Guidance

Guide for schools and colleges: 2023

Updated 20 November 2023

Applies to England

About this guide

This guide explains what schools, colleges and other exam or assessment centres can expect from awarding organisations regulated by Ofqual.

It also explains the changes in place to arrangements for qualifications in 2023.

Some of the information in this guide is qualification specific. We make it clear where information only applies to a certain type of qualification.

In this guide we use the term centre and centres to refer to schools, colleges and other exam or assessment centres.

Where this guide refers to “you” it is referring to a centre that offers qualifications regulated by Ofqual.

This guide covers qualifications which are typically taken in an academic year in centres including the Technical Qualification (within a T Level).

Functional skills qualifications, English for speakers of other languages, end-point assessments of apprenticeships and other vocational and technical qualifications not included on government performance tables are out of scope of this guide.

Ofqual regulated qualifications

Ofqual has a common set of rules for all qualifications regulated by us in England, known as the General Conditions of Recognition. There are additional rules and guidance that are specific to certain qualifications, for example there are conditions for GCSEs, AS and A levels.

A full list of Ofqual’s rules and guidance, and the qualifications they apply to, can be found on our website.

Roles and responsibilities

Ofqual

Ofqual regulates awarding organisations that design, deliver and award qualifications and apprenticeship end-point assessments in England. Ofqual controls entry to the regulated market, and we create rules and provide guidance for awarding organisations to help make sure regulated qualifications are fit for purpose, valid and delivered securely.

You can find information on the organisations and the qualifications that Ofqual regulates in the Register of Regulated Qualifications.

Not all qualifications have the protection of regulation by Ofqual. Where a qualification is not regulated by Ofqual, you should contact the awarding organisation for further information.

Ofqual does not regulate centres and so we do not place any requirements directly on them. But some of our rules for awarding organisations affect the way they must interact with centres and the obligations awarding organisations place on them. This can include awarding organisations requiring centres to take on roles in the delivery and conduct of assessments. This reflects the important role centres play in making sure the qualifications system works effectively and fairly.

Department for Education

The Department for Education is responsible for curriculum, funding and accountability requirements for schools and colleges. It also sets the subject content for GCSEs, AS and A levels and awards T Level certificates once the whole T Level programme has been completed.

Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education

The Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education works with employers to develop, approve, review and revise apprenticeships and technical qualifications. This includes the subject content of the Technical Qualification within the T Level.

Awarding organisations

In this guide references to awarding organisations means all organisations that offer qualifications and are regulated by Ofqual.

Some awarding organisations offer vocational and technical qualifications (VTQs) which count towards government performance tables, sometimes referred to as performance table qualifications. These qualifications include Applied Generals, Tech Levels, Technical Certificates, Technical Awards and Technical Qualifications (within a T Level).

These qualifications are designed and awarded by the individual awarding organisations in line with Ofqual’s General Conditions of Recognition and the government’s 14 to 19 technical and applied qualifications technical guidance.

Exam boards

Awarding organisations that also offer GCSEs, AS and A levels are known as exam boards. Exam boards must follow additional rules covering these qualifications.

There are 4 exam boards recognised by Ofqual to award GCSE, AS and A level qualifications in England:

• AQA
• OCR
• Pearson
• WJEC Eduqas

Exam boards develop and award GCSEs, AS and A levels based on the subject content set out by the Department for Education and following Ofqual’s General Conditions of Recognition, subject level and qualification level conditions.

For some aspects of the qualification system, the exam boards work together to develop common ways of working. For example, they jointly plan the summer exam timetable to minimise clashes. When the exam boards work together in this way, they generally do so through the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ), their membership body.

Private candidates

Some students will not be studying at a centre and will be private candidates. Private candidates are often home educated or are re-taking a qualification after leaving school or college. They may be studying with a distance learning provider, tutor, parent, or independently. Private candidates need to register at a centre to sit the assessments required by their qualification.

You may be contacted by students, parents or carers to ask whether your centre offers entries for private candidates. It is up to an individual centre to decide whether they accept private candidates. A centre that accepts private candidates for a qualification must provide all aspects of non-exam assessment for that qualification, as well as exams.

For GCSE, AS and A level exams, the JCQ has a list of centres that will make exam entries for private candidates. If your centre accepts private candidates but is not included in the list, please register with JCQ.

Private candidates studying for a vocational or technical qualification should contact their awarding organisation, which will be able to provide information about where qualifications can be taken.

Changes to exam and assessment arrangements in 2023

New action to support the issuing of VTQ results

In December 2022, Ofqual published an Action Plan to support the delivery of complete and correct Level 3 VTQ results for 2023 used alongside or instead of A levels for progression to further or higher education.

The following awarding organisations have committed to deliver the VTQ Action Plan, to work together to improve their communications to centres and to support effective training for exams officers.

• Active IQ
• AIM
• AQA*
• City & Guilds
• EAL
• Institute of the Motor Industry
• London Institute of Banking & Finance
• NCFE
• OCR
• Pearson
• RSL
• University of the Arts London
• VTCT
• WJEC*

*AQA and WJEC operate their VTQs in a similar way to their A level qualifications, requiring assessment entries rather than operating a claim process. Therefore, they will continue to issue results to centres on 16 August in line with the release of their A level results.

Ofqual’s rules require AOs to take all reasonable steps to issue results according to their own published dates or timescales and to ensure that the issue of results is timely.

The measures announced in March bring forward the eligibility checks and quality assurance that awarding organisations and centres need to conduct into term time. The arrangements for 2023 are a significant change to how many VTQs have operated historically, to make sure students are treated equally whatever qualification they are studying.

To support centres, Ofqual’s new VTQ information hub for exams officers and subject teachers, brings together the key dates for 2023 that awarding organisations set to ensure timely delivery of Level 3 VTQ results used for progression to further study. The VTQ Information Hub is most relevant to centre staff working in the administration or delivery of Level 3 technical qualifications used for progression to further study. It will help you prepare for the awarding organisation term time checkpoints that have been introduced ahead of 2023 awarding.

It’s important that exams officers and teaching staff work together earlier, during term time, to make sure they can identify and track students’ progress where they are expecting to receive results in August. You will need to take the following actions to prepare for the deadlines set by your awarding organisations in good time:

1. Check the timescales for the particular qualifications you offer on the VTQ information hub.

2. Identify in term time which students are expecting to certificate this academic year, which students have deferred, and which students have withdrawn.

3. Confirm with your awarding organisations in term time which students expect to receive a result on or by Level 3 results day.

4. Check all information and evidence needed for each student to receive a result has been sent to your awarding organisations.

5. Remember your awarding organisations’ deadlines must be met so that they have all the information they need to issue results on time in August.

Additional measures to support delivery of VTQ results

Ofqual has introduced additional measures to support the delivery of VTQ results for 2023. These are similar to existing arrangements for general qualifications.

