Wellington College Registration: Key Dates and Deadlines

Wellington College takes its main intake at 13+, into Year 9, and it asks families to register remarkably early: by 30 June of Year 5, three years before entry. There is a further reason to register promptly beyond the deadline itself, since the date of registration is a factor in how Houses are allocated. Leave it late and you reduce both your child's chances of a place and of a first-choice House. This guide sets out when to register, how the two-stage process works, and where registration sits in Wellington's timeline.

When to register for Wellington College

Wellington's main entry point is 13+, when your child joins Year 9, and the registration deadline falls a full three years before that: 30 June of Year 5. The registration window opens about a year ahead of that point, so for entry in a given year, families need to act while their child is in Year 5. This is earlier than at many schools, and it catches families out who treat 13+ as a Year 7 or Year 8 decision. Wellington is a popular co-educational school with a finite number of places, and registration is what places your child in the assessment process. It commits you to nothing, but without it your child cannot be assessed for entry.

If you are uncertain in Year 5 whether your child should board, Wellington's strong recommendation is to register anyway and decide later, since registering keeps every option open while waiting does not.

Why early registration matters

There is a particular reason to register early at Wellington that goes beyond meeting the deadline. The date of registration is one of the factors the school uses when allocating Houses, so registering early increases the likelihood of your child being allocated their first-choice House. At a boarding school, the House is the centre of a child's daily life, the community they live, eat and grow up in, so this is not a small consideration. Families who register promptly, well before the 30 June of Year 5 deadline rather than at the last moment, give their child the best chance both of a place and of the House they would most like. If House matters to your family, treat registration as something to do sooner rather than later.

How to register

Registration is completed through Wellington's online registration form, along with the non-refundable registration fee of £400. The school is able to waive this fee for families who may be entitled to substantial fee assistance of more than ninety per cent, and that route is explained on the registration pages of its website. Once registered, your child enters the two-stage assessment process, beginning with the ISEB Common Pre-Test, and Wellington also asks for a reference from the current head teacher. It helps to let your child's current school know early that Wellington is the goal, since the reference forms part of the first-stage decision. The full cost picture is set out in our Wellington College fees guide.

The two-stage process

Wellington assesses 13+ candidates in two stages. The first is the ISEB Common Pre-Test, taken online in Year 6, covering English, Maths, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning, usually at your child's current school, with overseas candidates sitting it at the British Council or an approved centre. The pre-test, together with the head teacher's reference, is used to decide who is invited onward. The second stage is an assessment day at Wellington for shortlisted candidates, built around collaborative activities rather than a written exam, alongside an interview with a senior member of pastoral staff. Understanding that both stages matter, and that the second is about how your child thinks and works with others rather than a further test, is the first step to preparing well. Our guide to the Wellington assessment explains both stages in full.

The full Wellington admissions timeline

Offers are made in March of Year 6, conditional on your child completing Year 8 satisfactorily at their current school. Our full guide to getting into Wellington College walks through every stage in detail.

Common registration mistakes

The most common mistake is misjudging the timing, since Wellington's deadline falls in Year 5, three years before entry, far earlier than families expect. If Wellington is on your list, act in Year 5. The second mistake is registering late and losing the House advantage that early registration brings, even when a place is still possible. The third is leaving the current school unbriefed, when Wellington relies on a head teacher's reference at the first stage that is far stronger when the school has notice rather than being asked at the last minute.