I have always maintained that A Level results day lives with you for the rest of your life, and I am sure the class of 2020 will not forget this one.
After a conversation with the Principal of Barton Peveril first thing last Thursday morning, one later in the day with the Principal of Peter Symonds’ and a call with the Schools Minister Nick Gibb it was very clear that the discredited algorithm had a worse impact on large 6th Form Colleges than anywhere else. As I said to the Secretary of State over last weekend, these are teenagers, who have already been through the worst year of their lives, they should not be have been subject to a flawed system which downgraded their achievements and devastated hopes.
I was very relieved when the announcement came that grades would be restored to Centre Assessed Grades, and a no detriment policy so if by some miracle you had a higher final result than the CAG then you got to keep it. I have to give credit to the Universities Minister for her determination to take up individual cases, and like me she was calling admissions tutors all over the weekend trying to foster kindness and understanding.
This week’s GCSE results, will, I hope pass off smoothly and young people at local schools will move on to the next step of their education without the horrors of last week. I know they will have worked hard, struggled through the challenges of lockdown and will be looking forward to the next steps in September.
