Northern Ireland · Grammar school

Sullivan Upper School

Holywood · Mixed (co-educational)

Official record: Schools Plus (DE reference 4420044)

Overview

Address: Belfast Road, Holywood, BT18 9EP
Status: Open
Admits: Mixed (co-educational)
Age range: Not yet available
Number of pupils: 1,078
Capacity: Not yet available
Eligible for free school meals: 4.4%
Sixth form: Not yet available
School type: Grammar · Voluntary
Religious character: Not yet available
Trust: Not yet available
Local authority: Not yet available

Source: School census and Schools Plus reference data, last checked 31 October 2026 · Source: Desk research (cited public sources) (sullivanupper.co.uk), last checked 31 October 2026

Admissions and the 11+

Admissions policy: Selective (grammar school)
Selection in this area: Northern Ireland transfer testMost grammar schools in Northern Ireland admit pupils using transfer tests run outside the statutory system. Check each school's admissions criteria.
Entrance test: SEAG
Qualifying score: Not yet available
Catchment area: For September 2026 entry, the first 120 of 150 places go in SEAG score order. The remaining 30 go to a pool of about 45 next-highest scorers, in this order: free school meals, the school's prep department, brothers or sisters, three named Holywood-area primary schools (Glencraig Integrated, Holywood, St Patrick's Holywood), 13 named Bangor/east Belfast primary schools, then children living in the Holywood BT18 postcode district, then SEAG score and road distance.Postcode areas: BT18
Children from outside the catchment: Yes: For September 2026 entry, the first 120 places go purely on SEAG score wherever the child lives in Northern Ireland; living in BT18 or attending a named primary school only helps for the 30 pool places.

Past offers: lowest score and furthest distance

Lowest test score and last distance offered by intake
Intake	Applicant group	Lowest score offered	Last distance offered	Source
Sept 2026	places by SEAG scoreThe first 120 of 150 places went in SEAG score order; the 120th place fell on a score of 217. The other 30 places came from a pool of 45 applicants scoring 201 or more (the 165th ranked score was 201), chosen by the school's other criteria.	217	–	sullivanupper.co.uk

From published allocation data found in desk research (checked 1 November 2026); not yet confirmed with the school. Scores from different tests or years are not comparable, and a past cut-off does not guarantee a future place.

Source: School census and Schools Plus reference data, last checked 31 October 2026 · Source: Admissions research (cited public sources) (seagni.co.uk, sullivanupper.co.uk), last checked 1 November 2026

Key dates for September 2027 (Year 8) entry

Test registration (Northern Ireland SEAG): 18 May 2026 to 18 September 2026
Test date: 14 November 2026, 21 November 2026Paper 1 on 14 Nov, Paper 2 on 21 Nov; contingency date 28 Nov only if neither can be held. Parents register with SEAG (the 2026 registration has closed). Apply through the Education Authority portal by 12 noon on Wednesday 3 March 2027; appeals by 4pm on 20 May 2027 (nidirect).
Results sent to families: 23 January 2027
Open days: Not yet available
School opened (current registration): Not yet available

Unverified: test dates come from desk research (high confidence). Confirm them with the council or test organiser. Sources: seagni.co.uk/guidance/key-dates, seagni.co.uk/latest-news/last-days-to-register-pupils-for-the-2026-seag-entrance-assessment, nidirect.gov.uk.

Guide to the Northern Ireland SEAG and its schools

Source: Test dates research (cited public sources) (seagni.co.uk), last checked 1 November 2026

Inspection (ETI)

Last inspection: Not yet available
Inspection outcome: Not yet available

Source: not yet available

Exam results

GCSE results: Not yet available
A level results: Not yet available

Source: not yet available

How to get there

Postcode: BT18 9EP
Map location: 54.63469, -5.83704Approximate: postcode centroid.
Open in OpenStreetMap: Directions and surroundings ↗
Telephone: Not yet available

Source: School census and Schools Plus reference data, last checked 31 October 2026 · Source: Postcode centroids (ONS Postcode Directory), last checked 31 October 2026

Official links and documents

School website: Not yet available
Official register record: Schools Plus (DE reference 4420044) ↗
Admissions policy document: Not yet available
Further reading: Wikipedia ↗

Source: not yet available

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Data sources: School census and Schools Plus reference data (Department of Education (Northern Ireland)), Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.; Postcode centroids (ONS Postcode Directory) (Office for National Statistics, via postcodes.io or an ONSPD copy), OGL v3.0 for Great Britain; Northern Ireland postcodes are under separate LPS terms (check before commercial use). Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right; Contains Royal Mail data; Contains LPS Intellectual Property © Crown copyright.; Desk research (cited public sources) (UK School Map), Facts compiled from the public sources linked on each field; Admissions research (cited public sources) (UK School Map), Facts compiled from the public sources linked on each item; Test dates research (cited public sources) (UK School Map), Facts compiled from the public sources linked on each item

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