Our Enquiries about Results and Assessment Decisions Policy provides guidance for centres to complete this process.

Enquiries about Results (EARs)

An Enquiry about Results allows NCFE Centres to raise a query over a result for an external assessment, there are two options available.

 Option 1 – Clerical Check

•  Includes a full check of all clerical procedures to ensure that the marks or grades awarded to the learner(s) have been correctly recorded and processed.
• Ensuring all parts of the assessment have been marked, all marks have been recorded and added up correctly, and grade boundaries have been applied accurately.

 Option 2 – Review of Marking

•  This service ensures that the agreed mark scheme/standard has been applied correctly and is not a re-marking of the learner’s assessment.
• Includes a Clerical Check.
• This is carried out by the Chief Examiner, or a Senior Examiner who did not originally mark that learner’s paper.

 

Timescales and costs

All Qualifications (VTQ and T Level)

Service	Centre to request within	Outcome returned within	Cost
Clerical Check	20 Working Days* (6 Weeks for T levels)	5 Working Days	£5** (per batch)
Review of Marking	20 Working Days* (6 Weeks for T levels)	25 Working Days	£45** (per learner, per assessment component)
Expedited Review of Marking (T Level only)	6 Weeks*	10 Working Days	£52** (per learner, per assessment component)
*From receipt of initial results/ outcome, or within 5 working days from a Clerical Check outcome.
** Fee waived if the overall external assessment grade changes.

Enquiry acceptance 

The decision of accepting the enquiry application will be considered and communicated within 5 working day from receipt.

Enquiry outcomes

Learner’s scores and grade may increase, decrease, or remain the same.

How do I submit an Enquiry about Result(s)?

Within the timescales set out above, complete and submit using the link below:

Enquiries about Results form

Enquiries about Assessment Decisions (Internal Assessment)

An enquiry about an internally marked assessment allows the opportunity for checks to be made on whether the assessment criteria were fairly, reliably, and consistently applied during the external quality assurance process.

Requests for enquiries about assessment decisions on internal assessments need to be made in writing to [email protected].

NCFE Awarding - review of external quality assurance decisions.

• This is a full review of learner assessments sampled during the external quality assurance process which would be carried out to ensure the correct assessment criteria were fairly, reliably, and consistently applied during the external quality assurance process.
• The process of review will not involve a reassessment of an internally marked assessment unless errors are identified.
• This review is only available after internal enquiries and appeals procedures have been exhausted.
• It is not available if the original assessment decisions of the Internal Quality Assurer were accepted by the External Quality Assurer without any adjustments, or for individual learners.

What Happens Next?

• Enquiries about assessment decisions must be made within 20 working days of receipt of the initial decision.
• We aim to complete an enquiry about assessments within 25 working days from the enquiry acceptance.

Enquiry outcome

The outcome of an enquiry will be sent within 25 working days of the decision being made, in line with the timescales above. An email will be sent to the centre contact who made the original request.

Learner marks and grades can go up, stay the same, or may also go down.

Review of External Quality Assurance decision (per enquiry) - £225

 

Review of Moderator Marks

A review of moderator marks is a check on the original moderation to make sure the assessment criteria has been applied fairly, reliably and consistently. Please note this is not a remark and no specific feedback will be provided.

This service is not available for individual learners. Requests must be made by unit/component, for all learners on a cohort.

If provider marks were taken forward as final marks, this process is not available.

Requests for a review of marks awarded during moderation can be submitted through the Review of Moderator Marks request form.

What happens next?

• All requests must be received within 25 working days of results release day.
• A full review of marks will be carried out and the decision will be emailed to the person who made the request within 25 working days of enquiry acceptance.

Enquiry acceptance 

The decision of accepting the enquiry application will be considered and communicated within 5 working days from receipt.

Enquiry outcome

In line with the below timescales an email will be sent to the centre contact who made the original request.

Learner marks and grades can go up, stay the same, or may also go down.

Service	Centre to request within	Outcome returned within	Cost
Review of moderator marks	25 working days*	25 working days	£650**
*From receipt of initial results/ outcome
**Fee waived if the overall grade changes

 

Submit your enquiry here