Download the PDFs to read our full response, or a summary of our response, to the Ofqual consultation.

In 2013, as part of the reformed GCSE consultation, Ofqual outlined the requirement to review the GCSE grading system. Ofqual define standards in three dimensions: content standard - what a student should know and do; assessment standard - the level of demand of the assessment, and performance standard - the standard of performance required for the award of a particular grade.

This consultation focuses on the performance standard and looks at the detail of the new grading system. It consults on the general principles and methodology used to set standards in the first year and maintain them in subsequent years. Following the general GCSE consultation Ofqual defined the new grading scale as 9-1, with grade 9 being the highest.