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Sutton SET 11+ Practice Papers

A complete Stage One style paper set for the Sutton Selective Eligibility Test: a maths paper and an English paper, built to match the question types Sutton Grammar School itself publishes, including "select TWO" and "select all correct" questions. Full answers and a lozenge style answer sheet. Free, no sign-up.

Maths + English 27 questions Lozenge answer sheet No VR or NVR
SUTTON SET · STAGE ONE STYLE

English 17 + Maths 10

Built to the official 2027 entry sample format
  • English: spelling, two full passages, cross-text comparison
  • "Select TWO" and "select all correct" questions, scored properly
  • Maths: single best answer, elimination-style explanations
  • Printable lozenge style answer sheet
  • Full mark schemes with every answer explained
Download the PDF
Free · no sign-up · 14 pages, prints on A4

What is the Sutton SET?

Six schools, one shared Stage One test. Register once and your child sits a single Selective Eligibility Test, which then opens the door to each school's own next step.

SchoolWhat passing the SET leads to
Greenshaw High SchoolDirect consideration for an ability place
Sutton Grammar SchoolInvitation to Stage Two
Wallington County Grammar SchoolInvitation to Stage Two
Wallington High School for GirlsInvitation to Stage Two
Nonsuch High School for GirlsInvitation to Stage Two
Wilson's SchoolInvitation to Stage Two
The fact that changes everything. Sutton Grammar School states plainly that the SET does not include verbal reasoning or non-verbal reasoning. There is no VR or NVR paper, and none hidden inside the English paper either, though strong vocabulary and inference skills obviously still help. Time spent on classic VR question types, codes, sequences, analogies, is largely wasted for this specific test.

School list and outcomes taken from the official Sutton Council 2027 entry admissions page.

The Sutton SET format, exactly as published

PaperTimeFormat
Englishabout 50 minMultiple choice: single answer, select two, select all correct, or select the one that is NOT correct
Mathematicsabout 40 to 50 minMultiple choice, single best answer, A to E

Sutton Grammar School's own official sample documents break the English paper into four timed sections: Section A Spelling (5 minutes), Section B Text 1 (25 minutes), Section C Text 2 (10 minutes) and Section D Comparing the texts (10 minutes). Candidates may move freely between questions within that time.

The mechanic that catches children out. The English paper is not always "pick the one right answer". Sutton's own marking notes state that for a "select two" question, a candidate only scores if both correct answers are selected. One right answer alone scores nothing. For "select all that are correct" questions, there are always 2, 3 or 4 correct options: the answer is never all five. A child used to single-answer papers will lose easy marks here purely from habit, not from not knowing the material.

The maths paper stays multiple choice throughout, single best answer, A to E, broadly Key Stage 2 in content. Sutton Grammar School's own worked examples do not show long calculations: they show what a child can rule out before calculating, for example spotting that a multiplication answer must end in a particular digit. That elimination habit is worth more practice time than raw calculation speed.

What is in these practice papers

Both papers, built to the published SET format, with mark schemes and a lozenge style answer sheet. Fourteen pages.

1

Spelling

Five single-answer spelling questions, the same format as Sutton's own Section A.

2

Text 1 and Text 2

Two original passages written for this paper, each followed by a mix of single-answer, select-two, select-all and NOT-correct questions.

3

Comparing the texts

Section D questions that ask what is true of both passages at once, exactly like Sutton's own sample.

4

Maths: 10 questions

Single best answer, A to E, with explanations that model the elimination strategy Sutton's own worked examples use.

5

Lozenge answer sheet

A printable answer sheet with the same oval-fill format as the real SET, so your child rehearses the recording method as well as the content.

6

Full mark schemes

Every answer explained. Multi-answer questions show every correct letter, not just one.

How the final Sutton Grammar School score is worked out

Sutton Grammar School is unusually transparent about this. Four standardised scores are calculated: the multiple choice English marks and multiple choice maths marks from the SET, plus the English and maths marks from the Stage Two test. These four scores are weighted in the ratio 2 : 2 : 3 : 3, an age allowance is added, and the total is rounded to the nearest four marks.

What this means in practice. Stage Two counts for more of the final score than Stage One, even though Stage One is the gate that decides who sits Stage Two at all. A child needs to clear the SET comfortably enough to be invited, and then treat Stage Two as the part that actually decides the outcome, not as a formality.

