Exam dates 2027: SATs, GCSE and A-Level, plus results days

Key takeaways

• →The KS2 SATs run from Monday 10 to Thursday 13 May 2027, and GCSE and A-Level exams also start on Monday 10 May.
• →GCSE exams finish on Friday 18 June 2027. Wednesday 23 June is a spare contingency day, so students should stay available until then.
• →A-Level results come out on Thursday 12 August 2027 and GCSE results on Thursday 19 August 2027.
• →Exam boards put papers on different days, so use your child’s own timetable from school as the final word.

1. The 2027 dates at a glance

The Year 6 SATs and the first GCSE and A-Level exams all start in the same week, on Monday 10 May 2027. Results follow in July and August. This table lists the dates we could confirm on official pages, and the sources are listed at the end.

2. SATs 2027 (key stage 2)

SATs is the usual name for the key stage 2 national curriculum tests that children take in Year 6. In 2027 they run from Monday 10 to Thursday 13 May. Monday has the two grammar, punctuation and spelling papers and Tuesday is reading. Wednesday has maths Papers 1 and 2 (arithmetic, then reasoning), and Thursday has maths Paper 3 (reasoning).^[3]

Schools can view the results online from Tuesday 6 July 2027, and parents should receive them by the end of the summer term.^[4]

3. GCSE and A-Level exams: first and last days

GCSE and A-Level exams both start on Monday 10 May 2027. GCSEs finish on Friday 18 June. The shared A-Level timetable runs a little longer, to Tuesday 22 June. Wednesday 23 June is the contingency day, kept free in case national or major local disruption means papers have to be rearranged.^[1]

The 22 June date comes from Pearson Edexcel, whose A-Level timetable runs to that day, when its only paper is the Advanced Extension Award in Mathematics. The last A-Level papers for AQA and OCR are on Friday 18 June.^[12]

On the first GCSE day, the morning on the AQA, Pearson Edexcel and OCR timetables includes Computer Science Paper 1, and the afternoon includes Citizenship Studies and Psychology. A-Level day one has English and Economics papers in the morning on the OCR and Pearson Edexcel timetables.^[5]

For AQA, the big core subjects come later. GCSE Maths Paper 1 is on Friday 14 May, Paper 2 on Thursday 27 May and Paper 3 on Monday 14 June. English Language Paper 1 is on Monday 24 May and Paper 2 on Tuesday 8 June. These are AQA’s dates, so check your child’s own timetable if they sit a different board.^[5]

All three boards have published their summer 2027 timetables. OCR and Pearson Edexcel label theirs final. AQA’s January 2026 versions were marked provisional, and its later versions keep the same start, end and contingency dates. JCQ’s notes list papers the boards moved to different sessions after consultation, so treat the personal timetable your child gets from school as the final word.^[2]

Keep 23 June free: Exam boards tell schools that students must stay available until Wednesday 23 June, in case a paper has to be rearranged. Check holiday plans against that date.

4. Results days

A-Level results come out on Thursday 12 August 2027. Schools and colleges receive them the day before, on Wednesday 11 August.^[7]

GCSE results come a week later, on Thursday 19 August 2027, with schools receiving them on Wednesday 18 August.^[5]

These dates come from AQA’s timetables. JCQ’s key dates list the same two days for the A-Level Extended Project and the GCSE project qualifications. Ask your child’s school how results day will work for them.^[1]

5. How to use these dates

Start by putting 10 May, 18 June, 23 June and the results days on one family calendar. Then ask school for your child’s own timetable and list every paper in date order. Our revision timetable guide shows how to turn those dates into a weekly plan your child will actually keep.

Work backwards from every paper, not just the first one. Papers in the same subject can be weeks apart, so revision for a subject should carry on between them. Our GCSE countdown has a simple weekly routine for starting early.

Treat mock exams as a rehearsal for these dates. Sit them under timed conditions, mark them with the mark scheme, and use the results to decide which topics to revise first.

Work backwards from every paper, not just the first one.

6. How Brainhub can help

Brainhub student records for 2021–2026 show GCSE students typically improve by 2 grades over 12 weeks of weekly lessons. That figure covers all our lessons and comes from our own records, not independent research. We teach one-to-one, live online across the UK, and every family starts with a free 45-minute assessment.

1. 1. When do the KS2 SATs start in 2027?

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2. 2. When are A-Level and GCSE results days in 2027?

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3. 3. What is the contingency day, and when is it?

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Your next steps

• Put 10 May, 18 June, 23 June and the results days on the family calendar.
• Ask school for your child’s own exam timetable and list every paper in date order.
• Book a free 45-minute assessment to see where your child is now.

Subject guides to go with this

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