Examinations Appeals
Policy
Date of Policy: December 2023
Committee: Full Board of Trustees
Next review due by: December 2025
OFAAL will ensure that the policy is applied fairly to all employees and does
not have a negative impact in relation to OFAAL’s equality strands: race, sex,
religion and belief, sexual orientation, age, disability, gender reassignment,
marriage and civil partnership and pregnancy and maternity.
Examinations Appeals Policy
This Appeals Policy is set out to address the concerns of candidates around OFAAL conducted
examinations, or results of therein. As OFAAL has an extensive set of policies around special
adjustments and considerations (Special Considerations Policy) and for complaints (Complaints
Policy), Equality and diversity (Equality and Diversity Policy), malpractice (Malpractice Policy),
this policy exclusively covers examinations, providing an opportunity for candidates to appeal
against decisions of graded examinations.
Appeals Procedure
a) Candidates are requested to contact the Examinations Appeals Officer at OFAAL in
writing, via appeals@ofaal.org, within no later than five days of OFAAL announcing the
results.
b) OFAAL will not entertain appeals around speculative grading (i.e before the results are
released).
c) In all correspondence, please state the index number, candidate name, subject, grade
and the complaint, providing as much as information as possible for enabling OFAAL to
conduct a thorough investigation.
d) As appeals are handled by the Examinations Appeals Officer, Trustees and/or music
committee, an appeal can only raise concerns about a single subject. If there are
concerns around multiple examination subjects, each must be raised separately.
e) All exam related appeals are handled through a staged process, and therefore will be
responded to in writing, and verbal communications are discouraged.
f) If the candidate is aged below 16, their parent or guardian should submit the appeal on
their behalf.
g) Concerns around errors in examinations must be addressed to General Complaints
(complaints@ofaal.org).
h) The appeals will not affect the outcomes of future examinations.
Process of Handling Appeals
OFAAL will aim to handle each appeal carefully through stringent process. The Examinations
Appeals Officer will oversee the process with the support of the Appeals Sub-Committee,
trustees and/or music committee.
The Examinations Appeals Officer will lead the investigation of the appeal, with the Appeals Sub-
Committee, establishing the basis of appeal, potentially involving remarking wherever
applicable and necessary. An appeal may be rejected or upheld depending on the outcomes of
the investigation.
I. If the appeal is upheld: OFAAL will re-issue the examination results (in conjunction with
any other parallel appeals). Please note that grades may go up or go down.
II. If the appeal is rejected: OFAAL will write to the appellant outlining the outcome of the
investigation.
The outcomes of the appeal are communicated within 30 days of receiving the complaint. The
decision/resolution of the Appeals Sub-Committee is final.
OFAAL will charge £25 per appeal, per subject, which will be refunded if the appeal is upheld.
Data Protection and Confidentiality
In line with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), all personal data collected will be
stored securely in accordance with the OFAAL Data Protection Policy and Privacy Statement.
Only authorised personnel will have access to this data.
