The Education (Arrangements for Assessing Reading and Numeracy in the Curriculum for Wales) Regulations 2024

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

The Curriculum and Assessment (Wales) Act 2021 (“the Act”) establishes a new framework for a curriculum and makes provision about assessment for pupils and children in Wales. This is the Curriculum for Wales (“the CfW”). Section 56 of the Act provides that the Welsh Ministers must make provision by way of regulations for assessing in relation to the relevant curriculum. “Relevant curriculum” has the meaning given to it in section 56(5) of the Act.

The first phase of the roll out of the CfW was in the 2022 to 2023 school year. The CfW will then be rolled out annually for each school year until it is fully rolled out for all school years in the 2026 to 2027 school year.

These Regulations give legal effect to the assessment arrangements for reading and numeracy in the CfW for pupils who attend schools (other than a community special school established in a hospital) maintained by a local authority in Wales (“the national personalised assessments”).

The national personalised assessments replace the reading and numeracy tests (“the national tests”) which are given legal effect by the Education (National Curriculum) (Assessment Arrangements for Reading and Numeracy) (Wales) Order 2013 (“the 2013 Order”).

The Education (Revocation of Assessment Arrangements in the National Curriculum and Miscellaneous Amendments) (Wales) Regulations 2022 (“the Revocation Regulations”) made transitional provision so that the 2013 Order continues to work with the new CfW during the period it is being rolled out. The Revocation Regulations revoke the 2013 Order on 1 September 2024.

Regulation 3 makes provision in respect of the National Reading Personalised Assessment in English. Regulation 4 makes provision in respect of the National Reading Personalised Assessment in Welsh. Regulation 5 makes provision in respect of the National Numeracy Personalised Assessment.

The national personalised assessments are sat online and assess the same skills as the national tests. However, there are some differences to the way the national personalised assessments will be administered in comparison to the way the national tests have been administered—

(a) these Regulations do not include a requirement for the head teacher to administer the personalised assessments in accordance with a timetable set by the Welsh Ministers. Instead the head teacher may decide when in the school year pupils will sit the national personalised assessments,

(b) unlike in the 2013 Order these Regulations provide that the head teacher must require pupils sit the national personalised assessments at least once in a school year. Therefore, a pupil may be required to sit the national personalised assessments more than once in a school year,

(c) these Regulations do not require the head teacher to sign a declaration to the effect that the national personalised assessments have been administered in accordance with the provisions of article 6 of the 2013 Order, but they do require the head teacher to administer them in accordance with the NPA administration handbook,

(d) these Regulations do not require the local authority that maintains the school to monitor the administration of the national personalised assessments, and

(e) these Regulations do not place a duty on the Welsh Ministers to investigate any matter referred to them as a result of any monitoring of the national personalised assessments or to correct results as appropriate.

Paragraph 6 of Part 2 of Schedule 2 to the Provision of Information by Head Teachers to Parents and Adult Pupils (Wales) Regulations 2022 (“the Provision of Information Regulations”) requires the head teacher of a maintained school to provide a brief commentary of the results of the assessments carried out under the 2013 Order. In consequence of the revocation of the 2013 Order, regulation 6 of these Regulations substitutes a reference to these Regulations for the reference to the 2013 Order in paragraph 6 of Part 2 of Schedule 2 to the Provision of Information Regulations.

The Welsh Ministers’ Code of Practice on the carrying out of Regulatory Impact Assessments was considered in relation to these Regulations. As a result, it was not considered necessary to carry out a regulatory impact assessment as to the likely costs and benefits of complying with these Regulations.