Centres will need to provide details of a senior designated contact who is responsible for exam delivery. These contact details will enable awarding organisations to promptly reach those who are best placed to resolve any outstanding issues and queries relating to results, even if they are made outside term time. We expect these instances to be rare, however clarifications and errors in data or information need to be swiftly resolved so there is no negative impact on students.

In supporting the earlier term time quality assurance processes, centres will ensure a smoother transition for students to higher education. You will be asked to work with awarding organisations to resolve any gaps and inconsistencies in the results data that will go to UCAS.

Centres will be able to access resources and qualification specific training from VTQ awarding organisations to support exams officers and subject teachers in their roles. This should improve the administration of VTQ assessments understanding of specific awarding organisations’ processes and the information that is required to support results delivery.

How GCSEs, AS and A levels will be assessed in 2023

Students entering GCSEs, AS or A levels in 2023 will take exams in the summer and complete any non-exam assessments as normal throughout the year. 

Due to the disruption during and following the pandemic there is some support in place for students taking exams in 2023.

Figure 1: Diagram showing a summary of the changes to How GCSEs, AS and A levels will be assessed in 2023

Support materials

Students will be given formulae and equation sheets in GCSE mathematics, physics, and combined science exams. These formulae and equation sheets are available on the exam boards’ public websites. You should make sure that students are familiar with these before they take their exams. Clean copies of the formulae sheet and equation sheet will be provided in the exams – students are not able to take any highlighted or annotated versions into the exam room. 

Modifications to GCSE modern foreign languages

GCSE modern foreign languages exams no longer have to test unfamiliar vocabulary. Exams may still contain unfamiliar vocabulary, but exam boards can give meanings for words that are not on their vocabulary lists if they think this is appropriate for the task and intended level of challenge.

Timetable changes

The exam timetable for summer 2023 has a greater gap between exams in the same subject than was the case pre-pandemic. This will make it less likely that a student will miss all exams in a subject if they miss one exam due to illness. This change will also give students more space to revise and prepare between papers.

Exam boards have also included contingency sessions on the afternoons of 8 and 15 June, and all day on 28 June. These sessions would be used in the unlikely event that exams had to be moved nationally because they could not take place when planned. These sessions cannot be used to reschedule exams for individual students who have missed an exam at the scheduled time. Please make sure your students know that they must be available for all contingency sessions and might be required to sit exams during these sessions.

Grading

Student work will be marked and graded in the normal way, as it would have been before the pandemic. This means we expect national results in 2023 to be lower than in 2022 and similar to results in pre-pandemic years. This means it is very likely that the results in your centre will be lower than in 2022.

As in any year, senior examiners will set grade boundaries for every specification after they have reviewed students’ work. Those senior examiners will be guided in their decisions by information about the grades achieved in pre-pandemic years, along with prior attainment data.

We know that students have experienced some disruption during and following the pandemic. Accordingly, there is protection in place for students in 2023. Where national performance is found to be lower than it was prior to the pandemic senior examiners will make allowances when setting grade boundaries. This will be similar to the approach Ofqual instructed exam boards to take to protect students when GCSEs and A levels were reformed.

This means that a typical student who would have achieved, for example, an A grade in A level geography before the pandemic will be just as likely to get an A in 2023, even if their performance in the assessments is a little weaker than it would have been before the pandemic.

It is in the interests of students to return to a pre-pandemic grading standard. By returning to a grading standard that is known and understood by teachers, schools, colleges, employers, and higher and further education institutions we set young people up for college, university or employment in the best possible way, and help them to make the right choices about their future.

As in any year when students take exams, there is no pre-determined ‘quota’ of grades. 

Arrangements for awarding VTQs in the academic year 2022 to 2023

Senior examiners will review student work to set standards, combined with other evidence where appropriate.

There will be a return to pre-pandemic standards for VTQs that are taken in centres, alongside or instead of GCSEs and A levels so these students will not be advantaged or disadvantaged in comparison.

In the technical qualification of T Levels, awarding organisations will award more generously in the first years to reflect that these are new qualifications.

Resilience arrangements in 2023

The cancellation of exams – and the need for alternative assessment arrangements – is very unlikely. The government does not expect to be in the situation where exams do not go ahead, but it is sensible to have contingency plans in place, even for extremely unlikely scenarios.

If the government decides exams could not go ahead as planned, students’ GCSE, AS and A level, Advanced Extension Award (AEA) and Project qualification grades would instead be determined by their teachers, using teacher-assessed grades (TAGs). This would be similar to summer 2021 arrangements. For these qualifications, Ofqual provided guidance for teachers on collecting evidence during the year that would be used to inform TAGs.

Evidence should be collected as part of the normal assessment arrangements within centres and should not lead to lots more assessment or additional burden. Wherever possible, assessments should be taken in exam-like conditions and students should know that their assessment results could be used to inform TAGs.

The same rules and guidance for reasonable adjustments and special consideration used in exams should, where possible, be followed for assessments that could be used to develop TAGs.

However, teachers are not being asked to develop TAGs. Guidance on how to do so would only be published should exams not be able to go ahead as planned. 

Many VTQs are modular and have a high proportion of internal assessment. This means that it is more likely that there will be evidence available which could be used to determine grades in the event exams are cancelled. Where VTQs are used for progression and assessed in a similar way to GCSEs and A Levels, awarding organisations will make you aware of any action that may be needed. You can find full information and guidance about the arrangements for this year’s summer awarding in our guidance on supporting resilience in the exam system in 2023.

Before exams and assessments

Reasonable adjustments

Reasonable adjustments, sometimes known as access arrangements, are changes made to exams or assessments or to the way they are conducted that reduce or remove disadvantage introduced by a student’s disability. They are needed because some disabilities can make it harder for students to show what they know and can do in an assessment than it would have been had the student not been disabled. 

If possible, you should apply for any adjustments needed well in advance of the planned assessment date. This will make sure that there is plenty of time to plan and implement any adjustments before the assessment. Awarding organisations will be able to provide you with information about when to apply for adjustments for the qualifications they make available.

You should contact your awarding organisation to as soon as possible if any deadline set by your awarding organisation has passed and you become aware of the need for an adjustment that has not been applied for, or a student’s needs change.

What awarding organisations must do

The Equality Act 2010 requires awarding organisations to make reasonable adjustments to assessments for disabled students. Ofqual requires awarding organisations to publish their arrangements for making reasonable adjustments, including how a student qualifies for a reasonable adjustment and what reasonable adjustments might be made. 

Ofqual has the power under the Equality Act to specify adjustments which an awarding organisation should not make, in relation to particular qualifications. This is set out in our s96 specifications. 

What ‘disabled’, or ‘disability’ means 

The Equality Act 2010 defines disability as: “a physical or mental impairment … [that] has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on [their] ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.” 

