Some pupils with additional needs will be able to listen to white noise or music during their exams this year after new rules were introduced following a post-Covid rise in requests.
Meanwhile, schools will also be able to use mental health support service referral letters to apply for extra support to ensure youngsters aren’t disadvantaged by long waiting lists.
The changes are included in updated guidance from the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) on adjustments that schools can request for pupils with disabilities and learning difficulties.
Existing access arrangements and adjustments include things such as supervised rest breaks, extra time and a computer reader.
But from this year, special educational needs co-ordinators can also apply for pupils who are classed as having a “substantial impairment” to listen to music or white noise.
This would apply to those with social, emotional and mental health needs (SEMH) or with a sensory impairment such as tinnitus, hearing noises usually a buzzing or ringing, and misophonia, an extreme reaction to certain sounds.
“Since the pandemic we’ve found that there have been more requests from schools and colleges about pupils with disabilities…needing to have music or white noise playing in the background during an examination,” a JCQ spokesperson said.
It applies to GCSEs, A-levels, BTECs and T-levels.
Previous guidance on exam adjustments stated a candidate needing white noise through headphones might not be covered by the range of published arrangements as the list “is not exhaustive”.
Schools were told to discuss these cases with exam boards before submitting an application for “other” arrangements.
This year’s update puts listening to white noise or music as an official access arrangement category.
Schools must check playlists
However, schools must make sure the device cannot be connected to the internet. The playlist must also be checked to “ensure an advantage is not conferred to the candidate”.
Pepe Di’Iasio, the general secretary of the leaders’ union ASCL, said the move was “sensible” as it was “reasonable” to expect exam access arrangements to evolve alongside the understanding of SEND and mental health.
“School and college leaders will always want to give their pupils every opportunity to succeed and access arrangements are a way of ensuring nobody is unfairly disadvantaged.”
However, he warned that the rising number of special arrangements for exams did create logistical and financial challenges for schools. “Recruiting and training sufficient invigilators is often very difficult”.
A survey last year by the National Association of Examination Officers found 75 per cent were concerned schools and colleges would not have enough fully trained invigilators for the 2023 exam series.
Approved access arrangements rose 8.7 per cent in 2022-23 GCSE and A-level exams. Ninety-four per cent of centres, including schools, had approved arrangements, up from 92.9 per cent the year before
Meanwhile, the number of pupils with SEMH needs has risen 46 per cent since 2018-19 to 316,327.
Schools can use CAMHS referral
Another notable change is that, in exceptional circumstances, SENCos can now use a CAMHS or NHS trust referral confirmation or acceptance letter to evidence substantial impairments.
Previously, schools had to submit a letter from a medical professional confirming the candidate’s disability.
However, the pupil should be on a list to be screened, and likely to receive a formal diagnosis.
JCQ said the move would “ensure no student is disadvantaged”. Demand for mental health services in some parts oof the country were “high and leads to long waiting lists”.
Gary Aubin, a SEND consultant and former SENCo, said this was a “really good step for ensuring equity”.
But he said there was a “wider point about the administrative paperwork burden on secondary staff, particularly SENCos in relation to access arrangements that also needs addressing, rather than just adding more types of arrangements and evidence.”
Other updates include being able to apply for timetable variations in exceptional circumstances.
A candidate must have a diagnosed medical condition, a physical disability, SEMH need or visual impairment that means they must sit an exam later or earlier on the same day of the exam.
The JCQ did not respond to requests for comment on why these additions were made.
