Results day invariably creates political debate in any year. Concerns about the inflation of A level grades have already been voiced by universities and there will inevitably be individual students who feel that they have been treated unfairly by their school. As a lawyer who has worked with many affected families seeking to appeal GCSE or A level grades last year, the focus at this time of year is on the appeals process. This year there are tighter deadlines that students and their families need to be aware of. Timeframes have been moved forward to avoid disrupting the allocation of university places by ongoing appeals. ‘Priority’ reviews (where students have missed out on their ‘firm’ higher education choice) must be requested by 16 August from the school (a ‘centre review’), and by 3 September for ‘non-priority’ cases. Individual schools can set earlier deadlines so it is important to double check.
After the centre review, stage 2 is a formal appeal to the exam board – which the school must submit on behalf of the student if requested to do so. The deadline for these is 23 August for ‘priority’ cases and 17 September for ‘non-priority’ cases. At this stage students will more likely want to work with their school in preparing the appeal submission. Finally, students can turn to the Exam Procedures Review Service (EPRS) who will check the exam board’s appeal decision. Again, students need to approach the EPRS quickly, normally within three weeks from the exam board’s decision. Unlike last year, this year an appeal is not without risk – the exam board can adjust grades upwards or downwards, or leave them unchanged.
Ane Vernon is a Partner in the Dispute Resolution department specialising in disputes in the education, commercial and regulatory sector. Ane can be contacted by email or alternatively, telephone on 020 7465 4300.
