Examination Guidance - Strood Academy

Essential advice for Candidates 2023/2024 Examination period

Examinations FAQs

Parents/carers can access their child’s exam timetable through the ‘My Child at School online portal’. Students can access their exam timetable through the student portal. This will appear after the entries deadline in February, and you will be prompted to check.

Please make sure your child can access their timetables. Any problems accessing please contact us.

All mock timetables will be emailed out.

Where and when are my exams?

All examination periods, including mocks, will appear on the Academy Calendar. You will receive your own individual candidate timetable for external examinations. Once you have received your individual candidate timetable, please check your timetable carefully and report any concerns to the Examinations Officer.

When do I need to get to the Academy?

Morning exams start at 9am prompt
Afternoon exams start at 1:30pm prompt
Exam Line up will be 15 minutes before this time.

What should I bring?

Your equipment in a clear pencil case – Black pen, HB pencil, ruler, rubber, sharpener, highlighter. A calculator if required but no lids, maths set (protractor, compass etc) if required
You may bring a bottle of water in a clear bottle with no label

What should I NOT bring?

NO – Mobile phones, Watches, MP3/4 Players
NO – Potential technological/ Web enables sources of information
Food, unless you are diabetic in which case please speak to the Examinations Office before your exams about this
Your coat and bag. Arrangements will be made to store them outside of the examinations rooms.
No revision notes etc – nothing in your blazer pockets, sweet wrappers/ crisp packets / anything with writing on.
You will also need to ensure that your hands and arms are free from any notes or writing.

What if I am ill?

If at all possible you should attend the examination
If you are unable to due to serious illness you must inform the Academy Attendance Office in the usual way, but also informing them that you are due to sit an exam
If you are absent due to serious illness you must provide a doctor’s letter, which needs to be given to the Examinations Office within 5 days of the exam missed. The exam board will request this.

What if I am late?

Do not panic!
Make sure you telephone the Academy and explain the situation – 01634 717121, giving an expected time of arrival

Can I leave early if I have finished?

No. Candidates leaving early can cause a disturbance that is unfair to others in the exam.

Please note that afternoon examinations may finish after the end of school so candidates may need to make arrangements to get home if you normally use the buses.

RESULTS DAY 2024

Contingency Day

These are now timetabled for the afternoons of the 6 and 13 June as well as the day of 26 June 2024. The designation of a ‘contingency day’ within the common examination timetable is in the event of national or significant local disruption to examinations in the United Kingdom. It is part of the awarding bodies’ standard contingency planning for examinations. Centres must therefore remind candidates that they must remain available until Wednesday 26 June 2024, should an awarding body need to invoke its contingency plan.

Please can all students/parents/carers make a note of the contingency exam date in the event that an awarding body needs to invoke its contingency plan.

If you have any queries or need help or advice at any time before, during or after examinations please contact:

Examinations Officer: Julie Towes (exams@stroodacademy.org)

Result days – 2024 Examinations

Level 3 – A Levels/BTEC/LIBF: Results will be available for collection on Thursday 15 August from 9am – Main Hall

Level 2 – GCSE/BTECs: Results will available for collection on Thursday 22 August from the Main Hall. Hercules are to collect at 8am, Victory at 9am and Trafalgar at 10am.

Staff will be available to deal with any specific exam / careers related guidance you may require.

Results not collected on the Result days will remain in school. If a student wishes for someone to collect on their behalf, students must inform the Exams officer via exams@stroodacademy.org by 14th August 2024. This must be the student’s email, not the parents.

The request may not be processed if received after this date. Results will not be given out by telephone or emailed.

Statement of Results

On results day you will receive a ‘Statement of Results’. THIS IS NOT YOUR FINAL CERTIFICATE. The statement lists ALL the exams you have taken and any components within the qualification.

You will receive an overall results sheet, and then an overall results sheet per examination board.

Post Results Service Information

Students should seek advice from their Academy staff before proceeding with any Post results request – JCQ Post result – deciding what to do after result.

