St Olave's Grammar School in Orpington is one of the highest-achieving boys' grammar schools in the country, and one of only two grammars in the London Borough of Bromley. It is also one of the purest super-selectives anywhere: there is no catchment, and places go strictly in score order through a demanding two-stage test that, unusually, includes a marked creative writing task. Here is exactly how St Olave's admits, what its results look like, and how to prepare.
St Olave's results in 2025
St Olave's posts results that put it among the very best state schools in England, close behind Queen Elizabeth's Barnet and Wilson's, with pupils progressing to Oxbridge and other leading universities every year.
| 2025 results | Figure |
|---|---|
| A-level A* or A | 78% (39% A*) |
| A-level A* to B | 95.1% |
| GCSE grades 9 to 7 | Nearly 90% |
| GCSE grade 9 | 47% |
Figures are taken from the school's own published 2025 results. Always confirm the latest on the school website, and see how St Olave's sits against other top performers in our UK grammar school league table.
How to get into St Olave's: the two-stage 11+
St Olave's sets its own entrance test, in two stages:
- Stage one, the Selective Eligibility Test. A one-hour multiple-choice paper of around 60 questions covering English, logic (verbal and non-verbal reasoning) and maths. All applicants sit it, and roughly the top 450 boys are invited to stage two.
- Stage two, the written papers. Two one-hour papers sat on the same day: a maths paper, and an English paper made up of multiple-choice comprehension, written inference questions and a creative writing task. Stage two scores are standardised and aggregated with the stage-one marks to produce the final ranking.
Register directly with the school in the summer before Year 6, sit stage one in September, stage two a few weeks later if invited, and name St Olave's on your local authority application form. Confirm every date on the school's admissions pages, as they change each year.
The creative writing task, and why it matters
St Olave's is one of the grammar schools where writing genuinely counts. The stage-two English paper allocates marks across the comprehension sections and the creative writing exercise, so the writing feeds directly into the aggregated score that ranks boys for places. It goes further: if candidates tie, the published order of tie-breaks is performance in the maths paper, then the creative writing, then the English multiple-choice section, then the stage-one test.
In other words, a strong piece of writing can decide a place at the margin. If St Olave's is your target, treat writing as a core skill: our guides to which 11+ exams include creative writing and how to mark your child's creative writing at home show what examiners reward, and our Creative Writing workbook builds it one skill at a time with a self-marking scheme.
Places: no catchment, pure score order
St Olave's has 124 places and no catchment area at all. After places for looked-after children and up to 10 places for Pupil Premium boys who reach the standard, every remaining place is offered strictly in score rank order, from any address. Distance is used only as a final tie-break.
That makes it very different from its Bromley neighbour Newstead Wood, where a nine-mile radius decides places for girls, and where the test is verbal and non-verbal reasoning only rather than the written papers St Olave's sets. For the detail, see our St Olave's catchment guide, our full guide to grammar schools in Bromley, and the catchment checker.
Is St Olave's super-selective?
Yes, and like Wilson's in Sutton it is among the purest examples in the country. With no catchment protecting local applicants, boys apply from across south-east London and Kent, which pushes the effective bar very high. A comfortable pass is not the goal; the top of the scale is. For how this compares to catchment-based grammars, see super-selective vs standard-selective grammars.
How to prepare for the St Olave's 11+
Because places are decided by score, the gap between an offer and a near miss is small, so steady preparation matters. Stage one needs quick, accurate English, reasoning and maths under time pressure, and stage two adds written depth: comprehension with justified answers, and a confident piece of creative writing.
The free Pip app builds the core skills with adaptive daily practice, and you can download free practice papers too. For the full plan, read our step by step guide to passing the 11+, and aim well above the likely cut-off. Our guide to the 11+ pass mark explains what a competitive score looks like.
Frequently asked questions
How hard is it to get into St Olave's?+
Very. There are 124 places and no catchment, so it draws high scorers from a wide area. Around 450 boys are invited to stage two, and after looked-after children and up to 10 Pupil Premium places, the rest are offered strictly in score rank order.
What test does St Olave's use?+
Its own two-stage test. Stage one is a one-hour multiple-choice Selective Eligibility Test in English, logic and maths. Stage two is two written papers: maths, and English with comprehension and a creative writing task.
Does St Olave's test creative writing?+
Yes. The stage-two English paper includes a creative writing exercise that is marked into the aggregated ranking, and it is also a tie-break, after the maths paper and before the English multiple-choice section.
Does St Olave's have a catchment area?+
No. After looked-after children and up to 10 Pupil Premium places, places go strictly in score rank order from any address. Distance is only a final tie-break.
What were St Olave's 2025 results?+
Around 78 percent of A-levels at A* or A and about 95 percent A* to B, with nearly 90 percent of GCSEs at grades 9 to 7 and 47 percent at grade 9.
Where is St Olave's Grammar School?+
In Orpington, in the London Borough of Bromley. It is a boys' grammar school for ages 11 to 18, one of Bromley's two grammars alongside Newstead Wood for girls.
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