GCSE results day: How England's 1–9 grading system works

Secondary school children will today (August 12) collect their GCSE results, but how the grades are presented will vary across the UK.

Since 2017, pupils in England have received numerical marks between 1 and 9.

Letter-based grading scales from A* to G remain in place for students in Wales and Northern Ireland.

Scotland operates a different examination system comprised of Nationals and Highers. Pupils there have already received their results.

How does the 1-9 grading system work?

The highest GCSE grade in England is now a 9 and the lowest is a 1. This roughly corresponds to the old letter-based grades of A* and G, respectively.

Pupils need a 4 for a "standard pass", broadly compared to a grade C – although Ofqual warns against "direct comparisons and overly simplistic descriptions".

A 5 is classified as a "strong pass" and is often a minimum condition of entry into sixth form colleges.

U – meaning ungraded – still exists under the new system.

Students who fail either Maths or English (scoring below a grade 4) will have to resit an exam in the autumn term.

Here's how the old and new systems compare:

GCSE letters and numbers compared (Ofqual)

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