A short-term illness or temporary injury is not normally considered a disability. A student who is temporarily ill or injured is not normally entitled to reasonable adjustments. But there may be other arrangements available, often known as special consideration or access arrangements.

What reasonable adjustments are available 

Awarding organisations can make a wide range of adjustments to their exams or assessments. Some of the most common adjustments are: 

• modified papers (for example, large print or braille exam papers) 

• access to assistive software (for example, voice recognition systems or computer readers) 
• help with specific tasks (for example, another person might read questions to the student or write their dictated answers) 
• changes to how the assessment is done (for example, an oral rather than a written assessment, word-processing rather than hand-writing answers) 
• extra time to complete assessments 
• exemptions from an assessment 

This is not an exhaustive list – other adjustments may be available, depending on the student’s needs. Not all of these adjustments will be reasonable in all cases. Where you think a student needs a different adjustment, you should contact the awarding organisation for advice about the different adjustments that are available and to discuss the student’s needs. Should a student’s needs change meaning agreed adjustments may no longer be appropriate, you should contact the awarding organisation as soon as possible.

Each awarding organisation will have its own reasonable adjustments policy and practices. For GCSEs, AS, and A levels, JCQ sets out guidance on access arrangements and reasonable adjustments.

Centres need to apply to awarding organisations (or JCQ) for some types of arrangement, for example extra time or braille papers. Others, such as supervised rest breaks or noise-cancelling headphones, do not need an application. The JCQ guidance or awarding organisation policies explain what you need to do for the different types of arrangements and the evidence requirements.

In all instances (including for VTQs) you should contact your awarding organisation if you have any questions about reasonable adjustments.

What adjustments a student may get

It is important to understand that the adjustments for an individual student will depend on how – and by how much – their disability affects them when taking a particular assessment. By their nature reasonable adjustments are specific to an individual student and decisions relating to them are made on a case-by-case basis.

That means: 

• different students with the same disability will not always get the same adjustments 

• the same student might get different adjustments for different assessments 
• if a student’s disability doesn’t affect their ability to demonstrate what they know and can do in an assessment, then they will not get any adjustments 

An awarding organisation must decide, based on each student’s circumstances, which (if any) adjustments are reasonable. Factors they should consider when making that decision include: 

• whether Ofqual’s s96 specifications about reasonable adjustments in assessments mean they cannot offer a particular adjustment 

• how (and by how much) a student’s disability affects their ability to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding in the assessment 

• how well an adjustment helps a student deal with the difficulties their disability causes when taking their assessment – an adjustment that works well is more likely to be reasonable than one that doesn’t really help 

• how much the adjustment would cost – a more expensive adjustment may be less likely to be reasonable than a cheaper one 

• how difficult it is to make the adjustment – a complicated adjustment may be less likely to be reasonable than a straightforward one 

• whether (and by how much) the adjustment could compromise the validity of the assessment – an adjustment that gives a disabled person an unfair advantage probably is not reasonable 

The role of centres in relation to reasonable adjustments 

Centres apply for reasonable adjustments on behalf of their students. To evidence that a student is eligible for a reasonable adjustment, you will need to demonstrate that: 

• the student is disabled 
• their disability would significantly disadvantage them in the assessment 

Centres must also set out the adjustments the student needs. The student’s normal way of working is likely to be particularly relevant when coming to that view. 

If you are unsure what adjustments might be appropriate for a particular disabled student, you should discuss their needs with the student and the awarding organisation as early as possible. The awarding organisation will be able to provide advice about the different adjustments that are available, and the evidence that will be needed to support the application. Some adjustments take time to arrange, and early notice helps awarding organisations provide the adjustment in time. 

Centres are responsible for making sure that any adjustments agreed with the awarding organisation are put in place and are used properly when students take their assessments. Centres have a duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled students under the Equality Act. For more information, please see Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) guidance, Reasonable adjustments for disabled pupils.

How to apply

For GCSE, AS, and A levels, the JCQ provides information on applying for reasonable adjustments. 

For VTQs, contact your awarding organisation for details of how to apply for reasonable adjustments.

Appealing an awarding organisation’s decision 

An awarding organisation should explain why it has decided not to give a student an adjustment or to give them a different adjustment from that requested. Ofqual’s rules mean awarding organisations must have a process in place for centres to appeal that decision. If a centre does not agree with the awarding organisation’s decision, it should follow the awarding organisation’s appeal process. Ofqual will usually only consider complaints about an awarding organisation once the appeal has been concluded. 

Ofqual does not have powers to investigate complaints or disputes about whether awarding organisations have breached equality law. Ofqual cannot, for example, determine whether or not an awarding organisation has discriminated against a disabled student. However, an awarding organisation that was found to have breached equality law may also have breached its conditions, enabling us to take regulatory action. 

If you believe a student has been discriminated against by an awarding organisation, the student or their parent can contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service for advice on their rights within the Equality Act.  

Senior designated contact in centres

Awarding organisations need to be able to contact centres if there are issues that might affect the awarding of a student’s qualification. Most of these issues are addressed during term time using regular contacts, however some of these issues may occur outside term time.

You will need to identify one or two senior contacts within your centre who are responsible for exam and assessment delivery. These designated contacts will be those to whom qualification-related issues can be escalated for resolution, can be contacted out of hours by awarding organisations and have the authority to access information as required. Awarding organisations will contact you with their exact requirements and maintain a record of these designated contacts.

These contacts would only be used in the small number of cases where information is needed to award a qualification and the normal, established contact arrangements are unavailable. These contacts must be available throughout the assessment series, before, during and after results are issued.

Practical considerations

Ofqual recognises that running exams is a challenging job with responsibilities throughout the academic year. We are working closely with both The Exams Office and the National Association of Examinations Officers to support both new and experienced exams officers throughout the assessment cycle.

The following resources are available to support exams officers in their roles:

• Ofqual resources to support exams officers
• The Exams Office’s support materials
• JCQ’s Exam Office section

Over the next year we will continue to work with the entire sector to promote and support the role of the exams officer.

Entries and tiering

Ofqual does not set rules on how awarding organisations handle entries from centres. Awarding organisations have their own arrangements and exam boards set common deadlines through JCQ.

Awarding organisations may ask centres for early indications of their expected entries. We encourage centres to give awarding organisations this information as soon as possible to help the system run efficiently and effectively.

For Level 3 VTQs used for progression to further or higher education, please refer to the VTQ information hub for more information.

