Exam Information

Link to Exam Results page

External Examinations

Information that all students are required to read at the start of their GCSE/A-Level Courses

JCQ Warning to Candidates Poster

JCQ Unauthorised Items Poster

JCQ Preparing to sit your exams

JCQ Information for candidates; Coursework Assessments

JCQ Information for candidates; Non-examination assessments

JCQ Information for candidates; Written Examinations

JCQ Social Media

JCQ AI and Assessments; A quick guide for students

Section A. Summer 2025 Exams

Next summer's official exam dates have now been confirmed.

The exams relevant to Castle School are to take place from Tuesday 6th May until Monday 23rd June 2025, with a Contingency Day is set in place for Wednesday 25th June in case of substantial disruption at a local or national level. The contingency day cannot be used for students to complete any exam that they have missed due to absence or illness; they are in place only in the event of a national situation requiring an examination to be moved.

Modern Foreign Languages Speaking Exam Window

1st April - 16 May 2025 (GCSE)

7th April - 23rd May 2025 (A Level)

When planning summer holidays, please ensure you are available throughout this exam period which includes the contingency day.

The Summer 2025 exam timetable, specific to Castle School, can be found below, for your reference. (Please note - community foreign languages are not included and will be confirmed at a later time)

Confirmed Summer 2025 Timetable

Confirmed Community Foreign Languages Timetable - will be uploaded soon

Students will receive a Statement of Entry at the end of January and an Individual Candidate Timetable in April; they must check these very carefully to ensure that their entries are correct.
If students have any queries regarding their entries, they should speak to the subject teacher / Head of Faculty. For exam organisation or exam access arrangements queries, please speak to the Exams Officer.

The Castle School Subject Exam Boards and Entry Codes

By being entered for formal exams, students agree to abide by the regulations of the exam boards. Copies of the current Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) regulations are shown above. Students must read these carefully and note that any break in examination rules or regulations could lead to disqualification of some/all qualifications. The school must report any breach of regulations to the relevant awarding body.

Exams cannot be rescheduled. Medical evidence will be required from a doctor or hospital if students are too unwell to attend an exam. If they are delayed or unable to attend an exam through illness, they must contact the absence line immediately and get a message to the Exams Officer.

If any problems arise during the exam season, students should speak to the appropriate person as soon as possible:

Exams Officer: Mrs Selena Power

SENCO (For Exam Access Arrangement queries): Ms Hannah Scott-Mullen

Head of Year 11: Mr Wayne Underwood (2024-25)

SLT Exams Lead: Ms Emma Prior

SLT Head of Post 16: Ms Catherine Cheese

Section C: Coursework and Non-Examination Assessments

Some courses include non-examination assessments (NEA’s) and coursework. The marks from them go alongside the marks from final public examinations and a final grade is awarded for the subject. Most NEA and coursework is marked by the student’s teacher, whose marking is then moderated within the Faculty to ensure consistency across different classes.
Students are informed of their centre assessed marks so they may request a review of the centre’s marking before marks are submitted to the awarding body if they believe the appropriate marking procedures set out by Castle School have not been applied properly. For further information see Internal Appeals Procedure (internal assessment decisions) in the policy section below.
The exam board requests a sample of work from the school to moderate the marking, adjusting initial marks if needed, before awarding the final mark.

Section D: Conduct and Equipment

Attendance at Exams
Students are expected to arrive at least 15 minutes before the start of each exam.
There are strict rules regarding late entry to the exam room and students may not be able to take the exam if they are late. If a student arrives more than one hour late for an exam, the board must be notified. In such cases the board reserves the right not to accept the student's paper.
Students are responsible for checking their own timetable and arriving at school on the correct day and time. If students miss an exam without good reason, parents/carers may be charged the full examination entry fee. Students are to wait quietly outside their exam room until they are invited to enter by the exam invigilator staff member.

Equipment
It is the student's responsibility to ensure they are fully equipped for all exams. Equipment must be brought in a clear plastic pencil case or bag. Any compass set or other container must also be completely see-through (both the base and the lid). Calculator covers should be removed and not brought to the exam room.

