CONSULT.Outcome publishedConsultation · gov.uk

Resits for legacy GCSE, AS and A levels

We are seeking views on our proposals for final entries to legacy GCSEs, AS and A levels.

Last fetched 03 May 2026 · gov.uk

Detail

We are proposing to introduce a new General Condition of Recognition that will require exam boards to comply with any requirements we set when an accredited qualification ends.

AS and A levels

We propose that:

Students taking AS and A levels in the last scheduled sitting should have the opportunity to re-sit these qualifications after the final scheduled award, regardless of the subject and exam board.
re-sit opportunities in AS and A levels in the subjects for which the new qualifications will be first awarded in 2017, will be available in the legacy qualifications in the summer of 2017.
Re-sits will take place in May or June.
Students will be able to re-sit any AS or A level unit (including controlled assessment units).
Similar arrangements should be put in place for the later phases of AS and A level reform.

GCSEs

We propose that:

Students taking GCSEs in English, English language and mathematics (including linked pair maths GCSEs – ‘applications of mathematics’ and ‘methods in mathematics’) in summer 2016 will have a re-sit opportunity in November 2016. We are also seeking views on whether these students should also have a further re-sit opportunity in May/June 2017.
if a student re-sits any of these qualifications, then – as now – they will need to re-sit all the exams for that qualification.
Students will be able to carry forward the results of the speaking and listening controlled assessment in GCSE English and GCSE English language (including between the two subjects when re-sitting with the same exam board).
There will be no re-sit opportunities in other GCSE subjects that are subject to reform. For GCSEs in English literature, the final set of assessments in the legacy qualifications will be in summer 2016. For GCSE subjects that are being replaced in the second phase of reforms, the final set of assessments will be in summer 2017. For all remaining legacy GCSEs, the final set of assessments will be in summer 2018.