Some GCSE subjects have different tiers of entry (foundation or higher). The subjects with tiers of entry are:

• maths
• combined science
• physics
• chemistry
• biology
• statistics
• modern foreign languages

Where GCSEs are tiered, it is important that students are entered appropriately. Available grades are:

• Foundation tier: 5 to 1 (5–5 to 1–1 in combined science)
• Higher tier: 9 to 4 (9–9 to 4–4 on combined science) with a narrow ‘safety net’ grade 3 (4–3 in combined science) for those students who just miss grade 4 (or 4–4); higher tier students who do not achieve enough marks for that safety net grade will receive an unclassified result (U)

A student who is expected to achieve a grade 4 or grade 5 should be entered for foundation tier. A grade 4 or 5 achieved at foundation tier are the same as a grade 4 or 5 achieved at higher tier. Exam boards are required to make sure that it is no easier or more difficult to achieve a grade 4 or 5 on higher or foundation tier. There is nothing on certificates showing the tier of entry.

You need to make sure that all students are entered for the correct exams and, if the exam is tiered, at the correct tier. If you have any concerns or corrections contact the exam board as soon as possible.

During exams and assessments

Exam timetable

GCSE, AS and A level exams will be held between 15 May and 28 June 2023. Exam board timetables for the 2023 summer exam series of GCSEs, AS and A levels are available on the JCQ website.

Details of the timetables for internal and external assessments for VTQs can be found on the relevant awarding organisation’s website.

Reporting an error in an exam paper or assessment

Errors in exam papers and assessments are rare, but they can occasionally happen. You should encourage your students to let you know immediately if they believe there may have been an error in their paper. If you believe there is an error in an exam paper or assessment, including in any modified papers, you should contact the relevant awarding organisation immediately. Awarding organisations will determine whether an error has been made and, if it has, the potential impact of the error on students. 

Awarding organisations consider, for example, whether the error will have stopped students being able to answer the question or complete the task, or whether students’ performance in other questions might have been affected by the error. They then decide the fairest way to proceed. This might include analysing how students answered the question or awarding all students full marks for the question. 

Ofqual takes question paper errors seriously. We consider whether an awarding organisation’s planned action is appropriate and fair, we may require it to take action to address the impact of the error on students and we consider regulatory action where appropriate. 

Malpractice and maladministration

Malpractice can affect qualification standards and confidence in qualifications. It undermines the hard work of students, teachers, and centres. Ofqual takes it very seriously.

Even if there is no deliberate wrongdoing, poor practice or maladministration (for example, giving students the wrong exam papers) can result in students being seriously disadvantaged. 

Ofqual’s rules for awarding organisations reflect how serious malpractice and maladministration can be. We require awarding organisations to do all they can to prevent malpractice and maladministration when developing, delivering and awarding regulated qualifications. However, it can happen and, where there are plausible allegations, awarding organisations must find out whether malpractice or maladministration has happened.

When awarding organisations become aware of possible malpractice or maladministration, they should do all they can to prevent (or where that is not possible minimise): 

• any unfair impact on students 
• any adverse impact on: 
  • their ability to develop, deliver and award the qualification
  • the standard of the qualification
  • public confidence in qualifications

Ofqual also requires awarding organisations to: 

• have (and comply with) written procedures for investigating malpractice and maladministration
• make sure investigators have no personal interest in the outcome of their investigations
• do all they can to keep centres’ arrangements for preventing and investigating malpractice and maladministration under review
• provide (on request) guidance to centres about how best to prevent, investigate and deal with malpractice and maladministration
• if malpractice or maladministration is found, do all they can to stop it happening again, and take proportionate action against those responsible
• inform centres and other awarding organisations that may be affected by any malpractice or maladministration they have found.

For further information on malpractice and maladministration relating to GCSEs, AS and A levels, please refer to JCQ’s Suspected Malpractice Policies and Procedures. For VTQs, each awarding organisation will have its own policy. 

Awarding organisation inspections

Awarding organisations check that centres are following their instructions, including through visits carried out by JCQ’s Centre Inspection Service (CIS). Ofqual requires exam boards to have a sanctions policy for when a centre has breached its requirements. Sanctions include extra monitoring visits, use of exam board invigilators or preventing a centre from offering some or all of their qualifications. JCQ publishes guidance setting out how exam boards investigate potential malpractice and the sanctions they may impose when malpractice is confirmed. Awarding organisations offering VTQs will have their own policy that covers inspection, investigation, and sanctions. 

Ofqual will not normally be involved with the investigation. Where you think an awarding organisation has not followed published procedures, you can appeal against the finding. If you are dissatisfied with the awarding organisation’s response, you can complain to Ofqual. Ofqual will usually only consider a complaint once the exam board’s own complaints and appeals procedures have been exhausted. 

Your role

You have an important role to play in preventing, identifying and tackling malpractice. 

Awarding organisations rightly expect you to take malpractice, and the risk of malpractice, seriously. They expect centres to have proper processes for investigating and dealing with allegations of malpractice. Awarding organisations have their own rules for when and how exams and other assessments are conducted, which you must follow. Any breach of these rules can undermine the fair conduct of assessments and the fair award of qualifications. This can result in the assessed work being rejected, the centre being sanctioned by the awarding organisation, or both. 

You must comply with awarding organisations’ instructions to reduce the risk of errors and maladministration occurring, such as having 2 people present when opening exam papers. 

You should also comply with any instructions about issuing results. For example, you should not give results to students before any embargo is lifted. 

Reporting malpractice or maladministration

Centres should report any evidence or suspicions of malpractice to the relevant awarding organisation. You should report any errors or incidents of maladministration as soon as they are discovered. 

Individuals can also report concerns to Ofqual under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998. This is often known as whistleblowing. In certain circumstances, this can provide protection when a person discloses concerns about practice where they work. 

Report malpractice or wrongdoing to Ofqual.

Special consideration

Support for students affected by illness, injury, or other events outside of their control 

Ofqual defines special consideration as any adjustments given to a student who has temporarily experienced an illness, injury, or other event outside of their control at the time of the assessment which significantly affects their ability to: 

• take an assessment 
• demonstrate what they can do in an assessment 

Special consideration is only for things that happen immediately before or during an exam or assessment that has a material effect on a student’s ability to take that exam or assessment, or on how they performed. To be eligible for special consideration, students must have been fully prepared for the assessment and have covered the whole course.

Students are not eligible for special consideration because their education was disrupted.

What awarding organisations must do

Ofqual requires awarding organisations to: 

• have clear arrangements for giving special consideration
• publish details of those arrangements, including what special consideration is available, and how students qualify for it

Ofqual does not specify what special consideration awarding organisations should give, or how they should determine eligibility for it. 

For GCSEs, AS and A levels, all the exam boards offer 3 different types of support for students who are affected by circumstances outside their control, all of which are types of special consideration: 

1. changes to the way assessments are taken for students with temporary injuries or illnesses (sometimes referred to as ‘access arrangements’)

2. a small number of extra marks for students whose exam performance is affected by temporary illness, injury, indisposition, or an unforeseen incident

3. awarding the qualification even though the student was absent from an exam or formal assessment (a student must have completed at least one component to be eligible for this type of special consideration)

JCQ provides more information about these different types of support. 

