Major changes are set for Wales’ new English GCSE less than a year after it was introduced, with headteachers’ leaders saying the workload prompted by Wales’ new GCSEs is “totally unmanageable”.
Exam board WJEC, whose qualifications are run in all maintained schools in Wales, brought in new GCSE qualifications last September, but teachers have described the huge impact the changes have had on them and their pupils.
WJEC bosses now admit they have “concluded that significant adjustments are needed” to the qualification. They are also looking at other, more minor, changes to the new Welsh GCSE.
The WJEC’s reformed GCSEs put up to 40% of the final grade on non-examined assessments (NEAs) which are carried out under teacher supervision, marked and moderated by teachers. Different subjects have more, or less NEAs, with English being heavily graded on assessment.
Some experienced teachers have described the extra marking workload as so unmanageable they are considering leaving the profession altogether, while headteachers’ leaders vented their frustration too – saying the exam board should have listened to the profession before the costly reforms were made.
Laura Doel, national secretary of the National Association of Headteachers Cymru, said: “While we welcome WJEC acknowledging that changes are needed, it is frustrating this comes so soon after introduction, creating uncertainty, disruption to planning, and real cost pressures for schools — including investment already made in books, resources, and staff training.”
Nicola Fitzpatrick, Wales Secretary for National Education Union Cymru, said: “NEU Cymru members raised the alarm on this issue over a year ago, the workload is unmanageable for those teaching GCSEs. Constant assessment puts pressure on the education workforce, but also on young people who need opportunities to show what they understand through a range of methods.
“We wrote to the WJEC over a year ago to share our members’ concerns. All GCSEs need to give young people a chance to show what they can do, not place unnecessary pressure on all involved. We know there is a mental health crisis for our young people. We need to make sure the qualifications system supports everyone.”
Changes the WJEC exam board make now must be adequate and the board must listen to the profession, the Nasuwt teaching union said.
A survey answered by hundreds of teachers in the Nasuwt lays out massive problems with the new GCSE English and other reformed GCSEs with added coursework.
The union said problems were exacerbated by mainstream schools in Wales having no option but to use the WJEC as their exam board. If they don’t like the way its qualifications are designed they can’t just change to another provider. There is, in effect, a monopoly.
“Funding is only available for the WJEC. Recent qualifications reform has, in some subjects, increased the requirement and intensity of non-examination assessments (NEA),” said the Nasuwt.
“Nasuwt Cymru has always been concerned that teachers are doing the work of the WJEC without extra time or remuneration when producing NEAs in their schools. The qualifications reform has now made this work unsustainable in some subject areas.”
A recent Nasuwt survey, replied to by 432 teachers, concluded: “It was clear that there is a particular concern with English GCSE.” 35% of the respondents were English teachers. The next closest subject was RE on 9%.
Nine in 10 teachers said that they were expected to mark NEAs in their own time and eight in 10 said they had to moderate NEAs in their own time. More than half felt they received no support from their school despite requesting more support.
One teacher told the survey: “I feel we are doing 50% more of their work for the WJEC and with no competitor, there is nothing we can do about it.”
Claire Armitstead, Director of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) Cymru, said: “It has been clear from the outset that the level of additional workload the new GCSEs have placed on schools is totally unmanageable.
“We are therefore relieved that WJEC are looking to make adjustments to some of these qualifications in consultation with the profession. We hope this will lead to an examination system that is more manageable and deliverable going forward.”
Laura Doel added: “Our members have been raising concerns about the workload and manageability of the new GCSE English and other recently reformed qualifications since their rollout. Teachers have found the assessment demands unrealistic.”
A WJEC spokesperson said: “Over recent months we have listened carefully to concerns raised by schools leaders, teachers and other stakeholders regarding the workload associated with delivering the new GCSE English language and literature (single and double award) and GCSE Cymraeg language and literature (single and double award) qualifications.
“As a responsible awarding body we have been working closely with practitioners, headteachers, Qualifications Wales and other key stakeholders to explore ways of improving the manageability of these qualifications while maintaining their educational integrity and supporting positive outcomes for learners.
“As a result of these discussions, several changes have been identified and will be implemented from September 2026. We continue to explore the potential for more significant changes and, in agreement with Qualifications Wales, have launched consultations to gather practitioner feedback on a range of proposed options before any decisions are made.”
The consultations will remain open until June 19 and responses will be “carefully reviewed” and outcomes confirmed before the end of this term.
In a letter to school exam officers the WJEC said the board had “explored options including the removal of assessments from units” and seeks views on that.
The letter adds that as regards workload of the new GCSE Welsh language, the board is looking at how to “improve manageability”.
But it adds: “Following discussions with Qualifications Wales and Welsh Government, it has been agreed that tasks will not be removed from the qualification. However, we have identified potential changes that could improve manageability in future.”
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