England is changing its national curriculum and rewriting its GCSEs, and the DfE's public consultation on the first part of it is due to open this month. If your child is in Year 8 or above right now, in September 2026, almost none of it reaches them: they will sit essentially the exams that exist today. The first cohort to sit reformed GCSEs is the children who started Year 7 this month, and their exams are in the summer of 2031. This article works through it year group by year group, and it assumes no prior knowledge of the English system — if you have arrived here from another country and are trying to work out what a GCSE even is, start at the second section.
GCSE changes: the short answer
- Year 8 and above in September 2026 are unaffected in any meaningful way. They sit the current GCSEs, on the current specifications.
- Year 7 in September 2026 is the first cohort into the reformed GCSEs, first taught from September 2029 and first examined in summer 2031 — and only in the subjects that land in the first phase.
- The new national curriculum is published in spring 2027 and taught in schools from September 2028, which is two years before the first reformed GCSE is taught.
- The clearest confirmed changes: about 2.5 to 3 hours less time sitting GCSE exams, the computer science GCSE replaced by a broader computing GCSE, and a new statutory reading assessment in Year 8.
- This is England only. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland run separate systems and are not part of it.
- For almost every family the correct action this term is none. The exception is the group choosing GCSE subjects now, which is covered at the end.
Scope: this reform applies to England. Scotland runs its own system of Nationals and Highers through the SQA; Wales sets its own curriculum and has its own GCSEs through WJEC; Northern Ireland examines through CCEA. If your child is at school in one of those three, none of the dates below apply to them.
If you are new to the English system, read this first
Most coverage of this reform is written for teachers, and it assumes a vocabulary. Here is the whole of it, in one place. If you already know it, skip to the table.
- Year groups. Children are grouped by the school year they are in, not by age. Year 7 is ages 11 to 12 and is the first year of secondary school; Year 11 is ages 15 to 16 and is the last compulsory year. The school year runs from September to July, and a child's year group goes up by one each September.
- Key Stages. Blocks of year groups the curriculum is written around. Key Stage 3 is Years 7 to 9; Key Stage 4 is Years 10 and 11, which is where GCSE courses are taught.
- GCSE. The General Certificate of Secondary Education — the qualification almost every student in England takes at the end of Year 11, at 16, in eight or nine separate subjects. Each subject is a separate qualification with its own exams.
- Grades 9 to 1. GCSEs in England are graded 9 (highest) to 1, which replaced the older A* to G letters. A grade 4 is broadly the old grade C, and a 9 is above the old A*.
- A-Level. The qualification taken at 18, usually in three subjects, in Years 12 and 13. Reformed A-Levels come later than the GCSEs and are only briefly covered here.
- The national curriculum. The government's statutory list of what must be taught in each subject in state schools. It is the thing being rewritten first.
- Exam boards and specifications. Schools choose a commercial exam board — AQA, Pearson Edexcel, OCR or WJEC Eduqas — and each board publishes a specification, or spec, for each subject: the exact content and exam structure. Two children in different schools can sit the same GCSE subject on different specs.
- DfE and Ofqual. The Department for Education sets policy and curriculum content. Ofqual is the independent regulator that controls how qualifications are assessed and graded. Both have to act for a change like this to happen, which is part of why the timeline is long.
Which year group is affected? The table
Find the year group your child is in now, in September 2026. The right-hand column is the summer they sit their GCSE exams.
