Thank you for your queries in relation to grades awarded this summer. The vast majority of queries are now dealt with and I thank you for your patience and understanding, even though there was some disappointment. Some students did not receive the grade they were hoping for and we now have now explained why this was the case in all instances. Much of the misunderstanding has centred around the different types of data that we provide students (and parents) with throughout their courses. This year we will be doing even more work to help our students understand the meaning of different types of data including current attainment, class test data, course prediction, college predictions and minimum estimated grades. We will also explain the concept of moderation. This should help everybody understand the grading process in case we are in this position again next year.

Appeals are now being submitted to the examination boards. Individual parents have been contacted about this and it only affects a very small number of entries, which meet the strict criteria for appeals. There is no guarantee that appeals will be successful and parents should inform their children of this. As there is no precedent for this type of appeal we cannot predict how the process will unfold. It is possible that the Examination Boards will not change grades. As soon as we get the outcome of any appeal we will be in touch with those parents.

Below is a link (and QR Code) to a form for those parents who wish to enter their child for a re-sit. Simply scan this link using your mobile phone.

https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=3g3BGS0lZ0WndU93tAGQizVM3Yxd1xNtafaGmLWs_lUMUtMRlhMT1lBQzhZMkI2Rk5PVFQ0WDBKVS4u

Parents should discuss the November 2020 re-sit clearly with their child to be sure that a November re-sit is the best course of action. It is very important that revision is undertaken to avoid any further disappointment in the examination itself. Students will then be able to use their best grade arising out of the re-sit, compared to the Centre Assessed Grade that has already been received.

For some students it may be that they have already enrolled on to a college course which has English and / or Mathematics re-sits built into the programme. As this will come with booster tuition, it may be a better course of action than a re-sit with us, without any additional teaching. This is a matter for parents and children to decide together, before submitting the form.

The deadline for receipt of this data is Monday 14 September 2020. We will contact you shortly after this to confirm the re-sit, as well as details around the examination date and procedure. Please feel free to contact me if you have any further questions.

Thanks,

Darren Christian
Principal, SNHS

All GCSE subjects are now graded from 1 – 9.
To compare with legacy GCSEs, Grade 1 approximately equates to a Grade G, Grade 4 equates to a low Grade C and Grade 7 equates to a low Grade A.
Attainment 8 (A8) is a measure of public examination performance across eight subjects. This includes English, Mathematics, Sciences, Humanities, Languages and other optional subjects.
Progress 8 (P8) is the progress a pupil makes from the end of KS2 – KS4, compared with pupils nationally with similar attainment. A positive score means a pupil has made more progress than other pupils with similar starting points.
EBacc is a measure of the percentage of students who achieved a Grade 4 in English, Mathematics, Science, Humanities (Geography or History) and Languages.

• P8 for this school is -0.16
• A8 for this school is 49
• Strong Pass (9 – 5) in English & Maths 51%
• Entering English Baccalaureate (EBacc) 40.9%
• English Baccalaureate Average Score (EBacc) 4.32

Core subjects:

• English (9 – 4 ) 85.3%
• Maths (9 – 4) 78%
• Science (9 – 4) 75.3%
• Humanities (9 – 4) 70.5%
• MFL (9 – 4) 68.1

Percentage of students staying in education or employment after Key Stage 4: 97%