Black pen plus a spare
Pencil plus a spare
Pencil Sharpener
Ruler
Rubber
Calculator without cover
Protractor
Compass

Students must write in black ink. Most exam papers are electronically scanned and blue ink is not suitable. Gel pens and correction fluid are not to be used.

Students must not remove any equipment or paperwork from the exam room other than their own possessions. It is an offence to remove exam materials from the exam room.

Watches and Mobile Phones, etc.
ALL WATCHES, mobile phones and any other potential technological / web-enabled sources of information must be switched off and left in the student's bag in the bag room. Possession of such unauthorised items or these items being left on / switched on is a serious malpractice offence and students will be escorted from the exam room if their device is found on them or left on / switched on. This could result in DISQUALIFICATION from the examination and overall qualification.

Food and Drink
Students are allowed to bring a transparent, non-coloured bottle of water into the exam room. The label must be removed and a sports cap is recommended. Students are NOT allowed to bring in any other food or drink into the exam room unless approved as a specific exam access arrangement (to manage diabetes for example).

Graffiti
Students must not write on exam desks or exam desk number labels. This is regarded as vandalism and students will be asked to pay for any damage and clean the desk. Students must not graffiti or write offensive comments on exam papers. If students do, the exam board may refuse to accept the completed paper.

Communication with other students is not permitted in the exam room
Students must enter the exam room in silence and face the front when seated at their exam desk. Students must not communicate in any way with other students in the exam room at any time for any reason. If an invigilator believes students are communicating either by eye contact, signalling or talking, this has to be reported to the exam board as malpractice.
The board may decide to reduce the marks or ban students from any future exams.
During the examination, if students have a query or problem that is unrelated to the content of the paper, they should put their hand up and wait for an invigilator. If additional paper is required, students must also put up their hand to attract the invigilator's attention.

Dress Code
Students are required to attend every exam shown on their timetable in the business attire that they normally wear in school (Year 12 any Year 13 only) or in full school uniform (Year 10 / 11). The school reserves the right to refuse any student admission to an exam if they are not dressed appropriately.

Section E: Exam Access Arrangements and Special Consideration

If a student's normal way of working in class involves some kind of additional support, they could be eligible for Exam Access Arrangements to be put in place for their official exams.
The following links outline the most common exam access arrangements that can be put in place for exam candidates:

Castle School’s Common Exam Access Arrangements - will be uploaded soon

Special Consideration is a post-examination adjustment to a candidate’s mark or grade to reflect temporary illness, temporary injury or some other event outside the candidate’s control at the time of the assessment. It is applied when the issue or event has had, or is reasonably likely to have had, a material effect on a candidate’s ability to take the assessment or demonstrate his or her normal level of attainment in an assessment.

Present for the assessment but disadvantaged: An allowance of additional marks applied from 0-5% of the total raw marks available in the component concerned.
Absent from a timetabled component/unit for acceptable reasons: Minimum requirements for enhanced grading - one whole component, which is a minimum of 15% of the total assessment must have been completed.

If a student has circumstances at the time of the assessment for consideration, they should be discussed in the first instance with the Exams Officer and/or Head of Year.

Section F: Results

A Level results will be available for collection on 14th August 2025

GCSE results will be available for collection on 21st August 2025

Results will be emailed to CSET email addresses later on results day.

If you require someone to collect your results, you will need to email cas-exams@cset.co.uk before the end of term from your school email account.

Your nominee will need to bring photo identification with them before results can be released.

Results cannot be collected by a representative without prior permission being obtained.

Link to our Exam Results page

Section G: Certificates

For further information on the collection of Exam Certificates please contact the Exams Officer by emailing cas-exams@cset.co.uk

Exam certificates are sent to the School in the November following the Summer exams. Certificates are available from Reception from December until the following July after which time they are confidentially disposed of to meet Exam Board regulations.

Students unable to collect their certificates themselves will need to request a permission form from the Exams Officer and their nominee must bring photo identification with them together with the signed permission form, before certificates can be released.

If you lose or damage your certificate/s or don't collect them before they are confidentially destroyed, exam boards will provide a certifying statement at an additional cost (current prices are approx £50-60 per statement per exam board).

