Headteachers' leader calls for aptitude tests

It's time to consider whether American-style Scholastic Aptitude Tests should be used alongside A-levels when allocating university places to students, a headteachers' leader said yesterday.

John Dunford, general secretary of the Secondary Heads Association, said heads in state and private schools wanted university admissions procedures to be more transparent and based on a "level playing field".

But Iain Duncan Smith, the leader of the Conservative Party, told the association's annual conference in Birmingham that applicants' backgrounds should not be taken into account during university applications. He said the best way to recruit more disadvantaged students to university was by boosting their A-level results by improving the schools they attended.

Dr Dunford told delegates that the row over claims that Bristol University discriminated against private school applicants meant it was time to change the system.

He called for the applications process to be revised so that students applied after receiving their A-level grades. He added: "This is much more than a battle between independent schools and Bristol University.

"State and independent school heads and college principals are united in wanting a more level playing field, and that must mean, at the very least, taking account of an applicant's background and the university admissions expertise of the school or college they attend.

"It must mean, too, looking at more than just the A-level grades – the Scholastic Aptitude Tests advocated by Peter Lampl, perhaps." Mr Lampl, a millionaire philanthropist, heads the Sutton Trust charity which has researched aptitude testing. He believes SATs are a better indicator of potential than A-level grades.

Dr Dunford said the most important thing was to have clear admissions criteria, "so applicants and their teachers know precisely how each admissions tutor is deciding who should receive an offer and who should be rejected."

Later, Mr Duncan Smith told the conference that the Government's introduction of top-up fees of up to £3,000 would deter disadvantaged students from applying to the best universities. He also said that the circumstances of candidates' parents should never be taken into account during university applications.

He said plans for an access regulator – dubbed "Oftoff" – to monitor universities' attempts to recruit poorer students were "fraught with danger".

"I don't believe parents' circumstances should be taken into account in university admissions," he said. "The best way is to improve our schools. Only by giving all of our children the schooling they deserve can we genuinely widen university access among disadvantaged young people."