There are three main kinds of selection in the comprehensive school system:

Partially selective schools select only a proportion of pupils by ability oraptitude, whereas Grammar schools are normally wholly selective by ability. Depending on where you live, there may be one 11+ type test which children sit to assess their ability for a selective place; or individual schools may run their own tests. Your local education authority can advise.

Banding is used by some comprehensive schools to ensure that their intake has a spread of pupils of all levels of ability. Children applying for a place are tested and placed into an ability band based on their test results. If there are more applications than places available within a specific "band", then normal oversubscription criteria are applied to decide who should be offered a place. The 1998 School Standards and Framework Act:

Rules out any new selection by ability, except for 6th forms and banding

arrangements;

Allows grammar schools to continue with their selective admission arrangements.

These arrangements can only be changed by parental ballot or by proposals from the

school's governing body;

Allows schools which have existing partially selective admission arrangements

(defined as arrangements which were in place in the 1997/98 school year and

continuously since then) to continue with those arrangements provided there is no

change in the method of selection or the proportion of pupils selected;

Allows schools with a specialism in certain subjects to admit up to 10% of pupils on

the basis of their aptitude for one or more specialist subjects. The "relevant subjects" are:

physical education or sport;

the performing arts;

the visual arts;

modern foreign languages;

design and technology;

information technology.

The Act also established independent adjudicators to consider objections by a school

to another's admission arrangements (except arrangements that can be changed only

by other statutory procedures). Adjudicators can rule out, or modify, proposed

admission arrangements (including partial selection).

Parents may make an objection against some existing partial selection arrangements

(i.e. arrangements continuing since 1997/98 which are permitted only because they

were already in place).