowing, and for girls are netball, hockey, cricket and rowing.

There are a wide range of additional activities available such as water polo, table tennis, girls’ football club, girls’ rugby club, swimming, dance and tennis.

All applicants are expected to sit the entrance examinations on the published date. Please inform the admissions team of any examination clashes.

Applicants who are living abroad at the time of the entrance assessment may sit the assessments at another approved test centre by prior arrangement (please note this is usually only applicable to overseas applicants). Please contact the admissions team for more information.

No; our pupils are bright and every applicant has a fair chance to shine. When making final decisions on offering places, we take into account interviews, headteachers’ references and school reports – not just exam results.

Yes – all compulsory items are fully inclusive in our school fees, excluding school uniform (which is available to purchase from School Blazer) and exam fees. If additional charges are required, e.g. for rowing in year 10 and above, then the activity will be optional.

Yes: we are committed to widening access to our school and welcoming pupils from all backgrounds. Please click here for more information.

We offer academic scholarships (which are awarded based on performance in the entrance examinations), art, drama, music and sport scholarships. Please click here for more information.

It is possible (but exceptional) for a pupil to hold more than one scholarship and to receive a larger fee remission as a consequence.

The fee remission for co-curricular scholarships is usually 10% but in exceptional circumstances can be 25% or 50%. Scholarships are not means-tested.

Yes: scholarships can be topped up to 100% fee remission depending on financial need (plus travel grants and uniform allowance).

The registration fee is £185 + VAT. You must pay the registration fee when you submit your registration form.

It is possible to have the registration fee waived where the household income is below £26,000 per year. Please contact the admissions team for more information before completing a registration form.

Yes: we are committed to widening access to our school and welcoming pupils from all backgrounds. Please click here for more information about fee assistance and how to apply.

About 90% of our students stay on for sixth form at Emanuel, which is why we take in relatively few students from other schools at this level.

Pupils in year 6 have taster lessons in French, Spanish and German.

Pupils at Emanuel in year 7 study three languages: French, Latin and German, with the opportunity to substitute one of these for Spanish in year 8 when they will go forward with two languages from these four.

All pupils must study at least one language at GCSE.

No. If your child is not successful in gaining a place at year 6, we will then offer you the chance to register for  year 7 (11+) when we post the decision about year 6 (10+) entry in March. Please note that if a pupil is offered a place at year 6 (10+) and rejects the place, they cannot be re-registered for year 7 (11+) entry.

Our gender split is close to 50% boys and 50% girls.

This is reflective of the school’s original aims when established in 1594, with the provision of education for 10 boys and 10 girls. Find out more about our history here.

We encourage prospective families to visit us at one of our three flagship annual open events for year 6 (10+) and year 7 (11+) entry; an open afternoon held on a school day in the Summer term, an open day on a Saturday in September and an additional open morning on a school day in the Autumn term. There are multiple talks from the headmaster, pupils available to give guided tours, and academic staff are present to discuss their subjects and answer questions.

In addition, we hold an annual sixth form open evening in the Autumn term for families considering sixth form (16+) entry, when visitors will have the opportunity to have a tour of the school led by sixth form students, as well as meet the heads of department for the A Level subjects we offer, before hearing from the Headmaster and senior staff.

All of our open events can be booked through this page.

No; we typically only accept entry in September, consistent with the start of each academic year. This is to ensure the new pupil settles in with other pupils in the year and starts their subjects at the same time as everybody else.