Ongar, Essex
11+ Tutoring in Ongar
A brother and sister in Ongar will most likely sit two completely different entrance exams, and that is the fact worth planning around here. There is no grammar school in the town — The Ongar Academy is a non-selective comprehensive — so the realistic boys’ option is King Edward VI in Chelmsford, entered through the shared CSSE paper, while the realistic girls’ option is Woodford County High School, entered through the London Borough of Redbridge’s own eleven-plus. Different papers, different registration windows, different test dates, different admission rules, in opposite directions from the same front door. Families with one child of each sex are effectively running two separate campaigns. One older option Ongar parents still hear named, Buckhurst Hill County High School, closed in 1989 and leads nowhere. We would rather help you commit properly to one route per child than spread a year of preparation across two papers that reward different things.
Schools Ongar families apply to
Woodford County High School
The London Borough of Redbridge's own 11+ selection test — separate from the CSSE paper, on its own date
Admission number 180 for 2027-28. Redbridge applies a minimum standardised score of 104, then ranks within bands: looked-after children, a 25% Pupil Premium band, the Common Catchment Area, then applicants outside it.
King Edward VI Grammar School (KEGS)
CSSE consortium test, sat in September of Year 6
Admission number 150 for 2027. 120 places are reserved for a 12.5-mile straight-line priority area around Chelmsford and 30 are offered on score alone from anywhere.
Key dates for September 2027 entry
Boys, via CSSE: registration 12 May to 19 June 2026, test Saturday 19 September 2026, results 12 October 2026. Girls, via Redbridge: registration usually around 1 May to 15 June, test provisionally on or about Friday 18 September 2026 — the council states both as approximate, so confirm them directly.
Dates and admission numbers change every year. Always confirm against the school’s own admissions page before you plan around them.
Ongar sits at a similar travelling distance from Chelmsford and from Woodford Green, in opposite directions, on two schemes that share no registration, no date and no rules. Whether your address falls inside the Chelmsford schools’ 12.5-mile priority line or inside Redbridge’s Common Catchment Area is measured from your own front door, not from the town, so it is worth checking both before committing to one paper.
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Questions Ongar parents ask
Is there a grammar school in Ongar?
No. The Ongar Academy is a non-selective comprehensive. Families here apply outward, most realistically to the Chelmsford consortium schools or to the Redbridge grammar schools at Woodford Green and Ilford.
What about Buckhurst Hill County High School?
It closed in 1989 and no longer exists. It still comes up in conversation locally, so it is worth saying plainly: it is not an option, and any list that includes it is out of date.
Should an Ongar child prepare for the CSSE or the Redbridge test?
That depends on which school you would actually accept and how far you are willing to travel daily for five years. The two papers differ in style, so preparing seriously for both costs more time than most families expect. We would rather help you choose one properly than spread the preparation thin across both.
When do we have to decide and apply?
Registration for each test happens the spring before the test, and both tests are sat in September of Year 6. The school itself must then be named on the common application form to Essex County Council by 31 October 2026, with offers made on 1 March 2027.