NCN annual update

OCR manages the National Centre Number (NCN) Register on behalf of the JCQ.

The NCN Register is used by the unitary awarding bodies to maintain centre data held in their internal systems.

The information from the NCN is also supplied to the following:

the LEAP/SERAP office (based at the University of Bath), which is responsible for collating information on exam centres and results for the Department for Education (DfE).
the Standards and Testing Agency (STA) for the operation of the Parcelforce Worldwide yellow label script despatch service in England.

It is therefore essential the data we hold for your centre is correct.

To make sure your records on the NCN Register are up to date please complete the annual update by 31 October. This will be emailed to your centre at the beginning of the autumn term.

Even if no amendments are required, you must still complete the update.

We will also ask you to provide the name and email address of your Head of Centre. Their details will be held on file and shared with the other awarding bodies and we will use this to send the annual Head of Centre declaration survey.

Centre number DfE number Category code Exam type Centre name Address Telephone and fax Email Contact title

Amendments which need to be made at a later date may be included on the update, with the date when effective clearly specified.

If any of your centre’s details change after you have completed the update, please send your amendments to ncn@ocr.org.uk as an attachment on centre-headed paper.

You don’t need to inform the awarding bodies individually; however, you will need to inform the awarding bodies of any name changes for your exams officer or head of centre contacts or if your certificate name is different to that given in ‘Centre name’.

In addition, if your centre has moved to a new address or changed your secure storage, you must also return the JCQ ‘Are you ready?’ checklist (taken from the JCQ General Regulations for Approved Centres) to ncn@ocr.org.uk.

JCQ NCN checklist DOCX, 110KB

JCQ General Regulations for Approved Centres

A five-digit number allocated to a centre on centre approval to offer qualifications.

If your centre has a DfE registration number, please ensure it is correct. If your centre does not have a DfE registration number, please leave this field blank or insert your Local Authority’s (LA) three-digit code. For example, 936 would indicate a centre based in Surrey. If you are unsure of your LA code, your LA will be able to advise you.

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The category code is a three-digit code indicating type of centre, nature of control or government, and age range. Please check each digit in your code. If any digit is incorrect, please show all three digits of the amended code. If your school does not fit into a category, please use the most appropriate category type.

1st digit – type of centre

1st digit	Type of centre	Guidance
0	Free school	Free schools are DfE-registered and funded by the government but are not run by the local authority. They’re ‘all-ability’ schools, so cannot use academic selection processes like a grammar school. They do not have to follow the national curriculum.
1	Secondary comprehensive or middle school/wide ability school	Secondary comprehensive schools are DfE-registered and state-funded schools for children of all abilities above the age of eleven. They do not select their intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude.
2	Secondary selective school, eg grammar	Secondary selective schools are DfE-registered and state-funded schools that admit students above the age of 11 on the basis of selection criteria, usually academic.
3	Secondary modern school/high school	Secondary modern schools are DfE-registered non-selective schools that recruit students above the age of 11 from the same neighbourhood as a grammar school.
4	Independent or private school including city technology colleges (CTCs)	Independent schools, also referred to as private schools, are DfE-registered but are not maintained by a local authority or are not non-maintained special schools, and at which full-time education is provided (a) for five or more pupils of compulsory school age or (b) for at least one pupil of that age who is looked after by a local authority (within the meaning of section 22 of the Children Act 1989) or has a statement of special educational needs or an education, health and care plan. Independent establishments that are not DfE-registered should use the ‘Other’ category (code 8).
5	Further education establishment	Further education establishments are DfE-registered and state-funded, offering study after secondary education that’s not part of higher education (that is, not taken as part of an undergraduate or graduate degree). Courses range from basic English and maths to Higher National Diplomas (HNDs) and includes technical and applied qualifications for 16 to 19-year-olds.
6	Sixth form college	Sixth form colleges are DfE-registered and state funded, offering qualifications to students between the ages of 16 and 19, typically to allow them to progress to higher education.
7	Tertiary college	No longer in use. Centres that have previously used this category should select the ‘Further Education establishment’ category (code 5).
8	Other	This should be used by establishments for which the other categories do not apply. This includes, but is not exclusive to, PRUs, prison/hospital schools, language schools, tutorials centres, higher education institutions, distance learning providers providing part-time teaching only and private examination centres accepting private candidates who they have not taught. Please note that all non-DfE registered centres should use this category.
9	Academies	Academies are DfE-registered and receive funding directly from the government and are run by an academy trust. Academies do not charge fees.

