An open day is your best chance to see past the polish, so go with questions ready. The most useful ones are practical: which exam board the school uses, the typical standardised score of children who get in, whether there is a second-stage interview, how the appeals process works, and what support is on offer once your child is enrolled. The answers tell you how competitive entry really is and what daily life would feel like, far more than a guided tour alone.
- Ask which exam board the school uses and the typical entry score.
- Check whether there is a second-stage interview and how appeals work.
- Ask what pastoral and academic support is available once enrolled.
- Use the answers to judge fit, not just to be impressed by the tour.
Why questions matter at open days
Open days are designed to show a school at its best, and that is fair enough. But to choose well you need the practical detail underneath the showcase.
A few sharp questions turn a pleasant visit into useful research. They give you the facts you cannot get from a website, and a feel for how openly the school answers.
Which exam board and entry scores
First, confirm which exam board the school uses, because it shapes how your child should prepare. If you are unsure of the difference, our guide to GL versus CEM is a quick primer.
Then ask about the typical standardised score of children who are offered places. It helps to understand what a standardised score means first, so the figure they give you is genuinely useful for setting a target.
Open days are busy and it is easy to forget what you meant to ask. A short list on your phone, covering entry, process and support, makes sure you leave with the answers that matter.
Interview, appeals and criteria
Ask whether there is a second-stage interview or assessment beyond the 11+, since some schools have one and it changes how you prepare.
Find out how the appeals process works and what the oversubscription criteria are, so you understand your real chances. This connects to the honest picture in our guide on whether you can appeal an 11+ result.
Support once enrolled
Entry is only the start. Ask what pastoral care, settling-in support and academic help the school offers, especially if your child has any particular needs.
A school that talks thoughtfully about supporting children, not just selecting them, tells you a lot about the culture your child would join.
Use the answers to choose
Back home, line the answers up across the schools you visited. The practical detail makes it far easier to compare them honestly rather than on first impressions.
Feed it all into the wider thinking in our guide to choosing which schools to apply to, and if you are still weighing selective against non-selective, our take on whether grammar schools are better than comprehensives can help. Meanwhile, steady practice with Pip keeps your child ready for whichever school wins your shortlist.