Clerical Recheck (Service 1): A post results service to check all clerical procedures were carried out, such as all pages were marked, all marks were counted and the result matches the marks on the paper.
Reviews of Marking (Service 2): This is a post-results review of the original marking to ensure that the agreed mark scheme has been applied correctly. It is not a re-marking of a candidate’s script. Students may request to have their exam paper reviewed but they must be aware that there are three possible outcomes; the mark stays the same, the mark is raised or the mark is lowered.
A priority review of marking service (Service 2P) is available for GCSE Maths and English Language and GCE A-level candidates whose place in higher education is dependent on the outcome. Awarding bodies aim to complete a priority service within 15 calendar days of receipt of the application.

Access to Scripts

A student may request a script to assist in deciding on whether or not to proceed with a review of marking. In this instance, a priority copy is required.

Should a student wish to request a copy for revision/information only, then they can do so. Once a non-priority script has been requested, a review of marking may no longer be accessible from some awarding bodies.

Application Forms and Fees

Post results application forms will be available upon request by contacting exam@stroodacademy.org

All applications must be signed by the candidate, as requests cannot be processed without the candidate’s written consent.

All post results services incur a fee and are subject to strict deadlines, which must be adhered to. Please note: applications will not be processed without the appropriate fee.

Guidance on deadlines and Exam board fees are in the provided links and can we obtained from emailing: exams@stroodacademy.org

Please note that the deadlines can be found on the Exam board links below.

To view the information below in a PDF form, please click the link above to open in a new tab.

Result days – 2023 Examinations

Level 3 – A Levels/BTEC/LIBF
Results can be collected on Thursday 17 August from 9am – 11am – Main Hall Staff will be available to deal with any specific exam / careers related guidance you may require.
Level 2 – GCSE/BTECs
Results can be collected on Thursday 24 August – Invites for collected times have been emailed out.
Staff will be available to deal with any specific exam / careers related guidance you may require.

Results not collected on the Result days will remain in school. If a student wishes for someone to collect on their behalf, students must inform the Exams officer via exams@stroodacademy.org by 16th August 2023. This must be the student not the parent.

The request may not be processed if received after this date.

Results will not be given out by telephone or emailed.

Statement of Results

On results day you will receive a ‘Statement of Results’. THIS IS NOT YOUR FINAL CERTIFICATE. The statement lists ALL the exams you have taken and any components within the qualification.

You will receive an overall results sheet, and then an overall results sheet per examination board.

Post Results Service Information

CLERICAL RE-CHECK (Service 1)
A post results service to check all clerical procedures were carried out, such as all pages were marked, all marks were counted and the result matches the marks on the paper.
REVIEWS OF MARKING (Service 2)
This is a post-results review of the original marking to ensure that the agreed mark scheme has been applied correctly. It is not a re-marking of a candidate’s script. Students may request to have their exam paper reviewed but they must be aware that there are three possible outcomes; the mark stays the same, the mark is raised or the mark is lowered.
A priority review of marking service (Service 2P) is available for GCSE Maths and English Language and GCE A-level candidates whose place in higher education is dependent on the outcome. Awarding bodies aim to complete a priority service within 15 calendar days of receipt of the application.
Students should seek advice from their Academy staff before proceeding with any Post results request
ACCESS TO SCRIPTS
A student may request a script to assist in deciding on whether or not to proceed with a review of marking. In this instance, a priority copy is required.
Should a student wish to request a copy for revision/information only, then they can do so. Once a non-priority script has been requested, a review of marking may no longer be accessible from some awarding bodies.
APPLICATION FORMS AND FEES
Post results application forms will be available upon request by contacting exam@stroodacademy.org
All applications must be signed by the candidate, as requests cannot be processed without the candidate’s written consent.
All post results services incur a fee and are subject to strict deadlines, which must be adhered to. Please note: applications will not be processed without the appropriate fee.
Guidance on deadlines and Exam board fees are in the provided links and can we obtained from emailing: exams@stroodacademy.org

Certificates

Certificates are received in school during November and leavers will be invited in to collect them once ready. Those that stay on in the sixth form will be issued out during form time during this period.

JCQ regulations state that certificates should be kept for 12 months. If they remain uncollected they may be disposed of securely.

Certificates are important documents. Most educational institutions and potential employers will ask to see your original certificates. If you lose or fail to collect your Certificates, you will need to obtain duplicates from the relevant Awarding Body. The Awarding Bodies no longer replicate certificates unless you can prove they were destroyed by theft, fire or flood; they will only issue a Statement of Achievement. This currently costs in the region of £43.00 per ‘Statement of Achievement’.