Updated May 2026
CEM vs GL: How the Two 11+ Exams Differed - and What Changed in 2023
Important update: CEM (Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring, Durham University) withdrew from paper-based 11+ entrance exams from September 2023. If your child is sitting the 11+ now, they are almost certainly sitting a GL Assessment paper - or a regional format like CSSE (Essex), SET (Surrey/Kingston), or ISEB (independent schools). There are no longer CEM grammar school entrance exams in England.
This page explains how GL and CEM differed - useful historical context for parents who searched "CEM vs GL" and want to understand what changed, and why it matters for preparation today.
What Changed in 2023
CEM designed its exams to be less "coachable" than GL - mixed-format papers, no published question types, formats that shifted year to year. Despite this, a large tutoring industry grew around CEM preparation anyway. By 2023 CEM stepped back from the paper-based 11+ market.
Grammar schools in Birmingham, Warwickshire, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, and parts of northern England - which previously used CEM - have now moved to GL Assessment or in some cases adopted their own formats. Check your specific target school's admissions page to confirm.
Which Format Applies to Your Child Now?
GL Assessment: covers approximately 80% of grammar school entry tests in England. Kent, Medway, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, and most formerly-CEM areas.
CSSE (Consortium of Selective Schools in Essex): Essex grammar schools use their own consortium format.
SET (Selective Eligibility Test): Sutton and Kingston selective schools.
ISEB: independent schools, often sat online as a Common Pre-Test in Year 6.
Check your council website or target school's admissions page before buying any preparation materials. GL is the right assumption for most families in England.
GL: How It Works (Current)
Question Structure
Fixed types across all papers. Type numbers 1–21 are consistent. You can build pattern recognition.
Past Papers Value
Extremely high. Doing 50 GL papers is practice at the real skill you need. Questions are nearly identical to what you'll face.
Timing
20 questions in 20 minutes for VR/NVR. Tight, consistent pace across all schools and years.
Verbal Reasoning
Predictable types. If you've seen type 5 (letter sequences) 30 times, you'll solve it in under 90 seconds on test day.
Non-Verbal Reasoning
Fixed types: rotations, reflections, sequences, shape codes, analogy grids. Pattern-heavy.
Maths
Comprehensive across all KS2 topics. No surprises. If you've covered the curriculum, you've covered the test.
Prep strategy for GL: Past papers, timed practice, type-by-type drilling. Repetition builds speed. You can train kids to near-automatic recognition of each question type.
CEM: How It Worked (Historical - withdrawn 2023)
Question Structure
No fixed types. Questions evolved annually. What was tested in one year might never appear again. Unpredictability was the point.
Past Papers Value
Medium. Useful for understanding what CEM valued, but you couldn't memorise patterns. Flexible thinking mattered more than pattern matching.
Timing
Varied more. Sections might be 20 minutes with varying question counts. Less predictable pacing.
Verbal Reasoning
Tested reasoning flexibility, not type recognition. Questions might be novel combinations of skills. Heavy on comprehension and inference.
Non-Verbal Reasoning
Broader. Included unusual question formats. Kids needed spatial reasoning flexibility, not type drilling.
Maths
Slightly different feel. Often included a reading/interpretation element - not just "solve the equation" but "work out what's being asked" first.
The Core Historical Difference
GL was predictable. CEM was deliberately not. GL rewarded pattern drilling - do enough papers, learn the 21 types, and you know exactly what you'll face. CEM rewarded flexible reasoning - broad reading, mental agility, comfort with novelty.
CEM areas often reported higher tutor costs and longer preparation timelines, precisely because there were no fixed patterns to teach. The prep was about building general reasoning stamina rather than question-type recognition.
What This Means for Preparation Today
If you're preparing for a 2025 or 2026 exam, assume GL unless your school's admissions page explicitly says otherwise. Systematic GL preparation - working through all 21 verbal reasoning types, past papers, timed practice - is the right approach for most families.
PipPrep covers GL Assessment, CSSE, SET, ISEB, and bespoke school formats - matched to your specific target school automatically. 100,000+ questions, explanations after every answer, and a parent dashboard to show you exactly where to focus.
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