England's schools told to stop starting GCSEs early, Powell says

Lucy Powell is taking aim at the way England's secondary schools front-load GCSEs. The education secretary said teaching exam-level material to pupils in year 9, or even earlier, risks turning schools into early exam factories. Most schools spread GCSE content over three years rather than the official two, starting before pupils formally begin the courses in year 10.

Her fix is to cut back how much material GCSE courses contain, so they can be taught comfortably across year 10 and year 11. The Department for Education said the change would land as part of a wider national curriculum overhaul, published in early 2027. The department frames the whole package as a bid to tackle school disengagement, the stubborn attainment gap between rich and poor pupils, and the growing number of young people not in education, employment or training.

The guidance will tell schools they should not start GCSE specs early for large groups of children, or routinely push pupils into narrowing their options or sitting exams ahead of schedule. But it comes with a big caveat: none of it is compulsory. Schools keep the flexibility to teach GCSEs earlier to students they judge capable of handling it, according to the Guardian.

Powell argued the early years of secondary school should be about specialist, broader teaching, where children find their passions and develop a love of learning. She pointed to worrying trends of disengagement, high persistent absence and pupils leaving school without the knowledge and skills they need. In her view, exam pressure plus an overcrowded curriculum is giving too many children a narrower offer and rushing them toward tests before they grasp the fundamentals.

She told the Sunday Times that slimming down GCSEs would free up time for deeper understanding and a richer experience, one she says will engage more young people and prepare them for a fast-changing world. The detail will have to wait: the curriculum rewrite isn't due until 2027, and schools won't be forced to follow it.