Nearly a third of pupils in England were given 25% extra time to complete their GCSEs and A-level exams following a surge in special exam access arrangements being granted, data from Ofqual has shown.

The figure is higher again among exam candidates in private schools where more than two in five received 25% extra time in the last academic year, according to England’s exams regulator.

The total number of approved special access arrangements for GCSE, AS and A-level exams rose by 12.3% in the 2023/24 school year compared to the year before, the data has revealed.

  • Independent centres 41.8%
  • Sixth form and FE colleges 35%
  • Non-selective state schools 26.5%

It comes as education leaders have suggested more pupils are seeking support after the pandemic due to a rise in young people with special educational needs and disabilities (Send) and mental health issues.

Requests for 25% extra time in exams was the most common approved access arrangement for pupils with learning difficulties or disabilities, followed by computer readers, scribes and speech recognition.

More than three in 10 (30.1%) candidates taking exams in England were granted 25% extra time in 2023/24, compared with 28.0% in 2022/23, the latest data from Ofqual has revealed.

Independent centres – of which the majority are private schools – 41.8% of all candidates were granted 25% extra time in their exams in 2023/24, compared to 35% in sixth form and FE colleges and 26.5% in non-selective state schools.

Overall, there were 624,975 approved access arrangements for GCSE, AS and A-level exams in England in 2023/24, compared to 556,435 in 2022/23 and 512,085 in 2021/22.

Ofqual said an individual candidate can be granted more than one type of access arrangement.

It added that once granted, an access arrangement for a long-term condition is valid for up to 26 months, so these approved requests could contribute to the overall figure on the number of access arrangements over multiple years.

Summer exams did not take place in 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and results were instead based on teacher assessments.

Exams returned in 2022 and grading was restored to pre-pandemic levels in England in 2023.

Paul Whiteman, general secretary at school leaders’ union NAHT, said: “Our members have definitely seen a rise in the requests for access arrangements, particularly for students to take their exams away from main exam halls in smaller rooms.

“That rise in requests is likely to be a result of a variety of factors including the impact of the pandemic and increasing anxiety and mental health issues.

“Those may be exacerbated by the number of high stakes final exams students face in their GCSE subjects.

“There is also more awareness amongst students and parents of what is available to help students cope with exams and get the support that they need.”

Mr Whiteman called for more support for schools and colleges to meet the increasing demand for separate or small room invigilation as he added that finding staff and space can be “challenging”.

Pepe Di’Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: “It isn’t surprising that access arrangements for examinations are on the increase because so are the number of students with special educational needs and poor mental health.

“At least some of the well-being issues are directly linked to the exam system itself where the sheer quantity of assessment in a short period of time is excessive and the stakes are too high.”

David Holloway, senior policy manager Send at the Association of Colleges (AoC), said the rise in students presenting with Send and mental health conditions may have led to more adjustments.

He added that the rise in approved exam access arrangements had posed challenges for colleges due to “substantial extra pressure” on accommodation and staffing.

Mr Holloway said: “For colleges, the increase is also down to the proportion of students who need to resit their GCSE English and maths exams.

“Numbers of resits have been rising and in some colleges, more than half of GCSE English resit students require EAAs (exam access arrangements), such as extra time, a separate room or adaptations to the printed exam paper.”

A Department for Education (DfE) spokesperson said: “We are committed to high and rising standards and it’s crucial that students with disabilities, learning difficulties or temporary illness be provided with access arrangements.

“This ensures they are not unfairly disadvantaged when taking their exams compared to their peers and that all pupils get the best life chances.

“All schools, including independent schools, are required to apply for access arrangements on behalf of their students and provide evidence to awarding organisations to support their application.

“We are committed to identifying what is driving this gap and whether there are systemic barriers in place preventing state schools from accessing these arrangements, as part of wider work on Send identification in schools.”

A spokesperson for Ofqual said: “There are many factors that could contribute to the overall rise in access arrangements and there are many reasons why schools and colleges apply for them.

“It is important that students receive the access arrangements they need to allow them to demonstrate what they know, understand and can do.”