2021 exams could be pushed back weeks

NEXT year’s exams are likely to be delayed to allow to pupils to make up for months of lost learning, the Government admitted yesterday.

Despite concerns over the potential knock-on effects on college and university admissions, GCSEs and A-levels are set to be pushed back into the summer. Schools minister Nick Gibb said it was an option ‘we are looking at and have been looking at for several weeks’.

The Government has been facing mounting pressure to allow a short delay, with the Labour Party and teaching unions calling for the normal start date of May to be delayed until June or July. Education Secretary Gavin Williamson also suggested that schools could be asked to undertake ‘benchmarking’ – or rapid assessment by teachers – to check how far students had fallen behind.