Sutton SET key dates for 2027 entry

DateWhat happens
1 May 2026SET registration opens
31 July 2026SET registration closes
15 September 2026The shared Sutton SET takes place
3 October 2026Sutton Grammar School's own Stage Two test

Dates from the official Sutton Council 2027 entry admissions page and Sutton Grammar School's own FAQs. Stage Two dates vary by school; always confirm against each school's own website.

How to use these papers

  1. Read every instruction line out loud at first. "Select two" and "select all that are correct" need to become automatic, not something spotted mid-question.
  2. Mark strictly. If a select-two question has only one correct lozenge filled, that is zero marks on the real test. Mark it that way at home too.
  3. Time the English sections separately. 5, 25, 10 and 10 minutes. Rushing Text 1 to save time for Section D is a real risk worth rehearsing against.
  4. In maths, ask "what can I rule out" before "what is the answer". That is how Sutton's own sample explanations are written.
  5. Skip verbal and non-verbal reasoning practice for this specific test. It is not tested. Spend that time on comprehension and vocabulary instead.
An honest word on this paper. These are original Pip questions written to match Sutton's own published question types, and both passages are our own writing. They are not past papers, and Sutton states plainly that its own sample documents do not represent every question type used in recent years. We built this because free official material is limited to a handful of worked examples per subject.

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Sutton SET practice papers: FAQs

What is the Sutton SET exam?

The Selective Eligibility Test, always shortened to SET, is a shared Stage One entrance test used by six schools in the London Borough of Sutton: Greenshaw High School, Sutton Grammar School, Wallington County Grammar School, Wallington High School for Girls, Nonsuch High School for Girls and Wilson's School. Children register once and sit one shared test, which then determines whether they are invited to each school's own Stage Two examination.

Does the Sutton SET test verbal or non-verbal reasoning?

No. Sutton Grammar School states plainly that the SET does not include verbal reasoning or non-verbal reasoning. It tests only English and maths. This is the single biggest difference between the SET and tests like the Kent Test, the Buckinghamshire Secondary Transfer Test or any GL-based paper, all of which carry a dedicated reasoning component.

What format is the Sutton SET?

Stage One is two multiple choice papers, English and maths, each roughly 40 to 50 minutes long. Answers are recorded on a separate lozenge shaped answer sheet, marked by filling in an oval for option A, B, C, D or E. Sutton Grammar School's own sample materials also show questions that ask for more than one answer: 'select the TWO most accurate' and 'select all that are correct', both scored differently from a normal single-answer question.

What happens after the Sutton SET?

It depends on the school. For Greenshaw High School, doing well in the SET makes a child eligible to be considered for an ability place directly. For the other five schools, it makes a child eligible to sit that school's own Stage Two test, the Shared Second Stage Entrance Examination, which is around 45 minutes to an hour per paper, not multiple choice, and also does not test verbal or non-verbal reasoning.

How is the final Sutton Grammar School score worked out?

Sutton Grammar School publishes its exact method: four standardised scores are calculated, from the multiple choice English marks and multiple choice maths marks on the SET, and from the English and maths marks on the Stage Two test. These four scores are weighted in the ratio 2:2:3:3, an age allowance is added, and the total is rounded to the nearest four marks. Stage Two therefore counts for more than Stage One in the final result, even though Stage One decides who sits Stage Two at all.

What does 'select the TWO correct answers' mean on the SET English paper?

It means exactly what it says: the question has precisely two correct options among five, and Sutton Grammar School's own marking notes state that a candidate only gains marks if they select both of the correct answers. Choosing just one of the two correct options, even though it is right, scores nothing. Selecting more than two options also scores nothing.

When is the Sutton SET in 2026?

For September 2027 entry, the shared SET is on Tuesday 15 September 2026, with registration open from 1 May to 31 July 2026. Sutton Grammar School's own Stage Two test is scheduled for Saturday 3 October 2026. Always confirm dates on the school's own website before relying on them, since Sutton's own guidance notes that details can change.

Are these official Sutton SET papers?

No. This is an original Pip practice paper written to match the question types Sutton Grammar School itself demonstrates in its own official sample documents. It is not a past paper, and Sutton states plainly that its published samples do not represent every question type used in recent years. Pip is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to any of the six SET schools.

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Pip is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to Greenshaw High School, Sutton Grammar School, Wallington County Grammar School, Wallington High School for Girls, Nonsuch High School for Girls, Wilson's School or the London Borough of Sutton. These practice papers are original material written to match the published question format and contain no official questions. Both passages are our own writing.