For VTQs, awarding organisations are likely to consider the same 3 types of support for students as set out above for GCSEs, AS and A levels. Other types of support may be available depending on the student’s circumstances as this may depend on the individual qualification and assessment missed. For example, in some cases, due to the flexibility of the assessment timings or the nature of the situation, it might be possible for the student to take their assessment at a later date.

Your role

If a student is unable to take one or more of their assessments, or to show what they know, understand, or can do in their assessments, due to temporary illness, injury or other event outside their control, you should notify the awarding organisation as soon as possible.

Your awarding organisation can explain what support they can offer, and how to apply. 

You should not wait until the student has completed the assessments, or until after results are issued, before contacting the awarding organisation as this may mean the student misses out on additional support. 

For GCSEs, AS and A levels in summer 2023, you should submit special consideration requests to your awarding organisation by 5 July. You can check key dates in the examination cycle on JCQ’s website.

If you believe a VTQ student is eligible for special consideration, you should follow your awarding organisation’s process. The application should be made as soon as possible after the assessment. Your awarding organisation will be able to confirm the deadlines for applying.

If a student feels unwell on the day of their assessment you should notify the awarding organisation as soon as possible and follow your own procedures.

For GCSEs, AS and A levels you may wish to read the JCQ guidance on special consideration  For VTQs, please contact your awarding organisation as each awarding organisation will have its own policy.

If a centre does not agree with an awarding organisation’s decision

An awarding organisation should always explain why it has decided not to give a student a special consideration or to make a different decision to that requested. Our rules mean awarding organisations must have a process for appealing that decision. If you disagree with the awarding organisation’s decision, you should follow that process. We will usually only consider complaints about an awarding organisation once the appeal has been concluded. 

Administering exams

Awarding organisations must make sure centres have the information they need to hand out the right papers on the right day and under the right conditions. Centres must take particular care to store any exam materials securely to protect the confidentiality of the exams. 

Ofqual requires awarding organisations to have written and enforceable agreements with centres that deliver any part of their qualifications, including administering exams and other assessments. The agreements must include that the centre: 

• assists the awarding organisation when it undertakes monitoring 

• has a workforce that can deliver the qualification as the awarding organisation requires 

• operates a complaints procedure for students 

For GCSEs, AS and A levels, JCQ has produced Instructions for conducting examinations. It covers the range of requirements the exam boards place on centres, including: 

• how exam papers must be stored 
• checks which must be performed when the papers are delivered 
• who should be present to supervise opening of papers 
• starting times for exams 
• supervision of candidates who take exams earlier or later than timetabled 
• using calculators 
• using other resources, such as dictionaries 
• conditions, equipment, and seating arrangements in the exam room 
• invigilation arrangements 
• what must be done at the start of the examination, including identifying candidates 
• starting the exam 
• how to supervise during the exam 
• what to do when a candidate is late 
• completing an attendance register 
• what do to in the event of emergencies 
• ending the exam and packing away 
• sending the scripts back to the exam board 

Exams officers and invigilators play an essential role in the smooth running of the exam system. You should ensure that contingency arrangements are in place should exams officers or invigilators be unable to attend on the day on an exam. 

The Exams Office, in partnership with the National Association of Examinations Officers, has also produced the Invigilator Recruitment and Vacancy map to support centres in recruiting invigilators. 

Non-exam assessment in GCSEs, AS or A levels

If skills and knowledge cannot be assessed through exams, exam boards test them through non-exam assessments. 

Where a GCSE, AS or A level includes non-exam assessment, such as a dance or music performance, teachers should support their students to complete that assessment in line with normal expectations set by exam boards. The non-exam assessment will be marked and moderated as usual and combined with students’ exam marks to generate their grades. 

Exam boards provide their own instructions on how the non-exam assessments must be undertaken. JCQ has also published detailed guidance about how the exam boards operate their non-exam assessments in GCSEs, AS and A levels, and what is expected of you. 

Exam boards check whether their rules are properly followed. They have different ways of doing so, including through general centre-inspection visits, subject-targeted visits, and statistical monitoring (which enables them to identify marks for non-exam assessments that appear out of line with students’ performance in their exams for that subject). 

Non-exam and practical assessment in VTQs

Awarding organisations provide their own instructions and timescales on how non-exam and practical assessments for VTQs must be undertaken, marked and moderated.

Awarding organisations check whether their rules are properly followed. They have different ways of doing so, including through external quality assurance and statistical monitoring. The latter enables them to identify marks for non-exam or practical assessments that appear out of line with students’ performance in their exams or other assessments for that subject. 

Arrangements for continuing VTQ students

Students who completed some of their exams or formal assessments in previous academic years, and who will complete the remainder of their qualification this academic year or in the future, are able to carry forward any results they have achieved so far. This applies whether the result was awarded using an adapted assessment or through use of alternative sources of evidence, such as TAGs.

After exams or assessments

Marking and moderation

Ofqual requires awarding organisations to make sure all assessors, including any teachers who are marking their own students’ work, understand how they must mark, and that marking is done accurately and to a consistent standard. 

Where teachers mark their own students’ work (an ‘internally marked’ assessment), then awarding organisations must moderate that marking. This is so they can make sure marking has been undertaken accurately and consistently across all centres. Centres should standardise marking between teachers within their centre. 

Who marks students’ work?

All exams are marked by markers who are recruited and paid by the awarding organisations. 

Non-exam assessment can be marked in different ways, for example by teachers in the student’s centre or by visiting examiners. In some cases, it is sent to the exam board for marking. 

You should follow the JCQ instructions for non-examination assessments for GCSEs AS and A levels, or instructions set by your awarding organisation when conducting and marking non-exam assessments. Awarding organisations will moderate all non-exam assessment in the usual way this year. 

Student requests for a review of teacher-marked non-exam assessment

Centres are required to have specific arrangements in place for students to request reviews of the marking of internal assessments. 

JCQ has published information about the processes centres need to put in place in order to comply with this requirement.

How awarding organisations make sure marking is accurate

Awarding organisations meet our rules – including making sure marking is as accurate as possible – in different ways. Their approach can depend on whether scripts are marked on paper or electronically (on-screen), as well as whether they are marked by question or as a whole paper. Awarding organisation approaches include using ‘seed items’ or requiring markers to submit samples of their marking to a more senior marker for checking. 

If you would like more information on how a particular awarding organisation quality assures its marking, you should look on their website for information or contact them directly. 

