Maria Miller MP for Basingstoke has welcomed the announcement that Ofqual will be awarding students teacher assessed grades for this year’s A level and GCSE results.

Maria said, “ It became clear very quickly that a large group of QMC students had not achieved the A’ Level grades that were predicted by their teachers and that the Ofqual moderated A’ Level results were providing inconsistent results for some groups of students, particularly those attending large Sixth Form Colleges. We cannot underestimate the stress and anxiety that this has caused for students and their families. 

“ A’ Levels are a gateway for young people to the next stage of their lives. It is vital that their results are a fair reflection of the work they have done and their ability. I am pleased that action has been taken so that now A’ Level grades are based on Centre Based assessments (CAG) that is the grade their school or college estimated was the grade they would most likely have achieved in their exam, or the moderated grade that was published last week, whichever is higher. Students can access their CAG grades direct from their school or college. 

“ Yesterday I spoke to the Schools Minister and the Universities Minister. They confirmed that students who now have the correct grades for their first preference university should recontact that university. Whilst all universities have independent control of their admissions process the Government has lifted the cap on student numbers this year. Some universities may be in a position to reinstate offers for this September or where there are capacity issues, particularly regarding accommodation, make offers of deferred places for September 2021. 

“ These are unprecedented circumstances and the last few days have been incredibly stressful for so many A’ Level students. I hope that these changes help more students to move onto the university places they had planned for.”