Lyneham High School LEAP: are there selective schools in the ACT?
Independent. Not affiliated with the ACT Government, ACER, Lyneham High School or Alfred Deakin High School.
Lyneham High School tests every student entering Year 7 in 2027 for its LEAP gifted program, with no separate application or fee. The ACT has no select entry schools1ACT Government · 12 October 2026 · Published; high schools test their own enrolled students instead.
Are there selective schools in the ACT?
No. The ACT Government says the territory has no select entry schools1ACT Government · 12 October 2026 · Published, and no schools only for high-achieving students.
Gifted students are supported inside ordinary public schools. Every public school has a Gifted and Talented Liaison Officer (GaTLO)1ACT Government · 13 October 2026 · Published, and some high schools run gifted classes for students they already enrol.
A gifted contact in every school
Lyneham High School, LEAP
Every new Year 7 sits transition testing, and the results are used to offer LEAP places. 2Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published
So the order is the reverse of NSW. In the ACT, your child enrols at a high school first, and the school then decides about its gifted class.
How does the ACT decide a child is gifted?
ACT schools use Gagné's model of giftedness. A gifted child has natural ability in at least one area, in the top 10% of children their age1ACT Government · 13 October 2026 · Published.
The model separates natural ability from talent, which grows through learning and practice. Gifted students who also have ADHD, autism or a learning difficulty get the same program opportunities as other gifted students1ACT Government · 13 October 2026 · Published.
If you think your child is gifted, the Government says to contact your school principal or GaTLO1ACT Government · 13 October 2026 · Published. That works at primary school too, before you choose a high school.
What is Lyneham High School's LEAP?
LEAP is the Lyneham Enriched Academic Program, for gifted and talented students, founded in 19834Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published. It enriches English, Mathematics, Science and Humanities and Social Sciences (HaSS)2Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published.
Lyneham says LEAP is not a top streamed class and not an acceleration program4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published. Students cover the same curriculum and assessment as every student, with extra enrichment and depth4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published.
| LEAP at a glance | What the school says |
|---|---|
| Subjects | English, Mathematics, Science and Humanities and Social Sciences (HaSS)2Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published |
| Streams | a humanities stream (English and HaSS), a STEM stream (Maths and Science), or both4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published |
| Other subjects | mixed-ability classes for Technology, the Arts, Health and PE, and Languages2Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published |
| What it isn't | not a top streamed class and not an acceleration program4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published |
| Who can be considered | only for students with a confirmed enrolment4Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published |
| Cost | no separate test, application or fee4Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published |
How does a child join LEAP in Year 7?
By enrolling at Lyneham and sitting its transition tests. There is no separate test, application or fee4Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published.
Enrol at Lyneham High School
LEAP is only for students with a confirmed enrolment4Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published.
Give permission for the test platform
Testing uses ACER's platform, so parents sign a parent permission form, emailed with the enrolment papers4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published.
Your child sits transition testing
At Lyneham, all students entering Year 7 in 2027 sit transition testing2Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published.
The LEAP Committee decides
The committee is the Principal, the Deputy Principal, the Executive Teacher of Inclusive Education and the LEAP coordinators4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published.
An email if your child is offered a place
There is no email otherwise: only families offered a place are emailed, and no other test information is given4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published.
What is in the LEAP transition test?
The tests take about 2–3 hours: maths, writing, general and spatial reasoning, reading4Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published. They are sat on Chromebooks using the ACER platform4Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published.
Test details are not revealed, to protect the process4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published. The same testing also helps the school set up its other classes and support programs.
When is LEAP testing?
Lyneham's testing dates for Year 7 in 2027 are not published2Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Not published: the school warns that its handbook has some incorrect dates. Alfred Deakin tests its incoming Year 7 students in October 20263Alfred Deakin High · 12 October 2026 · Published, while they are in Year 6.
| School | Testing for Year 7 in 2027 | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| Lyneham High School | Not published2Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Not published | The school sends dates to enrolled families. Students who enrol later in the year can still be tested. 4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published |
| Alfred Deakin High School | October 20263Alfred Deakin High · 12 October 2026 · Published | Part of normal transition, for enrolled students only. 3Alfred Deakin High · 12 October 2026 · Published |
The next intake, for Year 7 in 2028, may follow a similar pattern, but its arrangements aren't published yet. Watch for your enrolment letter and the school's emails.
Can older students join LEAP?
Yes, if places are free. Lyneham may test current Year 8, 9 and 10 students at the start of each year. Each student is tested at most every two years, if places are free4Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published.
The two-year gap is deliberate: it keeps the tests measuring aptitude and ability, not achievement or memory4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published.
Lyneham also looks for LEAP students across the school, using PAT and NAPLAN results, school reports and transition test data, after each semester4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published. Teachers are asked for their view before an offer.
Can a child leave LEAP?
