A-level results U-turn welcomed by principals and politicians in Wigan but anger remains

Louise Tipping and Peter McGhee, principals of Winstanley College and St John Rigby College, both said their students had been badly affected, along with thousands around the country, and expressed their dismay at the anxiety and worry caused for their youngsters.

Ms Tipping described the situation as a “scandal” and Mr McGhee said the last few days had been some of the “most difficult” in his career.

He said: “It has been a very distressing few days, most specifically for the individuals for whom this is so personal, and for myself. I have heard many headteachers express similarly, it has been a few of the most difficult days of our entire career, because of the injustice of what we are having to deal with.”

Teenagers across the countryreceived their results last Thursday – despite not sitting exams due to the coronavirus pandemic – but there were thousands of complaints.

Some received lower marks than anticipated, leading to them missing out on university places, and demonstrations have been held in some places.

Regulator Ofqual announced in a U-turn on Monday that A-level and GCSE results would be based on teachers’ assessments of their students, unless the grades produced by the controversial algorithm were higher.

Thousands will now receive increased grades but questions remained whether students who have accepted an offer based on moderated grades can switch institutions, and most importantly when they will receive their new grades.

Wigan MP Lisa Nandy said: “Thankfully, we have now had another of this government’s screeching U-turns. The eventual announcement that students would receive their centre assessment grades – that is, grades based on the professional judgement of their teachers – was welcome. It’s not a perfect system, but it is a fairer one, particularly for larger colleges like those that we have in Wigan.”

Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said: “I am relieved for the thousands of young people whose lives have been turned upside down by the blatant unfairness we saw from Ofqual and the Government.

“We had witnessed five days of digging in from the exams regulator and ministers. Young people in that time were put through the mill.”

Before the Government change of heart, both principals said hundreds of students had been affected, with some missing out on a place at their first-choice university and others not getting a place at all.

Mr McGhee said: “From the moment that we received our students’ moderated results we knew that something was wrong. Regarding high grades, this was the most highly qualified cohort of students that we have ever had at St John Rigby College with increasing numbers of well qualified students being attracted by our reputation and outstanding Ofsted judgement. The prior attainment of students was not as evident in our high grades as we believed it should be and this led to a number of injustices, as you will have seen reported in the media.

“Furthermore, having followed rigorously the guidance that we were given by Ofqual to produce our centre assessed grades, we were aghast to find out that 17 students whom we had assessed with grades ranging from C to E, had been awarded grade U by the algorithm. How could an algorithm determine that our young people had failed a qualification that they had been unable to complete?”

He said he was delighted the “injustices” had been addressed by the U-turn.

At Winstanley College, Ms Tipping said the algorithm had affected students at sixth-form colleges more than in other centres and grammar schools, leading to a “lot of very let-down young people”.

She said: “We are very proud of our talented students who have shown extraordinary resilience and determination in the face of an unfair, chaotic situation. We are still unclear about the appeals process and about how students will be receiving their centre assessed grades from the exam boards which is adding to the levels of stress we’re all experiencing. I’m proud too of Winstanley’s teachers and pastoral care team who have been working tirelessly since Thursday to support students through this.

“I am grateful to Andy Burnham for the part he played in spearheading the Greater Manchester Colleges grievances and for the unequivocal support of all the local MPs from both main parties.

“This is not yet over as highly qualified and able students are now fighting for university places which should have automatically been theirs. We continue to battle on.”

Colleges are preparing for Thursday when GCSE results are announced and they prepare to welcome new students.

Before the U-turn, Makerfield MP Yvonne Fovargue had co-signed a letter to Mr Williamson urging him not to allow GCSE results to be a repeat of the “national shame” of A-level results.

Mr McGhee said: “We are very concerned about the hundreds and hundreds of students that we are going to be meeting later this week who will have received their GCSE grades and for them, those grades have an impact on their options when they move to college.”

Ofqual chairman Roger Taylor said: “We understand this has been a distressing time for students, who were awarded exam results last week for exams they never took. The pandemic has created circumstances no-one could have ever imagined or wished for. We want to now take steps to remove as much stress and uncertainty for young people as possible – and to free up heads and teachers to work towards the important task of getting all schools open in two weeks.

“After reflection, we have decided that the best way to do this is to award grades on the basis of what teachers submitted. The switch to centre assessment grades will apply to both AS and A-levels and to the GCSE results which students will receive later this week.”