A parent sees 72% on an 11+ mock and immediately asks the obvious question: “Is that good enough?” Unfortunately, a percentage on a practice paper cannot give a universal yes-or-no answer. The real 11+ is not one national exam, schools and regions use different formats, and many real results are standardised rather than reported as a simple raw percentage.
That does not make mock scores useless. Quite the opposite: used properly, they are one of the best ways to see whether a child is becoming more accurate, faster and calmer under exam conditions. The trick is to stop treating a single number as a prediction and start treating it as evidence.
Why there is no magic mock percentage
A score of 75% can mean very different things on two papers. One paper may be relatively accessible; another may be deliberately stretching. A child may also score 75% because they answered nearly everything but made careless errors, while another child reaches the same percentage after leaving a whole section unfinished.
The second child's biggest issue is probably timing. The first child's issue may be checking, reading instructions or accuracy. The headline score is identical, but the revision plan should be completely different.
Real grammar-school admissions also vary. Some areas use age-standardised scores, some schools have qualifying thresholds, and oversubscribed schools can apply additional admissions rules. Always check the current official admissions information for the school or local authority you are targeting.
What should parents track instead?
Use four measures after every meaningful mock:
If one subject keeps pulling the overall result down, work through graded practice on that topic rather than sitting another whole paper. Browse free 11+ worksheets by subject
- Accuracy: Of the questions attempted, how many were correct?
- Completion: How much of the paper did your child actually reach?
- Subject pattern: Is one area consistently pulling the overall result down?
- Error pattern: Were marks lost through knowledge gaps, misreading, guessing or rushing?
A child moving from 64% to 68% while finishing more of the paper may be making excellent progress. Equally, a child sitting at 82% for weeks may have plateaued because the same vocabulary or non-verbal reasoning mistakes keep returning.
A simple way to review a mock
Do not mark the paper, announce the score and put it away. Spend ten minutes sorting mistakes into three groups.
Did not know: The child genuinely lacked the method, vocabulary or concept. This needs targeted teaching and worksheets.
Knew but misread: The knowledge was there, but the instruction, unit, negative wording or detail was missed. This needs slower reading and checking habits.
Ran out of time: The child could probably answer the question, but did not reach it. This needs timed practice and a sensible skip-and-return strategy.
That three-way split is more useful than comparing your child's mark with a friend's mark.
When should scores start becoming more stable?
Early in preparation, scores often jump around. Children are learning new question types and may be sitting unfamiliar papers. As preparation becomes more mature, you want to see a steadier pattern: fewer avoidable mistakes, better completion, and less dependence on having seen an identical question before.
In the final phase, use full timed mocks regularly enough that the exam format feels normal, but not so often that every evening becomes another test. Between mocks, repair the weaknesses the last paper exposed.
The best question after a mock
Instead of asking, “Is 72% enough?”, ask:
“What would move this child from 72% to 77% most efficiently?”
If five marks disappeared through fractions, practise fractions. If six questions were untouched, work on pace. If verbal reasoning collapses whenever unfamiliar vocabulary appears, build vocabulary in context.
That is how a mock becomes a revision tool rather than a source of family anxiety.
Try a free timed paper
Use the EduArchives 11+ mock library to sit a full paper under realistic timing, then review the score by skill rather than obsessing over one percentage.
Frequently asked questions
Is 80% a guaranteed 11+ pass?
No. There is no universal percentage that guarantees a grammar-school place. Paper difficulty, standardisation and local admissions arrangements all matter.
Should I compare mock scores with other children?
Only cautiously. Different papers, ages, preparation levels and target schools make direct comparisons unreliable. Your child's own trend is usually more useful.
How often should my child sit a full mock?
That depends on stage and stamina. Early preparation should emphasise skills; full timed papers become more valuable once the child knows the main question types and needs to develop pace and exam technique.