Year group in September 2026, and which GCSEs that child will sit
Year 11
- Age
- 15-16
- Which GCSEs they sit
- Current GCSEs, no change
- GCSE exams in
- Summer 2027
Year 10
- Age
- 14-15
- Which GCSEs they sit
- Current GCSEs, no change
- GCSE exams in
- Summer 2028
Year 9
- Age
- 13-14
- Which GCSEs they sit
- Current GCSEs, no change
- GCSE exams in
- Summer 2029
Year 8
- Age
- 12-13
- Which GCSEs they sit
- Current GCSEs, no change
- GCSE exams in
- Summer 2030
Year 7
- Age
- 11-12
- Which GCSEs they sit
- Mixed: reformed in first-phase subjects, current in the rest. Also the first year group taught the new national curriculum, from Year 9
- GCSE exams in
- Summer 2031
Year 6
- Age
- 10-11
- Which GCSEs they sit
- Fully reformed, both phases
- GCSE exams in
- Summer 2032
Year 5 and below
- Age
- 9 and under
- Which GCSEs they sit
- Fully reformed, and taught the new curriculum for most or all of secondary school
- GCSE exams in
- 2033 onwards
Year group in September 2026, and which GCSEs that child will sit
| Year group now | Age | Which GCSEs they sit | GCSE exams in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year 11 | 15-16 | Current GCSEs, no change | Summer 2027 |
| Year 10 | 14-15 | Current GCSEs, no change | Summer 2028 |
| Year 9 | 13-14 | Current GCSEs, no change | Summer 2029 |
| Year 8 | 12-13 | Current GCSEs, no change | Summer 2030 |
| Year 7 | 11-12 | Mixed: reformed in first-phase subjects, current in the rest. Also the first year group taught the new national curriculum, from Year 9 | Summer 2031 |
| Year 6 | 10-11 | Fully reformed, both phases | Summer 2032 |
| Year 5 and below | 9 and under | Fully reformed, and taught the new curriculum for most or all of secondary school | 2033 onwards |
The reasoning, so you can check it rather than take it on trust. The government has said a first phase of GCSEs will be first taught from September 2029 and examined from summer 2031, with the rest first taught from September 2030 and examined from summer 2032. GCSE courses begin in Year 10. So the first cohort to be taught a reformed GCSE is the one that starts Year 10 in September 2029 — and a child in Year 7 in September 2026 reaches Year 10 in September 2029. Every other row follows from counting forwards or backwards from there, and each one lands on the exam years the government itself has published.
One thing is genuinely not known yet: which subjects are in the first phase and which are in the second. That is part of what the consultation opening this month decides. Until it reports, no one can tell you whether your Year 7's maths or history specifically will be a reformed one — only that some of their subjects will be.
The messy middle, and who is in it
Two year groups sit across the join, and they are worth naming because school communications will be vaguest for exactly these families.
- Year 7 now. They spend Years 7 and 8 on the current national curriculum, switch to the new one in Year 9 in September 2028, then start GCSE courses in 2029 where some subjects are reformed and some are not. They are the only cohort that gets a single year of the new Key Stage 3 curriculum rather than the full three.
- Year 6 now. They start secondary school in September 2027 on the current curriculum, move to the new one in Year 8, and are the first cohort to sit a fully reformed set of GCSEs in 2032. Cleaner than Year 7, but still split.
Neither of these is a reason to do anything differently today. It is a reason to read your school's letters properly in 2028 rather than assume they repeat what an older sibling did.
The timeline, start to finish
- 2026
September: consultation opens
The DfE has said it will consult on the draft national curriculum programmes of study for Key Stages 1 to 3, together with the first group of GCSE subjects. This is a public consultation: parents can respond to it.
- 2027
Spring: final curriculum published
The revised national curriculum is published, giving schools about 18 months to prepare before they have to teach it.
- 2028
September: new curriculum taught
Schools begin teaching the new national curriculum across Key Stages 1 to 3. No GCSE has changed at this point.
- 2029
September: first reformed GCSEs taught
The first phase of reformed GCSEs is taught to the cohort starting Year 10 — the children in Year 7 in September 2026.
- 2031
Summer: first reformed GCSE exams
The first phase is examined for the first time. The second phase is taught from September 2030 and examined from summer 2032.
- 2033
A-Levels follow
Revised A-Levels are taught from September 2031 and examined from summer 2033, with the remainder taught from 2032 and examined from 2034.
What actually changes in the exams
The reform is broad, but four things in it are confirmed, specific, and matter to a parent rather than to a curriculum lead.