2nd digit – nature of control or government funding

2nd digit	Nature of control or government funding	Guidance
0	Other	For example, training centre with mixed public and private funding - excluding Learning and Skills Council (LSC).
1	Maintained	Schools or colleges owned and wholly funded by LA including former grant maintained schools which are now community schools; special school funded by Department of Health and Social Security (DHSS); adult education centre on LA premises.
2	Independent	Including all independently administered schools and colleges (other than CTCs); training centres receiving no public funding.
3	Aided/ special agreement	Voluntary school where LA pays only for internal maintenance and running costs, including former grant maintained schools which are now voluntary aided.
4	Controlled	Voluntary school where LA pays all the costs, including former grant maintained schools which are now voluntary controlled. Also includes academies.
5	HM Government	For example, HM Prison, HMYOI, HM Forces including Service Children's Education (SCE), training centre wholly funded by a government department.
6	CTC	City technology colleges.
7	Foundation state	Including former grant maintained schools.
8	Higher education	Including university departments.
9	Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA)	College or training centre wholly or partly funded by the ESFA.

3rd digit – age range of students

	Minimum age	Maximum age
0	Under 11	16
1	9/10/11	13/14
2	11/12	16
3	11/12	18/19
4	13/14	16
5	13/14	18/19
6	16	18/19
7	16	Adult
8	Under 11	18/19
9	Age range not listed above, including over 19

If the majority of students are of school age, use codes 0 to 6 or 8, not 9. If an adult education centre uses the associated school’s National Centre Number, please only enter the school’s age range.

Please note these are only examples.

Code	1st digit	2nd digit	3rd digit
112	Secondary comprehensive	Maintained school	11-16
827	Language school	Privately owned	16-adult
420	Independent school	Independently funded	4-16
696	Sixth form college	LSC	16-18/19
897	Mixed funding adult education	LSC	16-adult
817	Adult education on LEA premises	Maintained	16-adult
812	PRU	Maintained	11-16
807	Training centre	Mixed funding excluding LSC	16-adult

The exam type indicator contains up to four letters which show which type of exams your centre offers. The codes are as follows:

G	GCSE examinations
A	AS and A Level examinations
V	Vocational qualifications
O	Any other type of examination, test or assessment

Please check your code. If you have any changes to make (or there is no code), enter your full code on the update. For example:

If your code is given as GO and you also offer A Level or AS Level examinations, enter GAO.
If your code is given as GAO but you do not enter GCSE examinations, enter AO.

The ‘Centre name’ field shows the name by which the centre is officially known. If the name is longer than 35 characters, please use the ‘Centre name cont.’ field as well (maximum 30 characters).

If the centre name is longer than both ‘Centre name’ and ‘Centre name cont.’, please abbreviate the centre name as you would like it to appear.

‘Centre name’ (and ‘Centre name cont.’ if required) may be used as the centre name on certificates. If this is inappropriate, please contact the relevant awarding body directly.

Some awarding bodies use a ‘short name’ for administrative documents which gives the town name first. This should not be used or confused as the official title of your school/college.

Queries regarding this should be addressed to the relevant awarding body.

1st line of address, 2nd line of address, town, county and postcode

It is essential to ensure your centre’s postal address is correct. You can verify your centre’s details using the Royal Mail postcode finder service. Incorrect address details may result in important examination despatches being lost or delayed.

Please note ‘1st line of address’ and ‘2nd line of address’ are 30 characters each. If your address is longer than this please advise how you wish the address to be abbreviated.

If your centre has more than one postcode, please give the one relating to the member of staff responsible for examination materials, e.g. the exams officer.

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Two telephone numbers can be provided but they must be landline telephone numbers and not mobile numbers. Please ensure that the number of the main office/switchboard is entered first, followed by the number for the exams office. Only one fax number may be provided.

Please take care to enter telephone/fax numbers on the correct lines to avoid confusion.

Please provide the email address of the person responsible for the administration of exams, such as the exams officer, e.g. exams@school.org.uk. As stated in the JCQ General Regulations for Approved Centres, point 5.3, personal email addresses such as Yahoo, Hotmail and Gmail are not acceptable.

Email is now frequently used as the main communication method between awarding bodies and centres, so it is vital this email address is valid, checked regularly and kept up to date.

Only one email address can be held on the NCN.

This identifies the title of the person to whom correspondence should be addressed, e.g. Headteacher, Principal or Exams Officer. Up to 20 characters are available. Personal names must not be used.

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