Special arrangements and reasonable adjustments
Unable to sit the test on a Saturday for religious reasons
If your child cannot sit tests on Saturdays for religious reasons, the Grammar Schools in Birmingham can arrange an alternative test day for your child.
When registering your child's details online for the selective test, you must tick the relevant box and supply a supporting letter from their religious leader if you would like them to do this.
An alternative date will not be offered without a supporting letter. This letter must be submitted no later than Friday 30 June 2023.
Reasonable adjustments
If your child has a disability and requires additional resources or special arrangements to sit the test, you must email admissions@ske.uk.net to request an additional form to complete. You must also tick the relevant box when registering your child's details online for the test.
It is your responsibility to ensure that the additional form has been requested and returned by Wednesday 14 June 2023 (note that this is earlier than the test registration deadline).
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 information from your child's primary school detailing what arrangements are currently in place 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 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.
A panel of professionals assesses each request, and you will be notified of their decision by the end of July.
The panel consists of an Educational Psychologist, a Qualified Teacher of the Visually Impaired, a Qualified Teacher of Children with a Hearing Impairment and professionals in 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 for written tests at school due to 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 the panel would likely refuse a request for additional time in this example.
The decision of the panel is final and will not be reviewed.
If the additional form has not been completed and returned to the Grammar Schools in Birmingham by the deadline, no special arrangements can be considered for your child in this test.
Note that this date is earlier than the test registration deadline and that information provided after this date will not be considered.
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 consider the effect of any illness.
