Two organisations write almost every 11+ exam in England: GL Assessment and CEM. GL is by far the most common and runs the large majority of tests. The practical difference is simple. GL splits each subject into its own predictable paper, while CEM blends topics together and leans hard on vocabulary. Once you know which one your child's school uses, you know what to practise.
- GL Assessment runs most 11+ exams. CEM, now part of Cambridge, is the next biggest.
- GL uses separate, predictable subject papers. CEM mixes topics and pushes vocabulary harder.
- Both test the same four skills: maths, English, verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning.
- Find your school's board first. After that, daily practice matters far more than the logo on the paper.
GL or CEM: what is the real difference?
GL gives you separate, predictable subject papers; CEM gives you broader mixed papers with a heavy vocabulary load. That single sentence explains most of what parents worry about.
GL Assessment, once known as NFER, publishes set question types in clear formats. You can buy past papers and your child will meet the same shapes of question on the day. That predictability is a gift if you prepare in an organised way.
CEM, the Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring, is now part of Cambridge University Press. It was built to be harder to coach. It folds reading, comprehension, spelling and numerical work into longer mixed papers, and its online versions adapt as the child answers. The two boards have actually grown closer in recent years, so the gap is smaller than the forums suggest.
Which board does your child's school use?
Check the school's admissions page or phone the office. The board and the format are published, not secret, so you never have to guess.
Some areas run a shared consortium test that covers several schools at once, while other schools register separately. If your child is applying to more than one school, confirm each one, because a single town can use different boards. It all sits alongside the other moving parts of what the 11+ actually is.
Does the board change how you prepare?
A little, but less than people think. The core skills are identical, so most of your effort should go on those.
For GL, lean into familiar question types and timed past papers once the basics are solid. For CEM, widen the diet: read more, grow vocabulary, and practise switching between topics quickly. Either way, the foundation is the same, and a calm start in Year 4 or early Year 5 gives you room to cover everything without cramming. A few minutes of daily reasoning practice with Pip keeps all four 11+ subjects ticking over, whichever board you face.
Neither GL nor CEM uses negative marking. Tell your child to answer every single question, even a quick guess on the ones they run out of time for. A blank scores zero; a guess might not.
Is CEM really tutor-proof?
No, and I would not lose sleep over the label. CEM is harder to drill than GL, but it is still very learnable, which is the whole point of preparing properly rather than memorising answers.
Children who read widely and reason regularly do well on CEM because it rewards genuine understanding. That is good news, not bad. It means the work you do builds real skill instead of disposable tricks, and it travels into secondary school too.
What to do next
Confirm the board, then stop thinking about it. Once you know whether it is GL or CEM, the day-to-day plan barely changes: short, regular sessions across maths, English and reasoning.
There is more to the exam than the two boards, from the paper format to how long it runs, and it helps to see how the whole 11+ journey fits together.