Sutton has five highly-competitive grammar schools — Wallington, Sutton Grammar, Wilson's, Nonsuch and (banded) Greenshaw — drawing applications from across South-West London.
The year in shape
Sutton is unusual in using a mix of test formats: Wallington and Sutton Grammar use GL; Wilson's and Nonsuch use CEM-style. Greenshaw uses banded entry.
Wilson's and Nonsuch operate super-selective top tiers — the highest scorers regardless of distance get the first wave of places.
Term-by-term plan
Autumn term. Through autumn of Year 5, decide which schools are realistic. Preparing for both formats (GL + CEM) doubles the practice load and is rarely justified unless target schools span both.
Spring term. In spring, intensify format-specific practice for the chosen route. Most Sutton families pick GL or CEM but not both at full intensity.
Summer term & holiday. Through summer, full timed papers in the chosen format fortnightly. Sutton tests sit in mid-September; the summer holiday is the final practice window.
Topics to prioritise
Highest-leverage Sutton topics: at the super-selective top, hard ratio and inference; at the consortium level, broad accuracy and pacing.
Common mistakes parents make this year
The most common parent mistake is registering for all five schools without deciding which two or three are realistic. The child sitting five sittings across multiple formats in September is over-faced.
Signs to look for
Signs the year is going well: child scores consistently in the qualifying range on the chosen format, has clear target schools, and approaches the September sittings calmly. If these signs are present, the year is going well; if they are absent, the issue is rarely intelligence — it is usually pacing, format unfamiliarity or the wrong tutoring relationship. Identify which and adjust deliberately.
Where to go next
Read the Sutton borough guide for the calendar; read the GL and CEM format guides; consider booking a Sutton-specific mock test in late August. Read across the related guides on this site — the guides index groups them by category for easy navigation.