EXAMS

Year 11 Revision Hub

Please direct all exam enquiries to the email address below:

exams@handsworth-mlt.co.uk

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Exam Access Arrangements 25-27

Our Exam Access Arrangements process outlines the activities undertaken to ensure inclusion throughout the school for all students with learning and medical needs, which will include those with formally diagnosed Special Educational Needs Disabilities (SEND). The supports and facilitates the school’s aim to create a learning environment in which every student can fulfil his or her full potential.

What are Exam Access Arrangements?

Access Arrangements are actions taken to remove the disadvantages to a student accessing an examination caused by physical, learning, sensory or psychological difficulties, without creating any unfair advantage or compromising the integrity of an assessment. These arrangements are agreed before an assessment and must reflect a student’s normal way of working within the school.

Reasonable Adjustments

The Equality Act 2010 requires an awarding body to make reasonable adjustments where a candidate who is disabled within the meaning of the Equality Act 2010 would be at a substantial disadvantage in comparison to someone who is not disabled. A candidate with a disability or difficulty which has a substantial and long-term effect on performance in examinations may qualify for access arrangements. An adjustment may not be considered reasonable if it involves unreasonable costs, timeframes or affects the security or integrity of the assessment.

Available Exam Access Arrangements include:

• Supervised rest breaks

• Extra time

• Reader/Computer reader

• Scribe

• Word processor

• Prompter

• Live speaker for pre-recorded examination components

• Alternative site for exams

• Bilingual translation dictionaries

• Modified papers (e.g. enlarged or modified papers)

• Language modifier

A reasonable adjustment may not be included in the list of available access arrangements because it may be unique to an individual.

Evidence needed for Access Arrangements

Various pieces of evidence are required to apply for an Exam Access Arrangement from the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ), depending on the arrangement required. These could include:

· Form 8 report from Access Arrangements Assessor

· Previous Access Arrangements from other schools

· Subject teachers – examples of work as appropriate

· Results of baseline tests e.g. spelling, writing, reading comprehension tests

· Any letters from outside agencies, hospitals or doctors

· Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP)

At Handsworth Grange, we follow the process outlined by the JCQ, which can be seen here: https://www.jcq.org.uk/knowledge-hub/access-arrangementsa-guide-for-teaching-staff/ 

1. Teachers identify known learning and SEND needs and the support that candidates require as part of their ‘normal way of working’. This occurs during the end of Year 9 and start of Year 10.

2. This information is collated and students with diagnosed SEND needs, medical conditions or an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) begin to trial their arrangements in mock exams.

3. For those students with a learning need, an cognitive assessment by a Specialist Assessor is required. The scores of these assessments will determine if a candidate meets the criteria to access an arrangement.

4. For all candidates, the arrangement that is granted must reflect their ‘normal way of working’ in the centre and be backed up by both teacher evidence and either test scores or medical evidence.

5. During the Summer Y10 mock exams and Autumn Y11 mock exams, Exam Access Arrangements will be trialled and evidence gathered. If an arrangements is not used in these two cycles and we cannot evidence it is their ‘normal way of working’ it will be removed.

6. All arrangements will be finalised before the Spring Y11 mock exams, in order to comply with the deadline from the JCQ and ensure that candidates have a further cycle of the arrangements prior to the final exams.

Once the Access Arrangement is granted, this evidence will be held on file and available for inspection, together with:

• Approval Notice from the JCQ for the arrangement

• Teacher feedback to identify need

• Teacher and Invigilator feedback from mock exams

• A form 8 or form 9, depending on the application route.

Identifying the need for Access Arrangements

Students will be identified for consideration for Access Arrangements in one of the following ways:

• Subject Teacher referral

• They are known to the SEND team

• Information from previous schools

• They had an Access Arrangement in KS2 for their National Curriculum Tests

• Parental referral

However, parents should refer to this guidance from the JCQ regarding requests for exam access arrangements where the centre does not have evidence of need or normal way of working: https://www.jcq.org.uk/knowledge-hub/guidance-regarding-parental-candidate-requests-for-access-arrangements-when-the-centre-has-no-evidence-of-need/

Testing and applying for Access Arrangements

When a student is brought to the attention of a SENCo in one of the above ways, the SENCo/Access Arrangements Coordinator will investigate further. If further testing or screening is indicated, this will be carried out and parents informed. The outcomes of the assessments will be recorded and summarised; where an Access Arrangement is recommended due to a learning difficulty, JCQ Form 8 Part 2 (the assessor’s report) will be completed and used as evidence for online submission of a formal Access Arrangement application. The school will then apply to the Awarding Bodies using the Access Arrangements Online application system. The feedback is instant, and, where the Access Arrangement is approved, the arrangement is allocated to the student, and the parents informed in writing.

The evidence of need is held on file, and the SENCo/Access Arrangements Coordinator monitors and ensures that the Access Arrangement is normal working practice for the student within school.

Deadlines for Access Arrangement Applications

Year 11

The school deadline to submit evidence and request Access Arrangements for a student in Year 11 is October half term. This allows the SENCo/Access Arrangements Coordinator and the Examinations Officer time to plan the Year 11 mock examinations which are the last opportunity to trial any Access Arrangements. The Year 10 examinations should provide an opportunity to identify any difficulties a student may have.

Further Information

Further information can be found on the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) website:

https://www.jcq.org.uk/or by looking at the relevant section of the Access Arrangements and Reasonable Adjustments guidance: https://www.jcq.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/03/JCQ-AARA-2025-March-26.pdf 

2025 Exam Certificates ready to collect

Certificates can be collected from Main Reception upon presentation of ID, preferably photographic.

You can also collect when it is convenient to you, between the hours of 8.00am to 3.30pm TERM TIME ONLY.

A third party can collect, upon presentation of a signed, dated note from the owner of the certificates, authorising HGCSC to release certificates to them. The third party must also present some identification.

Persons collecting certificates will be asked to sign to accept responsibility, and this receipt is kept as proof of collection should there be a further query relating to the certificates.

Exam Certificates

Please complete the link below to request collection of your certificates. Please be aware that we only keep certificates for 10 years (plus the current year) to comply with our Exam Archiving Policy.

https://forms.office.com/r/GbUH5QqnqC