‘Seed’ items

Where on-screen marking is used, after the exam has taken place and before the marking starts, senior examiners review student responses and select a number of ‘seed’ items. They then agree a definitive mark – the mark that the response will get and that they all agree is the most appropriate – for each of these seed items and agree a marking tolerance. If a marker awards a mark for a seed item which is outside the agreed tolerance, they can be stopped from marking (either until they have completed further training, or permanently). The marking they have already completed might also be re-marked or adjusted. 

Requiring markers to submit samples of their marking to a more senior marker for checking

If a marker is not marking to the required standard, they can be stopped from marking – either until they have completed further training, or permanently. And the marking they have already completed might be remarked or adjusted. 

Moderation and verification

Teachers mark non-exam assessments that are used for some subjects. When they do this, exam boards must moderate the teachers’ marking to make sure that it is accurate and consistent. This is normally done, at least initially, by checking a sample of the marking of each centre to see if their marking is in line with national standard. 

To make this possible, every centre must provide a sample of their students’ work. The sample is set by the exam boards to include a sufficient number and range of student work (given different marks) to allow them to make a secure judgement about the standard of the centre’s marking. 

The sample is scrutinised by the exam board’s moderator. The moderator, who must have been trained by the exam board to carry out moderation, reviews the marking of the work to check that the mark scheme has been applied accurately (to the correct standard) and consistently. 

If the moderator agrees with the marks, then the centre’s marks remain, and they are used to calculate the final qualification grades for the centre’s students. 

In making this judgement, exam boards recognise that there may be some small differences between the marks given by the teacher and those given by the moderator that do not indicate that the centre made errors in its marking. There may be legitimate differences in judgement between the centre marker and the moderator about the exact mark they judge a piece of work should receive. Reflecting this, exam boards normally choose to put in place a small ‘tolerance’ between the marks the centre give, and the moderator thought appropriate. If an exam board finds the difference between marks awarded by the centre and those awarded by the moderator to be greater than the tolerance, they will judge the marking to be inaccurate. 

If the moderator finds that the marking is inaccurate and/or inconsistent (for example, some marks are accurate and others are not), or they cannot make a judgement about this from the sample they have reviewed, the exam board must act to address this. To do this, a number of things might happen. 

If the moderator is not sure, from the sample that they have looked at, if the marking is accurate or consistent, the moderator will look at a wider sample of work from that centre to allow them to come to a judgement. 

If the moderator identifies that the marking is inaccurate but that it is consistent – for example, if the marks are consistently too low or too high – the exam board will adjust the original marking to make sure students receive an accurate mark. Such an adjustment is applied to the work of all the students in the centre, not just those in the sample. The moderator will have looked at a sufficiently wide sample of work to establish a consistent level of marking within the centre. 

If the moderator finds that the marking is inconsistent, so that it is impossible to adjust the marks in a way that ensures students receive accurate marks, the exam board will either: 

• request and then re-mark all the work from the centre 
• ask the centre to mark it again and then look again at the new marks given through the moderation process 

The moderator will also prepare a report for the centre, which gives feedback on their marking. This report should allow the centre to understand the reasons for any changes to their marking, made following moderation. In particular, this could help the centre to have confidence in how they mark non-exam assessment in the future and/or identify any areas for improvement. Should it be necessary, it will also help them decide whether to seek a review of any adjustment to the marks made after moderation. 

Receiving results data

The usual arrangements will be in place for you to receive GCSE, AS and A level results in advance of the relevant results day.

Ofqual has introduced a new results deadline for VTQs that are used for progression to further or higher education. Awarding organisations will issue these VTQ results to centres no later than 14 August. AQA and WJEC, however, operate their VTQs in a similar way to their A level qualifications, requiring assessment entries rather than a claim process. They will therefore continue to release results to centres on 16 August, in line with the release of their A level results. By frontloading the quality assurance checks for VTQs earlier in term time, the checking of results at this point should be far more minimal than in previous years.

You will need to ensure that your staff are available to process these results, identify any issues and liaise with the relevant awarding organisation.

Results days for students

The date assessment results are released depend on the qualification in question, the way it has been assessed, and the awarding organisation.

AS and A level results, and Level 3 vocational or technical qualification results being used to access further or higher education will be released on:

Thursday 17 August 2023

GCSE results will be released on:

Thursday 24 August 2023

Some vocational and technical qualification results will be available at different times throughout the year. You can find the date you will receive your students’ qualification results on the relevant awarding organisation website.

Approaches to VTQ awarding may differ between awarding organisations. This will depend on how the qualification is assessed and was assessed in summer 2022 and/or, for a minority of students, in summer 2021. For more information, please contact your awarding organisation.

Reviews and appeals for GCSEs, AS and A levels, and TQs within T Levels

If you think there has been an error in the marking, or that an awarding organisation hasn’t followed their processes properly there are processes you can follow to have these decisions reviewed. These processes are collectively known as “post-result services”.

This section sets out the process that awarding organisations have in place to comply with our conditions. For awarding organisation-specific dates and processes please refer to the awarding organisation’s own website.

Stages of the reviews and appeals process 

The reviews and appeals system for GCSEs, AS and A levels, and technical qualifications (TQs) within T Levels has a number of stages, illustrated in the diagram and explained in the text below. Ofqual’s rules set out in detail the way awarding organisations must carry out each of these stages. 

Stages of the reviews and appeals system for GCSEs, AS and A levels

1. Results are issued by the awarding organisations. 

2. A review of marking or moderation can be requested by the centre if it thinks an error has been made. The awarding organisation will then review the marking or moderation and correct any errors. 

3. The centre can make an appeal on the grounds of a marking or moderation error that remains after the review, or on the grounds of a procedural error. The appeal is then considered by an officer at the awarding organisation. 

4. An appeal hearing can be requested by the centre if it is not satisfied with the outcome. The appeal will be considered by a panel at the awarding organisation. 

5. If the centre is still not satisfied after the final appeal outcome, it can apply to Ofqual’s Exam Procedures Review Service (EPRS) for a final review. Ofqual will consider whether something might have gone wrong. 

You may wish to refer to the JCQ information and guidance on the timing and processes of post result services.

Centres are also required to have specific arrangements in place for students to request reviews of the marking for GCSE, AS and A level non-exam assessments prior to the submission of marks to an exam board.

JCQ has published information about the processes centres need to put in place in order to comply with this requirement.

Reviews of marking and moderation

Centres can ask awarding organisations to review whether there were any errors in the exam board’s: 

• marking of any exam or non-exam assessment 
• moderation of a teacher-marked assessment 

Our rules also allow (but do not require) awarding organisations to accept requests for reviews of marking directly from individual students. Each awarding organisation can decide whether – and, if so, in what circumstances – it will accept requests from students. Most awarding organisations choose not to accept requests directly from students. Where this is the case, centres must give students the opportunity to appeal against any decision they take not to ask the awarding organisation for a review of marking, and any decision they take not to seek access to a student’s script. Where this is the case, a centre must give students the chance to appeal the decision not to ask the awarding organisation for a review of marking. They must also give students the chance to appeal a decision not to request access to a student’s script. If a centre (or a student, where the awarding organisation allows them to) requests a review, the awarding organisation must carry one out in line with Ofqual’s rules and communicate the outcome of the review to the centre or student. 