Yes, if LEAP stops being the best place for their learning. It happens after talks with the student, the family and the committee. Parents usually get at least a term's notice4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published.
Can children practise for the LEAP test?
Not with official papers: there are no past papers, no practice paper, no individual results4Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published. The tests look for aptitude, not learned content, and their details are not revealed.
The best help is ordinary: sleep, breakfast and a calm morning on the day. Tell your child it's a chance to show how they think, not a test to pass. Your child is more than one test.
How does Alfred Deakin High choose students?
Alfred Deakin High runs the Academic Unicorn Program3Alfred Deakin High · 13 October 2026 · Published. The program takes only students enrolled at the school3Alfred Deakin High · 12 October 2026 · Published, and the school uses cognitive testing, NAPLAN, teacher and parent information3Alfred Deakin High · 12 October 2026 · Published.
Unicorn classes run in English and HaSS in Years 7–10, Maths and Science in Years 7–93Alfred Deakin High · 13 October 2026 · Published. Alfred Deakin also runs Unicorn Performing Arts by audition and Visual Arts by portfolio, in Years 9 and 103Alfred Deakin High · 13 October 2026 · Published.
A primary gifted class doesn't settle it: a primary school gifted stream doesn't always lead to a Unicorn place3Alfred Deakin High · 13 October 2026 · Published. Entry and exit are decided on wellbeing and interests, with the family3Alfred Deakin High · 13 October 2026 · Published.
How do LEAP and Unicorn compare?
Both are gifted classes inside a public high school, and both need enrolment first. They differ in how they choose students and which subjects they cover.
| Lyneham High School: LEAP | Alfred Deakin High School: Unicorn | |
|---|---|---|
| Who can be considered | only for students with a confirmed enrolment4Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published | only students enrolled at the school3Alfred Deakin High · 12 October 2026 · Published |
| How children are chosen | Transition tests, with NAPLAN, PAT and teachers' views 4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published | cognitive testing, NAPLAN, teacher and parent information3Alfred Deakin High · 12 October 2026 · Published |
| Testing for Year 7 in 2027 | Not published2Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Not published | October 20263Alfred Deakin High · 12 October 2026 · Published |
| Subjects | English, Mathematics, Science and Humanities and Social Sciences (HaSS)2Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published | English and HaSS in Years 7–10, Maths and Science in Years 7–93Alfred Deakin High · 13 October 2026 · Published |
| Application or fee | no separate test, application or fee4Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published | Enrolment at the school first 3Alfred Deakin High · 12 October 2026 · Published |
| Contact | The LEAP coordinators, through the school 2Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published | alfreddeakinhs.gatlo@ed.act.edu.au or 6142 38883Alfred Deakin High · 13 October 2026 · Published |
What should ACT families do next?
Choose a high school for the school itself, then ask how it supports gifted students. Gifted classes follow enrolment.
A Year 6 child enrolled at Lyneham for Year 7 in 2027
Your child has a confirmed Lyneham enrolment and you hope for LEAP.
Nothing to apply for: all students entering Year 7 in 2027 sit transition testing2Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published. Sign the platform permission form, and watch for the school's testing dates.
A Year 5 child, high school not yet chosen
You want a gifted class from Year 7 in 2028.
Talk to your school's GaTLO now, then visit high schools and ask how each supports gifted students. 1ACT Government · 13 October 2026 · Published
A Year 8 child already at Lyneham
Your child wasn't offered LEAP in Year 7.
Lyneham may test at the start of the year if places are free, and it also reviews student data each semester. 4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published
A family weighing a NSW selective school
You would move to NSW for a fully selective school.
NSW tests in Year 6, only in NSW, and your family must be living in NSW by the start of the entry year5NSW Education · 12 October 2026 · Published. Read about the NSW Selective test.
Questions parents ask about ACT gifted programs
Is Lyneham High a selective school?
No. The ACT has no select entry schools1ACT Government · 12 October 2026 · Published. LEAP is a gifted program inside Lyneham for students it enrols.
Does LEAP cost anything?
No. There is no separate test, application or fee4Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published.
Will we see our child's LEAP test results?
No. The school's rule is that only families offered a place are emailed, and no other test information is given4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published. Individual results are never issued. 4Lyneham High · 12 October 2026 · Published
Is LEAP an acceleration program?
No. LEAP is not a top streamed class and not an acceleration program4Lyneham High · 13 October 2026 · Published. Students cover the same curriculum, with more depth.
Can ACT children apply to selective schools in other states?
Yes, in some states. Victoria's selective entry high schools take students into Year 9: a child applies while in Year 8, and not having sat the exam before7Vic Education · 12 October 2026 · Published, whether living in Victoria, interstate or overseas7Vic Education · 12 October 2026 · Published.
NSW tests only in NSW6NSW Education · 12 October 2026 · Published, and families must be living in NSW by the start of the entry year5NSW Education · 12 October 2026 · Published. Compare every state's tests.