- Less time sitting exams. The government has committed to working with Ofqual and the exam boards to cut examination time by an average of 2.5 to 3 hours overall for a student taking eight or nine GCSEs, while keeping standards where they are.
- Computer science becomes computing. The computer science GCSE is to be replaced with a GCSE in computing covering a broader curriculum, with digital and AI literacy taught from a younger age. A new level 3 qualification in data science and AI is also being explored.
- A statutory reading test in Year 8. A new national assessment of reading fluency and comprehension is being introduced in Year 8, and schools will additionally be expected to assess progress in writing and maths in the same year. This is the change that arrives soonest for current primary and lower-secondary children.
- Performance measures change first. The EBacc headline measures are being removed at Key Stage 4, taking effect for the 2025 to 2026 performance measures published in autumn 2026. This changes which subjects schools push, which parents often notice before any exam changes.
24-31 hours
exam time a student in England typically sits at the end of Year 11
Against 16 hours in Ireland, 18 in New Zealand and 10 in Alberta, Canada — the comparison the government used to justify the cut
What is not changing, despite what you may have read
- Formula and equation sheets are staying. Students sitting GCSE maths, physics and combined science are given the relevant formulae and equations in the exam rather than having to memorise them. In February 2026 the DfE confirmed this continues from 2028 for the lifetime of the current specifications — which Ofqual expects to mean exams up to and including 2030 or 2031. If your child is in secondary school now, this applies to them.
- Onscreen exams are a pilot, not a rollout. Digital exams are being trialled in some subjects. Nothing has been announced that puts your child's GCSEs on a screen, and a pilot is not a timetable.
- GCSEs are not being abolished. Every version of this reform keeps GCSEs at 16, keeps them graded, and keeps them as the qualification schools are measured on. The review recommended changing what is in them and how long the exams take, not removing them.
So what should you actually do?
For most families, honestly: nothing. The first exam affected by any of this is nearly five years away, the subject split has not been decided, and no revision guide, tutor or summer course sold to you on the strength of this reform can know more than the consultation does. Be sceptical of anything marketed at you in the next twelve months that claims to prepare a child for the new GCSEs.
Worth doing
- If your child is choosing GCSE subjects this year, choose on the current rules — they are the rules that will apply to them.
- If they are weighing computer science, know it becomes a broader computing GCSE for later cohorts. It does not change the subject they would start now.
- If you are new to England and choosing between a state school, an independent school and international qualifications, ask each school directly which specifications they will be teaching in 2029 and 2030.
- Read the school's curriculum letters in 2028. That is when something genuinely changes for Years 7 to 9.
- Respond to the consultation if you have a view. It is open to the public, not just to schools.
Not worth doing
- Changing schools over this. Every state school in England is on the same timetable.
- Buying resources for the new curriculum. It has not been published; nothing on sale is based on it.
- Delaying support your child needs now because the system changes later. A gap in Year 8 maths is a Year 8 problem regardless of what the 2031 exam looks like.
- Assuming an older sibling's experience transfers to a younger one across the 2029 line.
The practical version of that last point: the thing that decides a GCSE grade is still whether the foundations underneath it are solid, and that has not been reformed. If your child is in Years 10 or 11 now, they are on the current course and the current specification, and GCSE tutoring works on exactly the syllabus they are sitting. If they are choosing subjects this year, our guide to choosing GCSE options in Year 9 is written against the rules as they stand.
And if your child is in the Year 7 cohort that this reform actually lands on, the useful work is not reform-watching — it is Key Stage 3, where the gaps that surface at GCSE are formed. That argument is set out in why Year 9 is the time to act, and it holds whichever specification they eventually sit.
Ready to find out where your child stands?
Sources
- Curriculum and Assessment Review Final Report: government response, DfE, November 2025
- Curriculum and Assessment Review, GOV.UK collection
- Ofqual: response to Department for Education steer letter on formulae and equation sheets
- Geographical Association: DfE to run public consultations for the national curriculum and GCSEs in September
Written by TutorMint Founder
10+ years of classroom and one-to-one teaching experience. Facts checked 14 September 2026.
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