A-level Resit Advice Needed !

[lindaandrews]

I underperformed in my A-levels due to medical problems and want to retake them by taking a gap year.

However, my father is confusing me about whether I should retake my A-levels privately or go back to school. He is on low income and so gets universal credit but apparently whilst I was at school, he got child benefits and he claims that if I returned to school he would continue to get such benefits. However, if I didn’t return to school and studied at home, then he wouldn’t get any universal credit/benefits on my behalf.

Now, I don’t need to return to school as I didn’t do badly in my A-levels due to a lack of knowledge and can perfectly teach myself - I don’t need to be retaught everything again - but my father keeps pushing this about money and I feel obliged to go so he gets the benefits.

What should I do and what does he mean by “benefits” with reference to my education and why wouldn’t he get that since I’d still be in education albeit teaching myself?

Has your school said you can repeat Year 13? This is quite unusual.

@lindaandrews

Is this page applicable to your situation, OP?

It looks as though payments could be feasible, but only if you are doing an actual course which requires attendance; studying at home is only covered under specific circumstances.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/dont-lose-out-extend-child-benefit-for-your-16-to-19-year-old

Why not work part time whilst studying to resit?

Child benefit is only payable while you study full-time. Are you sure retaking is the best route!

What were your grades and what do you think you could get on resit?

I got BBB but was predicted 3A*s. I got such low grades because I was diagnosed late with autism and so didn’t get extra time.

With the best will in the world you may not improve those grades without additional tuition and exam practice. They are good grades, you could apply for decent uni/courses, use the reference to explain your diagnosis and move on.

How do you know you would have got extra time? Schools can assess for extra time for anyone diagnosis or not, it follows jcq requirements- did you have difficulty finishing previous mock papers that indicated need for extra time? Getting extra time can be very difficult because of the potential advantages over other adaptions. In order to get the adaptions it needs to be normal working, which might be difficult to prove in a year not in a setting. What is the plan after resists, your dad would have lost the money for child benefit/UC if you went to uni/ started working.

@lindaandrews

What are your plans in terms of University and work, OP?