Inquiry into exam paper blunder

Board estimated A-level grades of 2,000 pupils because it did not have enough markers

The country's biggest exam board estimated the grades of 2,000 A-level pupils because it did not have enough markers to check their papers.

The Government's exams watchdog, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA), has launched an inquiry, saying yesterday that what happened was "completely unacceptable" and that it had been kept in the dark. The blunder by the Assessment and Qualifications Alliance (AQA) was said to be the worst this year by any of the exam boards. Most of the unmarked scripts are understood to be for English.

Another board, Edexcel,was threatened with the loss of its licence earlier this year by ministers after a series of mistakes that led to an official investigation by the qualifications authority.

Billy Kelly, the QCA's head of audit, said the AQA foul-up would "cause needless anxiety to many students, especially those who are awarded a guaranteed grade below their expectations".

A QCA spokeswoman said no student would be deprived of a university place because of the failure and that the national pass rate was unlikely to be affected. Mr Kelly added, however: "The QCA is extremely disappointed by this news. Estimated grades have previously been used in exceptional and particular circumstances, for example, where scripts are lost or damaged.

"The AQA did not inform us of the scale of the problem until we uncovered it as part of routine monitoring earlier this week. Students and their parents can be reassured that the QCA will be closely monitoring the situation to see students receive their final grades with all speed."

George Turnbull, a spokesman for AQA, apologised "unreservedly for any inconvenience or anxiety that we have caused to the very small number of students" who had received estimated grades.

He said the problem was down to not recruiting enough markers in one subject, English. "Nobody will be downgraded if their estimated grade turns out to be higher than their final grade," he added. "They should be able to use their estimated grade for entry to university as their grade cannot go down – it can only go up."

Apart from the AQA blunder, there were also other reports of exam scripts not being marked in time. Parents of children at two schools, in Kingston-upon-Thames and Liverpool, turned up for their results, only to be told there was a delay in receiving AQA's results for business studies A-level.

Students at West Kent college in Tonbridge also complained that the results of a BTEC media and production higher diploma had not arrived. Edexcel said students' coursework had not been sent in by the college.

Headteachers have warned for several months that the exam system is overloaded – with a record 24 million scripts being marked this year as examiners cope with a mass of A-levels, AS-levels and GCSEs.

Meanwhile, local education authorities called for a radical rethink of the school year to be brought in as soon as possible.

Chris Price, the former Labour MP who headed an independent inquiry on behalf of the local education authorities, said a six-term year with exams taken earlier would avoid the need for all the difficulties faced by young people applying to universities. Mr Price wrote yesterday to vice-chancellors, urging them to support the change, which would allow students to apply for university places after receiving their results.