Exam Procedures During Adverse Weather

Even if school is closed to pupils through severe weather the external exams will still run on the stated day and time. If you cannot get into school on the day of an exam, due to snow, then contact the exams office as soon as possible. Please see below the JCQ advice to centres.

Advice to centres: Examinations during severe weather conditions and periods of disruption

Awarding bodies have well established processes in place to deal with disruption caused by severe weather conditions, which ensure that no student is disadvantaged.

It is important to note that rescheduling examinations is not an option due to the consequences this would have across the system. For example, it would reduce significantly the amount of time schools and colleges have to teach, and students to learn, in preparation for the summer examination series. The integrity of the question papers could also be compromised. The task of ensuring that all schools and colleges do not offer the examinations on the original scheduled date would be difficult to undertake and guarantee.

Taking all the factors into account, drawing upon experience of previous years such as the disruption caused by adverse weather conditions in 2011 and 2012, and in consultation with the regulators, awarding bodies have agreed the following: Wherever possible examinations should be conducted according to the published examination timetable.

If conditions are so severe that a decision is made to close the school or college, whether by the local authority or the senior leadership team, or where a school or college remains open but some candidates are unable to reach it because of extreme weather conditions, and no alternative arrangements can be made to take the examination at a different location, then the options are:

• Where candidates are entered for examinations but this is not their terminal (final) examination series, they may be entered again for the June 2013 series.
• Where candidates are sitting units as part of their terminal examination series or no further re-sit opportunity is available, then an application for special consideration may be made. The candidate must meet the published criteria for special consideration as indicated in the JCQ publication, Access Arrangements, Reasonable Adjustments and Special Consideration.