Ofqual has signalled "a level-playing field" for the future of the marking reviews and appeals system aimed at improving public confidence in the exam marking system.

The outcomes of a consultation which intended to improve how exam boards address concerns that students and centres may have about a student’s GCSE, AS or A Level mark, have now been published.

From this summer, exam boards:

• must tell examiners who review results that they should not change marks unless there is a clear marking error
• must monitor their reviewers to make sure that they are acting consistently
• must continue to make AS and A Level scripts available to those schools who want them ahead of the closing date for reviews and will be able to choose to do the same for GCSE scripts
• will have to categorise the reasons why a result has or has not been changed and, when requested to do so, provide this information to the centre or student.

In summer 2016, Ofqual is planning to pilot a new appeals process in three A Level subjects (maths, geography and religious studies). In these subjects, the grounds for appeal following a review will be extended to enable schools to appeal the mark a student was given if the school believes a marking error was not corrected during the review. Ofqual will evaluate the outcomes from the pilot and decide in 2017 whether to roll this out more widely.

Read this blog for further information about the changes to the marking reviews system.