Private candidates

Private candidates are entitled to request a review directly from the awarding organisation. Alternatively, a private candidate may ask the centre (through which they entered for the qualification) to seek a review on their behalf.

Information to help decide whether to ask for a review

Awarding organisations must make mark schemes available to centres before their deadline for accepting reviews. 

Centres and private candidates can also ask awarding organisations to give them access to marked GCSE, AS and A level scripts, and TQs within T Level scripts. This can help them decide whether to ask for a review. 

Awarding organisations set a deadline for the receipt of requests for returned scripts. If you ask them to do so, by their deadline, they must provide you a with copy of the student’s marked script in time for you to decide whether to ask for the marking to be reviewed.

Priority review of marking

A centre can request a priority review of marking if the outcome of the review will be used to access further or higher education. Awarding organisations will aim to complete priority reviews by 6 September, which is UCAS’s advisory deadline for higher education providers to hold places open for students. Where a priority review has been requested, an awarding organisation may offer a different approach to its normal review process.

Reviews of awarding organisation-marked assessments

When reviewing any assessment it marked itself, an awarding organisation must arrange for a reviewer to consider whether the original marker made any errors when marking it. Reviewers must be specifically trained to undertake reviews, as the process of reviewing the way a question or a paper has been marked is different to marking the question or paper afresh. Reviewers must not have been involved with the original marking of the student’s assessment. Awarding organisations must also monitor the way reviewers undertake reviews, to assure themselves reviewers are complying with our rules and are acting consistently. 

A reviewer must: 

1. 1. consider the original marking 

2. 2. decide whether there were any administrative errors in the marking. An administrative error typically occurs when a marker misses a question or does not properly total the marks for all questions. If any such errors (however large or small) are found, they must be corrected, and the grade adjusted if necessary 

3. 3. check, for each task or question for which there was only one possible right answer and therefore mark, whether the right mark was given for the student’s answer. If the marker made an error when marking any such question, the reviewer must remark the question (however large or small the error). The new mark replaces the original one 

4. 4. decide, for questions or tasks for which a range of responses can earn credit, whether the original mark could have been given by a marker who properly applied the mark scheme to the answer and exercised his or her academic judgement in a reasonable way. An error is likely to have been made if the reviewer concludes:

   1. a) that the original mark was unduly lenient or harsh, given the correct application of the mark scheme

   2. b) a marker who had the appropriate subject knowledge and who had been trained to use the mark scheme would have been acting unreasonably in giving the mark

   3. c) there was no rational basis for the mark 

5. 5. re-mark the questions in respect of which the errors were made – however large or small the effect of the error 

If the reviewer finds a marking error, the reviewer’s mark will replace the original mark and the awarding organisation must change the grade if necessary. Any new mark and grade awarded after the review could be higher or lower than that originally given. If the reviewer does not find a marking error the original mark must not be changed. The awarding organisation must tell the centre, or individual student (where the request was accepted from an individual), the outcome of the review and must provide a reason for their decision. 

Occasionally, a reviewer might find 2 or more different errors on review which, when corrected, result in no overall mark change (they cancel each other out). 

If the review raises questions about the accuracy of other students’ results, the awarding organisation may choose to extend the review to other students’ papers. If it finds errors in the marking of those students’ papers, they may replace the original mark, and the grade if necessary. Any new mark and grade awarded after the review could be higher or lower than that originally given. 

Reviews of moderation 

A centre can ask for the outcome of an exam board’s moderation to be reviewed by the awarding organisation if the moderation resulted in a change to the marks the centre gave to the work. Awarding organisations do not provide reviews where the marks given by a centre were not changed following moderation. The request for a review of moderation must be made on behalf of the whole of the centre’s cohort for that component. 

The awarding organisation will ask someone trained to do so to review the decisions taken by the original moderator to consider whether the moderator made any errors. The reviewer will look at the sample of work the original moderator reviewed.

As with reviews of exam marking, the reviewer will judge that there was an error if they conclude that: 

• there was an administrative error 
• any of the moderation decisions were unduly lenient or harsh 
• any of the moderation decisions were unreasonable, from the point of view of a moderator who had the appropriate subject knowledge and who had been trained to moderate the assessment 
• there was no rational basis for the moderation outcome 

The awarding organisation must also make sure that any adjustments applied as a result of the original moderation were appropriate. If the reviewer does not find a moderation error and the awarding organisation judges any adjustments made were appropriate, the awarding organisation must not change the outcome. 

If the reviewer finds an error in the original moderation and/or judges any adjustment made to be inappropriate, the awarding organisation must correct this and, where necessary, adjust students’ marks so that all students receive an accurate mark and, where required, adjust students’ grades. 

If a review of moderation finds that a student had been given a grade that was too high, Ofqual has set a rule that requires that student’s grades will not be lowered. This is because the review affects many students, and centres are likely to be unable to get permission from everyone for a review to take place. There is no equivalent protection where a grade is judged to be too high in other circumstances, for example if the awarding organisation finds it issued the wrong result due to an administrative error. 

Reasons for the outcome of a review

We require awarding organisations to automatically provide reasons for the outcome of a review. Awarding organisations will have their own ways of providing reasons for review outcomes. 

Appeals for GCSEs, AS and A levels and TQs within T Levels

If you remain concerned about an outcome following a review, you can appeal to the awarding organisation. Appeals can be on the grounds that: 

• an awarding organisation did not apply its procedures consistently or that procedures were not followed properly and fairly 

• in GCSEs, AS and A levels (as well as project qualifications), there was an error in the original marking, or in the review of that marking – that is, that: 

  • an administrative error (such as adding up marks incorrectly) had not been corrected

  • the mark scheme was not properly applied

  • the mark could not have been given by a trained marker, who had appropriate subject knowledge, and who had exercised their academic judgement in a reasonable way

• in GCSEs, AS and A levels (as well as project qualifications), there was an error in the original moderation, or in the review of that moderation – that is, that: 

  • an administrative error (such as adding up marks incorrectly) had not been corrected

  • any of the moderation decisions were unduly lenient or harsh

  • any of the moderation decisions were unreasonable, from the point of view of a moderator who had the appropriate subject knowledge and who had been trained to moderate the assessment

  • there was no rational basis for the moderation outcome

Appeals can also be made in respect of: 

• decisions regarding requests for reasonable adjustments and special consideration 

• decisions regarding actions taken following an investigation into malpractice or maladministration 

The setting of a grade boundary cannot be the subject of an appeal.

