London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Oct 27, 2025

School exam grades in England: how the system will work this year

School exam grades in England: how the system will work this year

With Covid-19 blocking exams for the second year, how will A-level, GCSE and vocational grades work out?

Tens of thousands of school leavers are set to find out their grades after this summer’s exams were cancelled for the second year in a row because of the pandemic.

Here’s how the system will work and the background to a new system.

How will grades be assessed this year?

Teachers have been given sweeping powers to decide A-level, GCSE and vocational grades in England this year, after summer exams were scrapped by the government.

In place of exams, teachers have been asked to assess more than 1.2 million pupils “on what they have been taught” using evidence of their choosing.

Schools and colleges across England had until 18 June to submit candidates’ grades to exam boards after drawing on a range of evidence, including mock exams, coursework and in-class assessments using questions by the boards.

In Scotland, pupils sat in-class assessments this year, and many are aware of their provisional grades – but confirmations will come on 10 August ahead of appeals. Teacher-assessed grading has also been taking place in Wales and Northern Ireland.

What is the rationale for this year’s system?


With the loss of weeks of face-to-face teaching and uncertainty about when it might resume again, the UK government said earlier this year that exams in England could not be held in a fair way.

The approach is an attempt to overcome the sharp disparities in lost learning among pupils, caused by school closures and disruption amid the Covid pandemic.

What happened last year?


An unprecedented fiasco unfolded after an algorithm was used by the exams regulator Ofqual to determine A-level and GCSE grades in England following the cancellation of exams.

The failure of the approach became apparent when A-level grades were announced, with teachers in England having 39% of their assessments downgraded.

After a storm of complaints, the government instead used the school assessments – which reversed the downgrades and saw 38% of entries given A*s or As.

What are the concerns for this year?


There are fears that the attainment gap will be widened if some private schools end up giving inflated grades. One thinktank, the Education Policy Institute (EPI), warned of “a significant risk” of schools adopting different approaches, resulting in large numbers of pupils appealing.

There are also concerns about grade inflation, putting pressure on the university admissions system, and universities and places of further education more generally.

Separately, unions expressed fears that students risked being overburdened with classroom tests, as schools seek to justify teacher-assessed grades.

How will the results be announced?


Teachers had been expected to sit down with individual students and explain the evidence they considered before submitting their assessments.

But students will not know their final grades until publication date, which will be 10 August for A-levels and 12 August for GCSEs. Results for BTecs and vocational and technical qualifications will be announced in the same week.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK Announces £1.08 Billion Budget for Offshore Wind Auction to Boost 2030 Capacity
UK Seeks Steel Alliance with EU and US to Counter China’s Over-Capacity
UK Struggles to Balance China as Both Strategic Threat and Valued Trading Partner
Argentina’s Markets Surge as Milei’s Party Secures Major Win
British Journalist Sami Hamdi Detained by U.S. Authorities After Visa Revocation Amid Israel-Gaza Commentary
King Charles Unveils UK’s First LGBT+ Armed Forces Memorial at National Memorial Arboretum
At ninety-two and re-elected: Paul Biya secures eighth term in Cameroon amid unrest
Racist Incidents Against UK Nurses Surge by 55%
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Cites Shared Concerns With Trump Administration as Foundation for Early US-UK Trade Deal
Essentra plc: A Closer Look at a UK ‘Penny Stock’ Opportunity Amid Market Weakness
U.S. and China Near Deal to Avert Rare-Earth Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
Justin time: Justin Herbert Shields Madison Beer with Impressive Reflex at Lakers Game
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
Giuffre’s Memoir Alleges Maxwell Claimed Sexual Act with Clooney
House Republicans Move to Strip NYC Mayoral Front-Runner Zohran Mamdani of U.S. Citizenship
Record-High Spoiled Ballots Signal Voter Discontent in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential Election
Philippines’ Taal Volcano Erupts Overnight with 2.4 km Ash Plume
Albania’s Virtual AI 'Minister' Diella Set to 'Birth' Eighty-Three Digital Assistants for MPs
Tesla Unveils Vision for Optimus V3 as ‘Biggest Product of All Time’, Including Surgical Capabilities
Francis Ford Coppola Auctions Luxury Watches After Self-Financed Film Flop
Convicted Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed by UK Prison Service Arrested in London
United States and China Begin Constructive Trade Negotiations Ahead of Trump–Xi Summit
U.S. Treasury Sanctions Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro over Drug-Trafficking Allegations
Miss USA Crowns Nebraska’s Audrey Eckert Amid Leadership Overhaul
‘I Am Not Done’: Kamala Harris Signals Possible 2028 White House Run
NBA Faces Integrity Crisis After Mass Arrests in Gambling Scandal
Swift Heist at the Louvre Sees Eight French Crown Jewels Stolen in Under Seven Minutes
U.S. Halts Trade Talks with Canada After Ontario Ad Using Reagan Voice Triggers Diplomatic Fallout
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
China and Russia Deploy Seductive Espionage Networks to Infiltrate U.S. Tech Sector
Apple’s ‘iPhone Air’ Collapses After One Month — Another Major Misstep for the Tech Giant
Graham Potter Begins New Chapter as Sweden Head Coach on Short-Term Deal
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa Alleges Poison Plot via Chocolate and Jam
Lakestar to Halt External Fundraising as Investor in Revolut and Spotify
U.S. Innovation Ranking Under Scrutiny as China Leads Output Outputs but Ranks 10th
Three Men Arrested in London on Suspicion of Spying for Russia
Porsche Reverses EV Strategy as New CEO Bets on Petrol and Hybrids
Singapore’s Prime Minister Warns of ‘Messy’ Transition to Post-American Global Order
Andreessen Horowitz Sets Sights on Ten-Billion-Dollar Fund for Tech Surge
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
×