Apply to Queen Elizabeth's School, Barnet, in plain English.
QE Barnet (QE Boys) is one of the country's most competitive grammar schools: all 180 places are offered strictly in rank order of the score from its own two entrance-test papers, with no catchment area at all. More than 790 families name QE as a preference each year for those 180 places, so the qualifying score is high. You must return the entrance test request form to the school by 8 July 2026 at midday — late entries are not accepted.
The three things to know first.
If you read nothing else on this page, read these.
QE runs its own entrance test — the request form closes 8 July 2026 at midday.
QE Barnet does not use the Kent, Bexley or any borough 11+. Boys sit the school's own two papers — Maths and English (multiple choice) on one of 16 or 17 September 2026. You must return the entrance test request form directly to the school by 8 July 2026 at midday. The form opens on 1 May 2026 and no late entries are accepted.
All 180 places go to the highest scorers — there are no reserved categories.
QE is "super-selective": after the two papers are marked and standardised into a single combined score, the top 180 boys are offered places in rank order. There is no Pupil Premium set-aside, no sibling priority and no faith criterion. Looked-after and previously looked-after children who meet the standard keep their statutory first priority, as the law requires.
There is no catchment area. Distance is only a tie-break between equal scores.
QE has no geographic catchment. A boy from anywhere in England competes on exactly the same terms. Where you live changes nothing about your rank — distance is used only to separate two boys with identical combined scores (the nearer boy first, by straight-line distance to the main gate), with a random ballot as the final tie-break.
Four steps — starting now.
Only boys who reach the qualifying standard are considered — then rank decides.
First, a boy must reach QE's qualifying standard on the combined test score. Qualifying boys are then placed in a single rank order, and the criteria below decide who is offered the 180 places. Tap any criterion to see the exact wording.
In plain English: A boy who is, or was, in council care and who reaches the qualifying standard is placed first, ahead of other qualifying boys. In practice this group is very small.
What the document says: Highest priority is given to looked-after children and previously looked-after children who attain the qualifying standard, as required by the School Admissions Code.
In plain English: Every other qualifying boy is ranked purely by his combined test score, and the highest-scoring boys are offered places until all 180 are filled — wherever they live. There is no Pupil Premium, sibling, faith or staff priority. If two boys have exactly the same combined score, the one living closer to the school (by straight-line distance to the main gate) is placed higher; if they are still tied, an independent random ballot decides.
What the document says: Remaining places are offered to qualifying applicants in rank order of combined standardised score. Where applicants are tied, priority is determined by straight-line distance from the home address to the main school gate, and finally by random allocation.
What "qualifying standard" means: QE sets a minimum combined score each year — for 2027 entry the published standard is 225 or higher. A boy below the standard cannot be offered a place even if there is space; a boy above it still needs to rank within the top 180.
No geographic boundary. Your score is what counts.
QE has no catchment area and no geographic restriction whatsoever. Once a boy reaches the qualifying standard, his place depends only on where his combined score ranks against everyone else's. A boy in Hertfordshire, Enfield or Harrow competes on exactly the same terms as a boy in Barnet. The illustrative circle on the map shows roughly how far QE's intake travels from — it is not a boundary.
Distance only ever matters as a tie-break: if two boys finish on exactly the same combined score, the one living closer to the main gate (measured in a straight line) is placed higher, and a random ballot settles any remaining tie. For almost every applicant, home address has no bearing on the outcome.
See QE Barnet's location on the GrammarBound mapTwo qualifying boys ranked by score — not by where they live.
Both boys qualify and neither is in care, so they are ranked purely by combined score. Child A scored 248 and lives far from school. Child B scored 231 and lives much closer. Child A ranks above Child B because score — not proximity — decides. Living nearby would only have helped if their scores had been exactly equal.
You have two routes, and you can use both.
Waiting list
QE holds a waiting list in rank-score order and re-ranks it whenever a name is added. Only boys who sat the test and qualified can be on it. Ask QE's admissions office to add your son after National Offer Day.
Request via QE Barnet Admissions directly.
Appeal
You can appeal to an independent panel. Because QE is super-selective, an appeal generally has to show the test result did not reflect your son's true ability. Appealing does not remove him from the waiting list.