An awarding organisation must make sure that those making appeal decisions are competent to do so, have no personal interest in the outcome, and were not involved in the original marking or moderation or the review of the marking or moderation. The final decision must involve at least one decision maker who is not connected to the awarding organisation. 

Ofqual’s rules allow (but do not require) awarding organisations to accept appeals directly from individual students. Each awarding organisation can decide whether – and, if so, in what circumstances – it will accept appeals from students. Most awarding organisations choose not to accept appeals directly from students. Where this is the case, awarding organisations must make sure centres give students the chance to appeal if they decide against asking the awarding organisation for further action. 

If a centre (or a student, where the exam board allows them to) seeks an appeal, the awarding organisation must carry one out in line with our rules and communicate the outcome of the appeal to the centre, or student. 

An awarding organisation may choose to offer the centre (or individual student whose appeal was accepted by the awarding organisation) the opportunity to attempt to resolve the disagreement without the need for a full and formal appeal hearing. This is not something we require, and the opportunity for a full appeal must remain available. 

Private candidates

Private candidates are entitled to appeal directly to the awarding organisation. Alternatively, a private candidate may ask the centre (through which they entered for the qualification) to appeal on their behalf. 

Timelines for reviews and appeals

Each awarding organisation must set and publish its own timelines, including the deadlines by which requests for a review or an appeal must be received. 

Our rules do not specify set dates for the completion of reviews and appeals but do set out minimum timescales that awarding organisations must meet. These ensure common, minimum timelines for students and centres. 

Fees

Awarding organisations can charge a fee for reviews of marking, reviews of moderation and considering an appeal. They must publish the fees they will charge and be clear about any circumstances in which they will not charge. 

Appeals for VTQs

Awarding organisations will have their own appeals processes which will be available on their websites. For more information, please contact your awarding organisation.

The Exam procedures review service

Centres who are unhappy with the result of an appeal can ask Ofqual to review the case through the Exam procedures review service (EPRS). We will look at whether the exam board has followed our rules and its own procedures correctly. 

EPRS is only available for: 

• GCSEs, AS and A levels 
• Technical qualifications (within a T Level) 
• Level 3 Project qualifications (EPQ) 

Applications to EPRS can only be made by centres, or directly in the case of private candidates (such as home-educated students). Applications can only be made once the exam board’s appeal process has been completed. Applications should be made within 15 working days of receiving the final appeal decision from the exam board. 

For more information about EPRS please contact us. 

Resits

Most exams for GCSEs, AS and A levels take place in May or June each year. That means most students who want to resit a GCSE, AS or A level will need to wait until the following summer to do so.

In GCSE English language and GCSE mathematics, exams are also available in November, but only for students who were aged 16 or above on 31 August of that year.

For many VTQs, resits may be taken in the autumn or at the next available assessment opportunity. Please contact your awarding organisation for details.

Complaints

Ofqual wants all users of organisations and qualifications we regulate to receive a good service and to have things put right when they go wrong. We encourage you to contact us through our online portal if something has gone wrong.

In order for us to investigate your complaint or concern we may require some specific information to help us investigate your complaint and we will help you through this process.

You will be able to give details of your complaint or concern and attach documents within this service. Youcan use our portal to:

• make a complaint
• report a concern of wrongdoing or malpractice
• raise a concern as a whistleblower
• manage an existing complaint or concern

Whistleblowing

Whistleblowing to Ofqual is one way in which a member of staff in a centre can raise a concern about wrongdoing, risk or malpractice. This may relate to:

• exams, such as GCSEs and A levels
• assessment of vocational or technical qualifications listed on the Register of Regulated Qualifications
• activities of exam boards or awarding organisations which we regulate

We encourage you to contact Ofqual if you wish to raise a concern (called ‘making a disclosure’) about the activities of awarding organisations and the qualifications they offer. If you want to ‘blow the whistle’ to us, we encourage you to:

1. read the GOV.UK page on whistleblowing

2. report the concerns to your employer first, if you feel that you are able to

3. seek independent legal advice to satisfy yourself that you are protected by law, if you wish to report to Ofqual

4. make sure what you are reporting actually counts as whistleblowing

If you do not qualify as a whistleblower, but wish to raise a concern about wrongdoing, risk or malpractice, you can report your concerns via our malpractice reporting procedure.

You can find more information on whistleblowing in Ofqual’s whistleblowing policy.

Further information/useful links

Ofqual

You can find the most up to date information about the arrangements for 2023 on Ofqual’s rolling update update.

The Ofqual Student Guide 2023 is now available for all students.

For public enquiries: contact Ofqual

Public enquiry phone line: 0300 303 3344.

Our phone line is normally open from 9am to 5pm on weekdays. Please check our website for opening times on and after results days.

If you want to complain to Ofqual about an exam board or awarding organisation, for example, because you think they have not followed either their own policies and procedures or Ofqual’s rules, please follow our complaints procedure. We would usually expect you to give the awarding organisation a chance to resolve your complaint by using their complaints process before coming to us.

Joint Council for Qualifications

The Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) is the exam boards’ membership organisation (AQA, OCR, Pearson and WJEC). Exam boards use JCQ to set common policies and procedures that centres must follow.

JCQ’s members also include CCEA, City and Guilds, NCFE and the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA), developing and delivering many vocational and technical qualifications in England.

JCQ has produced information for candidates so that your students are fully prepared and understand the regulations. This includes an exam day checklist and social media information.

JCQ has also published its updated instructions for conducting examinations to enable all centres to administer examinations and assessments consistently and securely so that the integrity of the assessment process can be maintained.

Information and contact: JCQ website

National Careers Service

The National Careers Service provides free and impartial careers advice, information and guidance, including on T Levels and VTQs. The service is available to anyone aged 13 or over.

Telephone: 0800 100 900

Lines are open from 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday and 10am to 5pm on Saturdays. Calls are free from landlines and most mobile numbers.

UCAS

UCAS, the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service, is an independent charity, and the UK’s shared admissions service for higher education.

For any questions about higher education application and admissions, you should contact the relevant institution directly.

Telephone: 0371 468 0 468

Lines are open Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm.

Equality Advisory and Support Services

Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS) advises and assists individuals on issues relating to equality and human rights, across England, Scotland and Wales.

Telephone: 0808 800 0082
Textphone: 0808 800 0084

Mental health support for students

Students may find it helpful to read our resources on preparing for exams – including Ofqual’s guide to coping with exam pressure.

Other organisations

Childline is a service provided by the NSPCC offering confidential support and advice to children and young people.

Mind is a charity providing mental health support for anyone experiencing a mental health problem.

Young Minds is a charity working to improve emotional well-being and mental health among children and young people.

Children and young people’s mental health services (CYPMHS) are services that work with children and young people who have difficulties with their mental health or wellbeing.