Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced that all GCSE and A-Level exams will be cancelled in England this summer.
Mr Johnson has said that the Education Secretary will work with Ofqual to develop alternative arrangements.
The PM made the announcement as he outlined new measures for tackling COVID-19, likely to last until at least mid-February, including a national lockdown with the closure of all schools, except to vulnerable children and children of key workers. Pupils are due to receive remote learning from Tuesday until at least February half-term.
The Department for Education has said that vocational exams (including BTEC exams) scheduled to take place in January will continue as planned. In the two hours following the lockdown announcement, over 10,000 people signed a petition calling for BTEC students to be given teacher predicted grades.
Exams had already been cancelled in Wales and Scotland, with alternative arrangements put into place. The alternative arrangements in England are yet to be announced but may include teacher-managed assessments, such is the case in other UK nations.
