Reasonable adjustments
Information about changes to assessments to support disabled students.
Reasonable adjustments are changes made to an assessment or to the way an assessment is conducted that reduce or remove a disadvantage caused 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.
While the deadline has now passed for applications for reasonable adjustments in summer 2022, centres should contact the relevant exam board as soon as possible if they become aware an adjustment is required that hasn’t been applied for.
The Equality Act 2010 requires exam boards to make reasonable adjustments to assessments for disabled students. We require exam boards to publish their arrangements for making reasonable adjustments, including how a student qualifies for a reasonable adjustment and what reasonable adjustments will be made.
We have the power under the Equality Act to lift the duty on exam boards to make reasonable adjustments in some cases. The way we have exercised this power is set out in our rules.
Exam boards only have to make a reasonable adjustment to an assessment if the student’s disability makes it substantially harder for them to show what they know, understand, and can do in that assessment.
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 a disability. A student who is temporarily ill or injured isn’t entitled to reasonable adjustments. But there may be other adjustments available, often known as access arrangements. For GCSEs, AS and A levels you may wish to read the JCQ guidance on special consideration.
Exam boards can make a wide range of adjustments to their 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 – and not all of these adjustments will be reasonable in all cases. You may wish to read the JCQ guidance on access arrangements and reasonable adjustments.
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.
That means:
- different students with the same disability won’t 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 won’t get any adjustments
The exam board has to decide, based on each student’s circumstances, which (if any) adjustments are reasonable. Factors they should consider when making that decision include:
- whether our rules 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 is less likely to be reasonable than a cheaper one
- how difficult it is to make the adjustment. A complicated adjustment is 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 isn’t reasonable
- whether the adjustment would break any of our other rules. If our rules require exams, then another form of assessment is unlikely to be reasonable, but other adjustments (such as dictating answers to a scribe or using speech recognition tools) are more likely to be reasonable
Schools and colleges apply for reasonable adjustments on behalf of their students. To show that a student is eligible for a reasonable adjustment, they need to be able to show that:
- the student is disabled
- their disability would significantly disadvantage them in the assessment
Schools and colleges 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.
A school or college that is unsure what adjustments might be appropriate for a particular disabled student should discuss their needs with the exam board as early as possible. The exam board 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 the exam board provide the adjustment in time.
Schools and colleges are responsible for making sure that any adjustments agreed with the exam board are put in place and are used properly when students take their assessments. Schools and colleges have a duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled students under the Equality Act.
The JCQ provides more information about applying for reasonable adjustments.
If a school or college does not agree with an exam board’s decision
An exam board should explain why it has decided not to give a student an adjustment or to give them a different adjustment from that requested. Our rules also mean exam boards must have a process in place for schools and colleges to appeal that decision. If a school or college does not agree with the exam board’s decision, it should follow that process. We will usually only consider complaints about an exam board once the appeal has been concluded.
We do not have powers to investigate complaints or disputes about whether exam boards have breached equality law. We cannot, for example, determine whether an exam board has discriminated against a disabled student. However, an exam board 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 exam board, they can first contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service for advice on their rights within the Equality Act.