Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to instruct Ofqual to give special consideration for students whose schools have been affected by RAAC.

Our focus is on supporting schools and colleges to put in place suitable mitigations to minimise disruption to learning.

Special consideration is given to a candidate who has temporarily experienced illness, injury or some other event outside of their control at the time of the exam or assessment. Decisions on special consideration are made by individual exam boards, following guidance published by the Joint Council for Qualifications.

Officials in the department have been working hard to ensure that any school or college that is struggling to deliver particular assessments due to RAAC receives the support they need for their specific circumstances. Officials have asked awarding organisations to agree extensions to coursework and non-examined assessment deadlines with affected schools and colleges wherever possible, whilst providing as much flexibility as they can within the confines of their processes and regulations.