Know exactly where your child stands for King's Ely
Thousands of practice questions and up to 6 mock papers, all in the exact King's Ely 11+ format, on one simple plan. It starts with a free diagnostic.
Thousands of practice questions and up to 6 mock papers, all in the exact King's Ely 11+ format, on one simple plan. It starts with a free diagnostic.
King's Ely
King's Ely is an independent, co-educational day and boarding school in Cambridgeshire that admits pupils at Year 7. The 11+ admissions process consists of two stages, utilizing Quest Admissions and independent exams, and includes an interview stage. Located in Ely, the school offers a supportive environment where specialist subject teaching begins in Year 7.
King's Ely suits a child who likes being known by name and will happily give a Saturday morning to a fixture or a rehearsal. It is an independent, co-educational day and boarding school for children aged 2 to 18, set in the cathedral precincts of Ely in Cambridgeshire, a short train ride from Cambridge. A child arriving at 11 joins Year 7 in King's Ely Prep, which runs from Year 3 to Year 8, ages 7 to 13; specialist subject teachers take over in Year 7, and the move up to King's Ely Senior comes at 13.
The school was founded more than a thousand years ago to educate the choristers of Ely Cathedral, and refounded by Henry VIII in 1541 with a royal charter and twelve King's Scholars, who were allowed to play games, including the bowling of hoops, in the cathedral precincts. That permission survives as the Hoop Trundle, still run each year on the cathedral's east lawn, senior scholars in red gowns racing wooden hoops before a crowd; Queen's Scholars joined in 1973. Boys and girls still sing as cathedral choristers, and daily life goes on among medieval buildings, with the Old Palace on Palace Green and the Great Ouse nearby for rowing.
The Good Schools Guide describes 'a friendly, well-balanced, caring' community that values 'a broad range of abilities', which fits a school taking children from 2 to 18 rather than one chasing a single type. In Prep, a form tutor is the daily point of contact, with house staff, heads of year and a counsellor behind them. It suits a child who is curious rather than polished, glad of somewhere old and slightly odd to grow up in.
Key facts
Annual fees
Years 7-8 day £8,165 per annum (£2,721.67 per term) and boarding £12,479 per annum (£4,159.67 per term), inclusive of VAT (Sep 2025 - Aug 2026). Years 9-11 day £10,741 per annum (£3,580.33 per term) and boarding £16,177 per annum (£5,392.33 per term), inclusive of VAT. 2026/27 rates not yet published.
Admissions
Admissions contact
admissions@kingsely.org
Admissions phone
01353 660707
Registration form
Sibling policy
What this school tests
Quest Admissions
English
- Grammar
- Punctuation
- Reading Comprehension - Comparison
- Reading Comprehension - Evaluation
- Reading Comprehension - Grammar and punctuation
- Reading Comprehension - Inference and Deduction
- Reading Comprehension - Information Retrieval
- Reading Comprehension - Language Techniques and Imagery
- Reading Comprehension - Sentence-level Comprehension
- Reading Comprehension - Sequencing
- Reading Comprehension - Structure, Form, Voice and Tone
- Reading Comprehension - Summarising
- Reading Comprehension - Text Classification and Purpose
- Reading Comprehension - Types of Words and Phrases
- Reading Comprehension - Word Meaning / Choice
- Spelling
- Vocabulary
Maths
- Algebra
- Angles and Degrees
- BIDMAS
- Coordinate Grids
- Estimation and Rounding
- Factors and Multiples
- Fractions, Decimals and Percentages
- Measurement
- Money
- Number and Place Value
- Operations
- Perimeter, Area and Volume
- Position and Direction
- Properties of Shapes
- Ratio and Proportion
- Reflection, Rotation and Symmetry
- Sequences
- Special Numbers
- Speed, Distance and Time
- Statistics
- Time
Non-verbal Reasoning
- Figure Analogies
- Figure Matrices
- Figure Series
- Grid Matrices
- Horizontal Codes
- Match to a Group of Figures
- Most Like Three Figures
- Odd Figure Out
- Odd Shaped Matrices
- Star Matrices
- Triangle Matrices
- Vertical Codes
Verbal Reasoning
- Alphabet Logic
- Anagrams
- Compound Words
- Embedded Words
- Form a Word
- Insert 2 / 3 Letters
- Insert a Letter
- Letter Analogies
- Letter Sequences
- Move 1 / 2 Letters
- Ordering Words
- Rhyming Synonyms
- Shuffled Sentences
- Synonyms
- Word / Logic Puzzles
- Word Analogies
- Word Completion
- Word Match
- Word Opposites
- Word Pairs
- Word Relationships
- Word Swap
- Words and Codes
Spatial Reasoning
- 2D Rotations
- 2D View of 3D Shape
- 3D Rotations
- Block Counting
- Building Blocks
- Combining Shapes
- Diagonal Reflections
- Figure Missing from Image
- Fold and Punch
- Folding Cubes
- Hidden Shapes
- Missing Face of Cube
- Nets of 3D Shapes
- Shape Completion
Short Written Task
English
- Creative Writing - Descriptive
- Creative Writing - Narrative
- Creative Writing - Personal
- Creative Writing - Persuasive
Catchment area
Selection review and safety net
Previous exam results
GCSE results
A-level results
Frequently asked questions
What exam board does King's Ely use for the 11+?
King's Ely uses Quest Admissions alongside independent exam papers for its 11+ entrance assessment.
Does King's Ely interview candidates as part of the 11+?
Yes, the admissions process is completed in two stages and includes an interview stage.
Is King's Ely co-educational or single-sex?
King's Ely is a co-educational day and boarding school for boys and girls.
What are the annual fees for King's Ely?
For Years 7-8 (September 2025 - August 2026), day fees are £8,165 per annum and boarding fees are £12,479 per annum, inclusive of VAT.
What is the website for King's Ely admissions?
You can find more details and apply on the school's official admissions page at https://www.kingsely.org/admissions.
Location
https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!1m18!1m12!1m3!1d2434.631065563423!2d0.2585944!3d52.3952381!2m3!1f0!2f0!3f0!3m2!1i1024!2i768!4f13.1!3m3!1m2!1s0x47d8139819e40bf7%3A0xda4ebecd5cbdc361!2sKing's%20Ely%20Prep%20School!5e0!3m2!1sen!2sph!4v1787306436688!5m2!1sen!2sph
