Trafford has more grammar schools than any other Greater Manchester borough: seven schools across two consortia. Together they're the most popular state-secondary destination for high-achieving Year 6 children in the North West.
Trafford's two consortia
- Altrincham Group — Altrincham Grammar Boys', Altrincham Grammar Girls', Loreto, Stretford.
- Other Trafford — Sale Grammar, Urmston Grammar, Stretford Grammar.
Each consortium uses its own version of the CEM test, but the format is broadly the same.
Test format
Two papers sat in early September of Year 6:
- Paper 1 — English with Verbal Reasoning (~50 min).
- Paper 2 — Maths with Numerical Reasoning (~50 min).
CEM-style mixed sections within each paper. Mostly multiple-choice with answer sheets.
Pass marks
The qualifying score for the most popular Trafford grammars (Altrincham Boys', Altrincham Girls') sits around 340 standardised. Other Trafford grammars use a lower threshold of ~325.
What's distinctive
- CEM-style timing is tight. Children who can complete papers in time tend to do well.
- Maths is mixed with numerical reasoning — questions test problem solving as much as arithmetic.
- Catchment is the major tiebreaker for popular schools. Distance from school gates matters significantly.
Preparation
Quest Arena's mock library includes 30 CEM-style mixed-paper mocks, and our centre-specific library includes Altrincham and Sale Grammar style sets.