Oakwood Park Grammar School

Oakwood Park is a selective grammar school in Kent that uses the Kent Test, a shared exam administered by GL Assessment across multiple schools in the area. This means your child will sit the same paper as pupils applying to other Kent grammar schools, rather than a school-specific exam. The school typically has around 180 places available, and the registration deadline follows the Kent County Council process (usually late May or June for September entry).

The overall difficulty is broadly in line with standard GL papers, perhaps slightly above average for the county. Your child won't need exceptional stretch preparation — standard GL practice materials are the right starting point. Maths tends to be straightforward and curriculum-aligned, so this is usually the section where children feel most confident.

Vocabulary is the area where children's reading habits really show. The verbal reasoning section particularly rewards children who read widely and have picked up a good range of everyday and more sophisticated words. If your child isn't a keen reader, encouraging them to read more fiction and non-fiction will help. English comprehension passages are age-appropriate but require careful reading, especially for inference questions — again, regular readers tend to find this easier.

Time pressure is moderate rather than extreme. Children who have practised timed GL papers usually manage to attempt all the questions, though some do feel rushed towards the end. Standard GL preparation and timed practice should prepare your child well for the pace of the exam.

#### Key dates — checked October 2026 - Kent Test 2026 (for September 2027 entry): sat 10 September 2026; results emailed 15 October 2026. - Threshold context: for 2026 entry the qualifying standard was a total of 332 across English, Maths and Reasoning, with no paper below 108. The threshold is reset each year after marking. - Next cycle (September 2028 entry): registration expected early June – early July 2027 via kent.gov.uk/ola; test early September 2027 (dates not yet published). - CAF deadline: 31 October; National Offer Day: 1 March.