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GCSE and ELC English: September 2025 updates

Welcome to our Autumn 2025 newsletter

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Published

Monday 1 Sep 2025

Welcome to our Autumn 2025 newsletter

In this update, you’ll find key course details, resources, and reminders to support you this term.

The English Subject Support team – Wayne Power, Paul Stover, Leanne Ncube, Victoria Healey, and I – bring a broad range of experience across assessment, teaching, leadership, and partnership work. In fact, working as part of the wider Team English at AQA, we have as a collective over 100 years of teaching experience between us across a range of educational sectors both here and abroad. Our team is passionate about helping all English teachers, so please find in this update how you can help us to help Early Career teachers.

We wish you a great start to the new school year. We’re looking forward to connecting with many of you at various conferences and events this term and receiving the Government’s Curriculum and Assessment review when it’s published. If you’d like to have your voice heard on reform, sign up to our panels using our web form. In this email you’ll find all the information to get you started this term.

If any members of your team would like to receive subject-specific updates, they can easily sign up for AQA subject updates , so they’re always informed and part of our community.

Jo Stanway
Subject Lead for English

myAQA

Sign up to myAQA to get quick access to resources, CPD training and events, Data Insights (our results analysis tool) and much more this autumn term. Make sure you’ve filled in your myAQA profile including your role and subject specialism so we can instantly start connecting you with the tools, training and resources most relevant to you.

Once you’re logged into your myAQA account, you can also access Centre Services.

Free CPD courses and events

GCSE English Language and Literature training for autumn can be found on our professional development web pages, including 'live’ Preparing for 2026 events.

On-demand training for GCSE English Language changes overview to support your teaching.

Prepare for your mocks with our mark scheme application courses:

For those new to AQA GCSE English you can find support with our Getting started courses for both Language and Literature.

The autumn term is packed with events, so keep an eye out for updates and reminders.

Find everything you need on myAQA

  • Reminder of the changes to GCSE English Language (8700) for first exams in 2026. We’ve also new sample assessment materials available on Centre Services. Log into Centre Services and select the resources tab to view and download the materials. You can find links to a range of other support materials and information about training for GCSE English Language on our dedicated webpage and in this email.
  • Our free Resit-ready web page offers all the resources you need to help learners prepare effectively for resits.
  • New assessment materials for the ELC topics Ghosts and Films (valid from January 2026) available in Centre Services.
  • Resources to support you in diversifying your school’s curriculum, drawn from our teaching reflections on the new diverse GCSE English Literature texts courses, available in Centre Services.
  • Data Insights on Centre Services – see how your school, subject, class and individual students have performed and dig deeper into your students’ results.
  • Find summer 2025 question papers, mark schemes, and examiners’ reports, all in one place on Centre Services. See what is available and when.
  • You can find each of the grade boundaries on our website and the overall results statistics with cumulative pass rates for the whole AQA cohort.

Curriculum Connects

Autumn 2025 Curriculum Connects are available to book now on our professional development web pages – come and meet your English Subject Support team to reflect on the 2025 series and network with other teachers.

Our community links

  • National Association for the Teaching of English (NATE) back to school latest news.
  • Click here to find out more from the Forward Arts Foundation about National Poetry Day, taking place on 2 October 2025.
  • Poetry By Heart has great resources helping young people in England enjoy, explore, and confidently perform poetry.
  • Click here to join Nick Hern Books’ Education Advisory Panel (for secondary English/Drama teachers in England) – online, flexible, £100 book voucher for participants – apply by 21 September.

mySupport

Log into myAQA for post-results services to find information and deadlines and our easy summary guide.

ETC Coordinators' Insights

Here at AQA we care about supporting all teachers including our colleagues who are new to the profession. We need your help in continuing this work. Please fill in this form if you're the Early Career Teacher (ECT) Coordinator or Induction Lead in your school or forward it to them.
Non-exam assessment (NEA) reminders

ELC Step Up to English: new NEA topics for 2025/26

Every year we replace one of the non-exam assessments (NEA) tasks for each component as outlined in section 5.4.1 of the ELC Step Up to English specification.

New topics are available on Centre Services. Here's an outline of NEAs for component 1 and component 2.

