Admissions process
We welcome applicants to join Habs at any of our four formal entry points: 4+, 7+, 11+ and 16+. Occasionally we also have spaces in Years 4, 5, 8, 9 and 10.
Below, you will find a step-by-step guide to visiting our school, applying, assessments, interviews and accepting an offer.
and Overseas
Key dates for Reception
Key dates for Reception
Visit us
If you are interested in your daughter joining us in September 2025 for the 4+ entry, please come and visit us at our Open Day on Saturday 5 October or at one of our School in Action days.
General information
Joining our community in Reception offers girls an academically outstanding education filled with awe and wonder.
We offer 40 Reception places each year.
We have high expectations for our students, so it is important that we ensure your daughter would be given the space to thrive at Habs.
Entry is for candidates aged 4 and below the age of 5 on the 1st September in the year of entry.
Group activity sessions
In the Autumn term prior to the year of entry, your child will be invited to a group activity session lasting about 50 minutes, which will be assessed.
Children with birth months in close proximity are placed in the same group, with twins from the same family placed in separate groups.
Parent interviews and child assessment
A select number of children will return for a second stage, which is an informal meeting.
As a parent, you will be invited to meet the Head of the Junior School and other members of our Senior Leadership Team whilst your daughter takes part in some one-to-one activities. In the meeting, you can ask us questions and decide if you think we are right for your daughter.
These meetings are also an important way for us to get to know your family, making sure our ethos and values are aligned with yours.
We will also ask your child’s nursery or pre-school (if applicable) to provide a short written reference.
Key dates for Year 3
Key dates for Year 3
Visit us
If you are interested in your daughter joining us in September 2025 for the 7+ entry, please come and visit us at our Open Day on Saturday 5 October or at one of our School in Action days.
General information
Joining Habs Girls in our Junior School, is an academically ambitious introduction to lifelong learning and interests beyond school.
Each year, we look to welcome ten new pupils to join our Year 3 cohort.
Entry is for candidates aged 7 and below the age of 8 on the 1st September in the year of entry.
Formal assessments
In November your daughter will join us for a morning of mixed activities including Art, PE, Maths and English.
We will be observing how they work together in groups and also individually.
Interviews
Around half of the participants of the activity morning will return for a second stage at the end of the Autumn Term. This will be for a formal assessment, involving reading, writing, maths, and a group discussion.
As a parent, you will be invited to meet the Head of the Junior School and other members of our Senior Leadership Team. In the meeting, you can ask us questions and decide if you think we are right for your daughter.
These meetings are also an important way for us to get to know your family, making sure our ethos and values are aligned with yours.
At this stage, we will also ask your daughter’s current school to provide a written reference.
Key dates for Year 7
Key dates for Year 7
Visit us
If you are interested in your daughter joining us in September 2025 for the 11+ entry, please come and visit us at our Open Day on Saturday 5 October or at one of our School in Action days.
General information
Joining Habs Girls in our Senior School offers a superb education which will help to prepare your child for a fulfilling life with broad interests and abilities.
Each year there are between 80 to 85 Year 7 (Lower 4) places available.
Entry is for candidates aged 11 and below the age of 12 on the 1st September in the year of entry.
Entrance assessments
Your child will sit written papers in English and Maths:
- The English assessment will include questions on fiction and non-fiction texts, testing your child’s ability to understand, infer and evaluate. There will also be a short, directed writing task, giving them the opportunity to prove that they can write effectively for a specific purpose and audience.
- The Maths assessment will test your child’s ability to think mathematically and logically. It will cover addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, along with fractions, decimals, percentages, the metric system of weights and measures, the 12- and 24-hour clock, time problems, and geometric shapes and bar graphs. Calculators may not be brought into the assessment.
Interviews
On the basis of the assessment results, around half of the students are invited to come back for an interview. Your child will not need to bring anything with them (such as books, projects or other work).
On the same day, we ask that one or both parents also attend. You will meet with the Headmistress of the School and one of our Senior staff. These meetings are an important way for us all to be sure that what you are looking for is what we offer, and that our ethos and values are aligned with yours.
Financial support
Means-tested financial support is available to those joining us at 11+ who would greatly benefit from attending Habs, but for financial reasons would be unable to make an application.
A place will first need to be offered, based on students meeting the assessment criteria for their entry point.
Families will need to prove financial need by completing a confidential statement of income.
It is possible to gain access to financial support and be offered a scholarship simultaneously.
More about our financial support.
Scholarships
11+ scholarships are available for academic ability, art, creative writing, drama, music and sports.
It is possible to hold a scholarship and gain financial support simultaneously.
More about our scholarships.
Key dates for Sixth form
Key dates for Sixth form
Visit us
If you are interested in joining us in September 2025 for the 16+ entry, please come and visit us on our open evening.
General information
The Sixth Form at Habs Girls and Habs Boys offer state of the art facilities, maximising every opportunity across both schools. Joining us at Sixth Form offers you a fantastic springboard for life after school, so you leave as more interesting and interested individuals, ready to take your place in society.
Eligibility for applying to our Sixth Form, asks for a minimum of nine GCSE’s grade seven and above, including Maths and English (some subjects will require an 8 or 9).
Entry is for candidates aged 16 and below the age of 17 on the 1st September in the year of entry.
GCSE results
If you would like to join our Sixth Form, we ask for nine GCSEs including Maths and English.
In most subjects, we look for a minimum Grade 7 at GCSE. Or, if the A level you want to take is in a subject new to you, then Grade 7 in a relevant/related subject. For some subjects, in order for all of our students to thrive, we have higher GCSE grade requirements:
- Maths, Biology, Chemistry and Physics – a Grade 8 is essential but we would recommend a Grade 9.
- Further Maths – a strong Grade 9 is required.
- Economics and Computing – a Grade 8 in GCSE Maths is required but we would recommend a Grade 9.
- Philosophy and Politics – a Grade 8 in a related GCSE subject, such as Religious Studies, English or History, is recommended.
If you have not studied the following subjects at GCSE, but you are interested for A level, it may be possible for you to join the course:
- Classical Civilisation
- Design & Technology
- Geography
- History
- Psychology
- Religious Studies
Assessments and interviews
For the first stage of our selection process, you will need to sit a one-hour general paper in November.
If you are studying Maths, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Economics or Computer Science, you will also need to sit a one-hour Maths paper.
If you are studying languages you will need to sit a thirty-minute language competency paper.
On the basis of the written exam results, a select number of candidates are asked to come back for an interview later on in November.
This is a series of structured subject interviews, and you will be asked to demonstrate your knowledge and skills relating to your proposed A level subjects.
Financial support
Means-tested financial support is available to those joining us at 11+ who would greatly benefit from attending Habs, but for financial reasons would be unable to make an application.
A place will first need to be offered, based on students meeting the assessment criteria for their entry point.
Families will need to prove financial need by completing a confidential statement of income.
It is possible to gain access to financial support and be offered a scholarship simultaneously.
More about our financial support.
Scholarships
Sixth Form scholarships are available for music.
It is possible to hold a scholarship and gain financial support simultaneously.
More about our scholarships.
