Unable to sit the test on a Saturday
If your child is unable to sit tests on Saturdays for religious reasons we are able to arrange an alternative test day. You must upload a supporting letter from their religious leader when completing your child’s registration form. An alternative date will not be offered without a supporting letter. This letter must be submitted no later than 28th June 2024.
Reasonable adjustments
If your child has a disability and/or requires additional resources or special arrangements to sit the test, you must upload the additional form and supporting evidence when completing your child’s registration form. It is your responsibility to ensure that the additional form has been uploaded by the deadline of Friday 14th June 2024 (please note this is earlier than the test registration deadline). If the additional form has not been uploaded by the deadline, NO special arrangements can be considered for your child in this test
You will be asked to detail your child’s disability or condition and how this may impact their ability to access the entrance test. You must supply any relevant evidence and supporting information, including from your child’s primary school detailing what arrangements are currently put in place at school for your child.
The Grammar Schools in Birmingham do not make suggestions regarding adjustments and there are no set adjustments for a certain condition – each case is different and is assessed on an individual basis. You must detail what adjustments should be made in order to allow your child to access the test and it is expected that the same or similar adjustments are currently put in place at school.
Each request is assessed by a panel of professionals and you will be notified of their decision by the end of July. The panel consists of an Educational Psychologist, Qualified Teacher of the Visually Impaired, Qualified Teacher of Children with a Hearing Impairment and professionals in the fields of physical difficulties, communication and autism. The panel have no affiliation with any of the grammar schools – it is their role to ensure your child is not placed at a disadvantage due to a disability.
Equally the panel must be mindful not to place a child at an unfair advantage over other candidates by granting adjustments that are not required or relevant. The panel make decisions with the format of this specific test in mind. For example, a child may have additional time in written tests at school due to a difficulty with extended periods of writing. This does not mean that the child will receive the same adjustment in this entrance test. As a multiple choice test there is no writing involved so in this example the panel would likely refuse a request for additional time.
The decision of the panel is final and will not be reviewed.
Illness
Details on the procedure to follow should your child be ill on the morning of the entrance test will be included in the letter posted to your home address in early September.
If your child sits the test despite being unwell, no allowance can be made to the test score achieved to take into account the effect of any illness.