Component 1 – complete any two NEAs, valid for January 2026 onwards:

  • Charities
  • Film (New)
  • Holidays
  • Pets
  • Style

or

Valid for January and June 2026 only:

  • Hobbies (do not choose this if submitting folders after June 2026).

Component 2 – complete any one of the following NEA, valid for January 2026 onwards:

  • Crime
  • Dystopia
  • Ghost Stories (New)
  • Science Fiction
  • Survival

or

Valid for January and June 2026 only:

  • Heroism (do not choose this if submitting folders after June 2026).

GCSE English Language spoken language (8700/C)

Find guidance on the Spoken language endorsement on our website.

NEA digital upload
You can find detailed guidance on how to upload your 8700/C files on to Centre marks submission (CMS) and FAQs for teachers on preparing students’ work on our NEA web pages.

AQA NEA advisers

Each school or college has a dedicated NEA adviser. Our advisers are experienced teachers and moderators who can offer guidance and support throughout the academic year on delivering NEA.

They’re there to answer your questions, explain specification requirements, share teaching ideas and discuss general processes, planning and approaches to NEA tasks.

Their details may have changed from last year – so you can find them on Centre Services by going to ‘Pre-exams’ and then clicking on ‘NEA Advisers’. If you do not have an assigned adviser, please contact eos@aqa.org.uk.

Please be aware that contact details are confidential and must not be shared with third parties including students and on social media. Further information about our commitment to data privacy can be found in our privacy notice.

GCSE English Language changes to assessment: additional support materials available for summer 2026

Earlier this year, we were delighted to share our new support materials to help you, and your learners, prepare for the summer 2026 exams.

8700 resources

Paper 1

Paper 2

Following your feedback on the first SAMs published, we’ve decided to make a very minor amendment to P1, Q4 in the way the question is phrased to add further clarity for students in how they can approach this question. All the published SAMs and future exams will follow this question structure.

Head over to our dedicated web page to find all the latest resources and your questions answered from the Curriculum Connect on 1 April 2025.

The use of AI within assessments

JCQ’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) Use in Assessments: Protecting the Integrity of Qualifications document provides teachers/assessors involved in delivering JCQ qualifications with the information they need to manage use of AI in assessments. All relevant staff need to be aware of and familiarise themselves with the new guidance and instructions. If AI misuse is detected or suspected by your school or college, and the declaration of authentication has been signed, the case must be reported.

Remember, if you have any learners who use a word processor, it must have all internet connectivity disabled. This is to help prevent, among other things, the potential misuse of AI in exams.

Using AQA resources for AI tools

AQA does not allow anybody (including schools and colleges) to use any AQA materials to train Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered tools or technologies. This includes question papers, specifications, mark schemes, reports, teaching resources and other such materials. While we understand how useful these tools are, putting any AQA material into an AI tool would be in breach of copyright law, and AQA policy.

Student Advisory Group – recruitment for 2025/26

We’re looking for learners to join our Student Advisory Group to help us make key decisions about the future of exams. We’d love to hear from learners who’ve completed AQA specification GCSEs since 2024, as well as from those taking AQA AS and A-levels. We also really want to hear from students taking our vocational qualifications, or vocational qualifications with any other exam board, as long as they have sat at least one AQA qualification.

Since the Student Advisory group began they’ve; represented the student voice each year at the Parliamentary Youth Reception, shared their views at the Curriculum and Assessment Youth Shadow Panel, fed into our Curriculum and Assessment call for evidence response, given insights on AI in the Classroom at the 2025 Festival of Education, helped with reviewing books for our English literature set texts list, and much more.

So if you know any learners who you think would be interested, please pass this on. Full details of the role and how to apply can be found on our website. Applications open on Monday 8 September and close at 5.00pm on Monday 22 September 2025.

Apply to become an AQA examiner

Enhance your teaching career while shaping learners' futures. Become an AQA examiner and gain unique insights into assessments, boost your professional growth, and earn extra income, all while making a real impact.

Becoming a moderator or examiner can be a valuable experience for you as a teacher and also your school/college. Our vacancies are open and you can apply on our website.

Contact our team

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