Anatoly Reeves, Head of Admissions at Streatham & Clapham High School, on how to approach the 11+ and assessment day journey
On a typical early February morning families across London are waking up to decision letters from senior schools. For parents, it’s been a long journey – printing past papers at midnight, Googling ‘net of a cuboid’, waiting in coffee shops during assessments, and decoding their child’s post-test ‘I think it went OK’ feedback. Some even manage to squeeze in a reasoning test over breakfast the next day.
At the centre of all this is a child quietly carrying the weight of expectation. How the child feels – confident, anxious, motivated or discouraged – can shape not only their academic performance but also their sense of self as they step into secondary life. This is where pupil wellbeing must take centre stage. The 11+ is often framed around academic preparation, but it’s easy to forget what it feels like to be ten years old in the middle of this process. Nurturing confidence, balance and perspective is just as crucial as any revision schedule.
Schools have a responsibility to champion candidates and bring out the best in each child. A school’s admissions process should reflect its core values – kindness in how children are welcomed, compassion in listening to their stories, integrity in ensuring fairness, and respect in treating each child as an individual. Even before results arrive, the admissions experience offers families insights into whether a school is the right environment for their child. Beyond asking pupil tour guides about their lived experiences, the nature of the admissions process and interactions with staff are powerful indicators of school culture. Before applying, it’s worth asking yourself: ‘does this process allow my child to feel seen and supported, not just assessed?’.
Parents often ask how best to prepare their child for assessment days. My advice is simple: ensure they are well rested and have had a nourishing breakfast and, most importantly, reassure them that the day is about curiosity and enjoyment and not perfection. The goal is for pupils to feel confident that the assessment is not a test, but an opportunity to explore, collaborate, and express themselves in an environment rooted in kindness and respect. When assessments are framed in this way, they become less about pressure and more about giving every child the chance to be themselves. This supports a diverse community and reflects the values that underpin education.
Our aim is for every pupil to leave the day feeling proud of who they are, valued for their individuality and excited about the next chapter, whatever the outcome. Small acts of encouragement, like a handwritten note from the Head commenting on a child’s creative writing, can make a lasting impact. These gestures matter because at the heart of this process is a young person beginning a life-changing journey of navigating friendships, discovering passions, and developing a sense of self.
So, instead of asking your child how the test went on the journey home, try asking if the staff were kind, they made any friends and whether someone was there to help when they got stuck. The answers to those questions tell you more than a test score and offer the clearest sense of whether your child will thrive in that school.
Streatham & Clapham High School schs.gdst.net
Further reading: How to avoid the 11+
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