Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

Original poster

GCSE exam clash

36 replies

Citygirlrurallife · 07/02/2025 15:51

Has anyone had experience of an exam clash where there is already another exam that day? One day this summer DS is scheduled to have an English Lit exam at 9am and two further exams (Computer Science and Mandarin Listening and Reading so actually 3 exams scheduled!) at 1:30pm one day. Have done some googling (and emailed the school just waiting to hear back) and found that usually an exam clash means you do them back to back but that would mean him doing 3 exams that day and with them being very different that’s a lot of context switching! Has anyone managed to get one of the clashes moved to another day - isn’t that what contingency day is for?

OP posts:
LIZS · 07/02/2025 16:03

They normally pick one (usually with least candidates or shortest paper) and keep them in isolation until they can take it. Ideally on same day but there is a limit on overall time spent in exams per day.

Ilovelowry · 07/02/2025 16:02

Also op, there are no rules about eating in exams

I'm an EO in a big school and I let my pupils with clashes or access arrangements bring unwrapped sweets to suck for energy.

Also they don't have to have water, as long as the bottle is clear it can be orange juice or an electrolyte drink etc.

Hercisback1 · 07/02/2025 16:00

It's really common. There will be a plan.

Ilovelowry · 07/02/2025 15:59

Unless the total is over 6hrs he has to do them all in a day.

We do very occasional overnight supervisions for. Alevel but that's when the exams are usuaally over 8 or 9 hrs.

His exams officer will resolve the clashes and you should speak to them directly.

TeenToTwenties · 07/02/2025 15:59

If total time for the exams goes above a limit (5.5hrs??) then he will get a small consideration for the last one, I think.

ArghhWhatNext · 07/02/2025 15:58

DS had this. We had to collect him from school by car, sign to guarantee that he’d be quarantined (no internet access), he had his phone confiscated by school overnight. Then we had to sign him in the next morning confirming that he’d been in isolation.
they used to host students at a teacher’s house in the past for this circumstance but then there were too many safeguard ing issues around it.

MaybeMrs · 07/02/2025 15:56

This is very common. I had 5 students with 3 back to back exams last june. Unfortunately he will just have to do them. Plenty of snacks and a big bottle of water!

WorkMisery · 07/02/2025 15:56

I remember someone in my school staying overnight with a teacher for some weird clash/can’t get to the exam problem (I bet that wouldn’t happen nowadays!)

three exams is a lot, but I remember having two x 3-hour exams on one day and surviving. What’s the schedule like day before and after?

TiramisuThief · 07/02/2025 15:55

No - he will sit all exams in the same day.

It's so he can be continually supervised by exam staff and no chance of speaking to his friends about the questions in the paper they sat earlier.

The exam officer will already have planned for this, it happens to some children every year. They will speak to your child about exact arrangements.

relaxrelaxrelax · 07/02/2025 15:54

Clashes are quite common- half of DSs year have at least one GCSE clash this year. Schools are very used to it.

AtomicBlondeRose · 07/02/2025 15:52

That’s not what the contingency day is for - students can’t sit an exam on a different day from everyone else unless they’ve basically been supervised and not allowed to use their phone or the internet in that time. Occasionally done overnight but sitting three exams in one day is far far easier.