Cranbrook School
Cranbrook, Kent · Mixed · 11-18
Reviewed against the school’s own admissions policy · September 2026
Cranbrook School — a co-educational state grammar school founded in 1518, and a rare state boarding school. Kent Test at 11+; the school's own exam at 13+.
Key facts
| Gender intake | Mixed |
| Age range | 11-18 |
| Admissions test | Kent Test |
| Year 7 places (PAN) | 90 |
| Official website | www.cranbrookschool.co.uk/ |
The entrance test
Every applicant sits the first stage; each step below narrows to the last.
Sit the Kent Test (Year 7 day entry)
Reach the county selective standard
Ranked — priority area first (Pupil Premium, need, siblings), then distance
Year 7 day places offered
90
A co-educational state grammar school, founded in 1518, and one of very few state boarding schools in England. Year 7 entry is 90 day places on the Kent Test; the larger external intake is at 13+ (Year 9), which includes boarding and uses the school's own entrance exam. For day places, priority runs looked-after children, then — all within the priority area — Pupil Premium, social need, and siblings, then staff children, then other priority-area residents, then everyone else.
How places are decided
Priority order when the school is oversubscribed. The small categories are settled first.
- 1Looked-after & previously looked-after children
- 2Pupil Premium in the priority area
- 3Social need in the priority area
- 4Siblings in the priority area
- 5Children of staff
- 6Other priority-area residentsmost places
- 7Children outside the priority area
Catchment & priority area
Area-based priority
Day places have a priority area: the parishes of Cranbrook & Sissinghurst, Goudhurst, Staplehurst, Frittenden, Benenden, Sandhurst and Hawkhurst, plus any home within 8.5 km of the school in a straight line. Boarding places have no priority area at all. Distance decides within each tier.
Key dates
The same timetable for every Kent grammar school. Confirm the current year with KCC.
1 June – 1 July
Register for the Kent Test with KCC
Early September
Test sat, in Year 6
15 October
Results released
1 March
National offer day
Always verify against the school’s own current admissions policy — criteria, catchment boundaries and places-available can all change between admissions cycles, and Cranbrook School’s own website is the authoritative source, not this page.
All Kent grammar schools use the same county-wide test — see the format, timeline and registration process. For the wider picture of grammar schools across England, see UK Grammar Schools: List, Competition & Results.
Common questions about Cranbrook School
What is the catchment area for Cranbrook School?
Day places have a priority area — the parishes of Cranbrook & Sissinghurst, Goudhurst, Staplehurst, Frittenden, Benenden, Sandhurst and Hawkhurst, plus any home within 8.5 km of the school. Boarding places have no priority area.
How do you get into Cranbrook School?
Year 7 (11+): 90 day places, decided by the county Kent Test. Year 9 (13+): the larger external intake, including boarding places, decided by the school's own entrance exam (English, maths and non-verbal reasoning).
Does Cranbrook School charge fees?
Day education is free, as at any state school. Boarders pay for board and lodging only — not tuition.
How many Year 7 places does Cranbrook School offer?
90 day places at Year 7. Cranbrook is the only school in Kent with a Year 9 entry point.
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