Climb down is forced after A-levels anger

Nick Law, Principal of the Robert Carre Trust, which oversees Carre’s Grammar School and Kesteven and Sleaford High School, says the imposition of the system after careful assessment of predicted grades by schools had demonstrated a lack of trust in staff. However, in a dramatic U-turn on Monday the chairman of Ofqual Roger Taylor and Education Secretary Gavin Williamson agreed to allow the teacher assessed marks to be accepted and apologised for the “distress” caused as they explained the inconsistencies created by the system were too great to be handled by appeals.

Carre’s had seen 51 students receive lower grades than their mock exams and 21 at thhigh school, some by two grades, in order to fall in line with the “national average” despite marks being compared against an average of the schools’ last three years.

Mr Law said: “It seems the government don’t trust us as teachers on this one.

“The high school were brought down well below their three year average. We would have expected better exam results in both schools.”

He said the majority of his students had been offered places at universities, over 70 per cent being first choices, with only eight students not placed, but those families had been particularly angry and frustrated.

He and Head of School at KSHS Jo Smith had lobbied their MP Dr Caroline Johnson and parents had also written to her prompting her to speak to inisters on Monday on the matter.