School Connection / Feature
2027 exam assurance starts now: Ofqual sets out the whole control cycle
Three new Ofqual guides put the full 2027 assessment lifecycle in one view. The immediate task is to join curriculum, access, AI, staffing, cyber resilience and results governance.
The answer in brief
Ofqual’s new suite makes exam assurance a year-round leadership system, not a summer-term administrative exercise.
On 7 September 2026, Ofqual published three connected guides for the period before, during and after 2027 exams and assessments. Together they place curriculum, non-exam assessment, access, staffing, cyber resilience, incident handling and results governance within one operating cycle.1234
The suite does not represent wholesale qualification reform. Its value is that leaders can now build a single assurance map around explicit responsibilities, dates and dependencies instead of treating each requirement as a separate exams-office task.234
- Build one control map spanning preparation, live delivery, results and post-results action.
- Treat AI authenticity, access arrangements, workforce cover and cyber resilience as assessment-integrity issues.
- Distinguish preventable centre failures from temporary events that may qualify for special consideration.
01 / What Ofqual published
The three-part suite establishes a common operating view for qualifications reported in performance tables.
The guidance covers GCSEs, AS and A levels, T Levels and relevant vocational and technical qualifications. It does not cover on-demand qualifications including Functional Skills, ESOL, apprenticeship assessments, end-point assessments and other VTQs outside DfE performance tables.234
It should be read with the applicable awarding-organisation and JCQ requirements. Some statements reflect mandatory centre agreements or equality duties, while others are regulator advice about sound preparation and communication.23
02 / The control points
Assessment integrity now depends visibly on decisions made long before the first examination.
Students must not use AI to generate assessed work and present it as their own, while permitted use must be acknowledged. Centres remain responsible for authenticity, internal standardisation and following awarding-body instructions for non-exam assessment.24
Schools and colleges should retain suitable evidence in case examinations cannot proceed, although Ofqual says one set of mocks is likely to be sufficient and warns against over-assessment. Access arrangements require early evidence, application and correct delivery.2
Centres must nominate at least one senior designated contact able to resolve qualification issues and be reached outside term time. Ofqual also expects contingency for unavailable exams officers or invigilators, secure materials and prompt reporting of errors, malpractice or maladministration.23
03 / The 2027 calendar
The published dates give leaders a control spine for staffing, access, continuity and communication.
Exam boards are expected to publish 2027 GCSE mathematics and science formulae or equation sheets in December 2026. GCSE, AS and A-level examinations begin on 10 May 2027, the final scheduled day is 22 June and 23 June is the national contingency day.23
The stated deadline for summer GCSE, AS and A-level special-consideration requests is 30 June. AS, A-level and T Level results are due on 12 August, with relevant Level 3 VTQ results on or before that date. GCSE results are due on 19 August, with relevant Level 1/2 and Level 2 VTQ results on or before it.34
Ofqual advises submitting priority marking-review requests by 18 August where completion is needed by 2 September. Centres must also protect results embargoes, provide routes for students to request reviews and retain sufficient staff to check and release results safely.4
04 / Leadership action
Use the autumn term to remove single-person dependencies and test the full assessment chain.
Commission one 2027 control map for every qualification and awarding organisation. It should identify owners, deadlines, non-exam assessment, access arrangements, secure storage, cyber dependencies, staffing cover, incident escalation, embargoed results and post-results routes.
Appoint the senior designated contact and deputies, test AI-authenticity procedures with curriculum leaders, identify access cases early and run scenarios covering loss of the exams officer, an unavailable invigilator, building disruption and system outage.
- Agree which mock evidence will be retained without adding unnecessary assessment.
- Record who may access embargoed results and how students can request reviews.
- Recheck awarding-body and JCQ dates as the 2027 cycle develops.
Leadership questions
Questions that turn the development into a governing conversation.
Board test
Can one assurance map show every qualification, deadline, accountable owner and critical dependency?
Board test
How would the assessment cycle continue if the exams officer, a key system or the planned room became unavailable?
Board test
Can curriculum leaders evidence authentic non-examined work and consistent internal marking?
Board test
Are access arrangements identified, evidenced and tested early enough for every eligible student?
School Connection intelligence lens
What the national Observatory can add, and where it must stop.
The assessment cycle links standards with SEND access, workforce capacity, room and site resilience, cyber security, invigilation costs and board assurance. Leading indicators should therefore test control readiness, not wait for an examination incident or disputed result.
Only human-approved, public-safe intelligence can appear here. Private candidates, commercial signals, contacts, opportunity values and internal scores are never exposed through School Connection.
Evidence boundary
What this analysis does not prove.
- The guides are newly published, but much of their content consolidates existing rules and responsibilities.
- They do not demonstrate rising malpractice, alter grading standards or replace qualification-specific awarding-body and JCQ requirements.
- The 2027 dates and processes were current at the evidence cut-off and should be rechecked as the cycle progresses.
What we are monitoring next
Publication is the beginning of the watch.
- Awarding-body and JCQ deadlines, including access arrangements, entries and VTQ checkpoints.
- December publication of the 2027 formulae and equation sheets.
- Further Ofqual or DfE clarification on AI, digital results records and assessment resilience.
Approved public intelligence
What the live evidence is showing now.
School Connection continues to monitor standards, curriculum & accountability evidence. New machine-detected signals remain private editorial candidates until a human editor investigates and approves them for publication.
This panel reads only the editor-approved School Connection public feed. It never exposes raw Observatory records, private candidates, contacts, commercial opportunities or internal scores.
Sources and methodology
Evidence used in this analysis
School Connection links to the primary source behind each material claim. Source status, period and limitations are stated so readers can reproduce the evidence trail.
- 01
Ofqual · Current at 9 September 2026; featured guides published 7 September 2026
Ofqual Teacher Hub
Brings together the new before, during and after guidance with grading, AI, exams-officer and teaching resources. - 02
Ofqual · Published 7 September 2026
What people working in schools and colleges need to know before exams and assessments
Primary source for non-exam assessment, AI authenticity, formula sheets, contingency evidence, cyber security, access arrangements and senior designated contacts. - 03
Ofqual · Published 7 September 2026
What people working in schools and colleges need to know about the exam and assessment season
Primary source for 2027 exam dates, centre administration, staffing contingencies, special consideration, errors, malpractice and maladministration. - 04
Ofqual · Published 7 September 2026
What people working in schools and colleges need to know about the period after exams and assessments
Primary source for grading, moderation, results embargoes, 2027 results dates, marked scripts, reviews, appeals and resits.