Reducing the number of missing or lost key stage 2 Sats papers this year is a “key priority”, the Standards and Testing Agency (STA) has said in a new report on lessons learned from widespread problems experienced by schools last year.
The STA, which is responsible for developing and delivering statutory assessments, also said it is “confident” that the problems that leaders experienced in accessing pupil marks last year will not recur in 2023.
Last year’s Sats were plagued by a series of major problems around the marking and moderation process, which led to concerns around mark accuracy. This year’s KS2 Sats begin in less than two weeks’ time.
The KS2 national assessments returned last year for the first time in three years, after being cancelled due to the Covid pandemic, with Capita contracted to oversee the marking process.
The STA’s Lessons Learned report, published today, repeats both the STA and Capita’s “sincere apologies” to schools affected by the problems last summer.
Last year 2,251 scripts were lost, affecting 1,900 pupils in total.
The STA said the primary cause of delayed or missing papers had been identified in the initial stages of the scanning process, and how papers were received at the scanning centre.
It said it has put in place “clear reconciliation points at key stages of the process to track scripts throughout the process”, as well as providing staff with “clearer guidance” for “how to prioritise and manage workflow.”
A new scanning system has been put in place that will help “embed the updated processes and incorporate a new data reporting system, which will help to identify any issues quickly, so that they can be tracked and resolved faster”, the STA said.
Sats 2023: STA plans to avoid last year’s problems
The STA also said today that it had hired additional Sats helpline staff and provided updated training after schools waited an average of 53 minutes for calls to be answered last year, and information provided “was not always of the right quality”.
And the organisation said that improvements to the quality and speed of responses across its helpline was an “ongoing process” and would be “reviewed throughout the test cycle”.
Guidance provided to schools around the testing programme has also been improved, the STA said, meaning “less ambiguity for schools”. It hopes this “should lead to fewer queries being raised via the helpline”.
Last July many primary school headteachers and leaders were unable to access their pupils’ Sats results on results day.
The STA said it is “confident” the issue “will not recur” this year.
Sarah Hannafin, senior policy adviser at the NAHT school leaders’ union, said that although the report was “somewhat reassuring”, she questioned why the STA took so long to publish the findings of a review that took place last summer.
“School leaders would have welcomed the reassurance that actions were being taken earlier, “ she said.
“The report does address the key issues from last year, and sets out broadly the actions the STA have taken to sort them out. One big concern is over how the process was managed last year - it seems training and levels of staffing for the helpline and the scanning centre weren’t sufficient.
“But with Sats happening in less than two weeks’ time, schools are now into the admin and logistics for this year, with papers being delivered already. The review happened last summer/autumn, so why has it taken so long to publish?”
In September the STA apologised to schools affected by “unacceptable” missing papers and delays.
Tiffnie Harris, primary and data specialist at the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: “The problems with last year’s Sats series must not be allowed to be repeated.”
Ms Harris added that the ASCL had had regular meetings with Capita and the STA to help inform the necessary changes to this year’s process.
She said it would have been helpful for the report to have been published earlier, but that it did “suggest sensible measures are being taken to avoid the same mistakes being made this year”.
“Clearly the proof will be in the smooth running of this year’s assessments; something already undermined by the late decisions to change the Sats timetable as a result of the coronation bank holiday and delay the return of results by a week,” Ms Harris added.
KS2 Sats were due to begin on Monday 8 May this year but have been delayed by a day due to the coronation.
A Department for Education spokesperson said: “While around 99 per cent of pupils received all their Sats results on time last year, we recognise the inconvenience and frustration caused to those pupils, parents and schools where results were received late or not at all.
“Following a thorough investigation alongside the Sats delivery partner Capita, we have made a series of improvements, including to our scanning processes, staff training and IT systems.”