Section H: Frequently Asked Questions

What if ...

I haven't got an exam timetable but everyone else has?
Check with your subject teachers if you have been entered for any exams.
You can collect another copy of your timetable from the Student Centre, tutor or Head of Year.
Your timetable is personal to you so do not just turn up to what your friend is doing.

I have an exam clash?
Depending on the total length of the exams, arrangements will be made for you to either take the exams one after the other with a short break in between or take a longer break (moving one exam to the alternative morning or afternoon session) to comply with JCQ regulations.
You will receive personalised instructions about your exam clash from the Exams Officer and what you are permitted to do and what you are not allowed to do between exams.

I have an appointment on the same day as an exam?
You will need to change the appointment. Exams have to happen on the date and time specified by the exam board for every candidate nationally.

The fire alarm sounds?
You will be instructed by the invigilator to stop writing, close your exam paper and answer booklet. You will remain seated and in silence. If you are instructed to evacuate the room you must do so in silence and follow the instructions of the invigilator. Once you are re-seated, the exam will restart and you will be given the full working time set for the examination and the board will be informed of the events by way of a special consideration application.

I am unwell during an exam?
If you feel unwell during an exam, raise your hand and wait for an invigilator to come to you. You may be able to be given a supervised rest break and to discuss your options with school staff.
Unless an invigilator is aware that you are feeling unwell during the exam, there is nothing we can do when the exam has finished to support a special consideration application.

I need special consideration?
The school can request special consideration in exceptional circumstances.
Please talk to your Head of Year or the Exams Officer for information and advice.

Internal Examinations

End of Year Tests (EOYTs) and Pre Public Examinations (PPEs)

At Castle School, we want to make sure that our students are in the best possible position when it comes to sitting their final GCSE and A level exams at the end of Year 11 and Year 13.

Exams are the culmination of their secondary education; it is an opportunity for our students to demonstrate their knowledge, skills and ambition to external examiners; to be awarded nationally recognised qualifications that they will take forward with them and hold for life. Ensuring every student develops a variety of revision skills and the ability to work under pressure is something we teach them to do so that they can meet the challenges of external exams with optimism and confidence.

To do this, we give all our students the opportunities to sit 'formal' exams throughout their time at Castle School. In Key Stage 3, students sit their end of unit exams in their classes. It is important that our students are ready for the whole exam experience and when they are in Year 10, they will sit their end of year tests in the exam hall with their year group under exam conditions. This experience ensures that students have a clear idea of what they need to address before they begin Year 11.

Students learn how to create revision plans taking into account all of their subjects whilst also being encouraged to maintain a balance between school work and their well-being. They are taught revision techniques which are based in cognitive science and receive continuous support from their subject teachers and from senior leadership. Regular assemblies are held throughout the year which are designed to offer support with everything from how to manage stress to how to set up the optimal study environment at home.

Under exam conditions:

Year 10 students will normally sit End of Year Tests in the exam hall
Year 11 students will normally sit two sets of PPEs, in November and February
Year 12 students will sit End of Year Tests either in the exam hall or in classrooms and
Year 13 will normally sit one set of PPEs in February in the exam hall

By doing this, students learn how to manage their time under exam conditions and overcome their anxieties about working for a sustained period in the exam hall, whilst understanding the pressures that they will face in their 'real' GCSEs and A Levels.

They will have had support and guidance to ensure that they are fully prepared and potential gaps in knowledge can be addressed with subject teachers in the weeks following the PPEs.

By the time the real exams arrive in the summer, students know what to expect and are familiar with the regulations and routines.

Dates of EOYTs and PPEs (dates confirmed in September of the relevant academic year)

Year 10 EOYTs: Monday 16th - Friday 27th June 2025

Year 11 PPE1: Tuesday 5th November - Friday 15th November 2024

Year 11 PPE2: Thursday 13th February (half term) - Friday 28th February 2025

French/German Year 11 Speaking PPEs: Monday 24th March - Friday 4th April 2025

Year 12 EOYTs: Monday 2nd June - Friday 6th June 2025 (in class)

Year 13 PPEs: Monday 10th February - Friday 14th February 2025

Part of castle school education trust

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