§ Mr. BoswellTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what contingency arrangements he has made for(a) the conduct of public examinations and (b) the assessment of coursework (i) related to land use and (ii) of a more general nature, on account of the current foot and mouth disease situation. [154677]
§ Mr. WicksThe Department is liaising closely with the awarding bodies on the impact of the foot and mouth emergency on public examinations. The awarding bodies have already announced that where students are unable to travel to their schools and colleges to complete assessments/examinations because of MAFF restrictions, special consideration arrangements will apply and candidates will be considered for aegrotat awards. The awarding bodies have also announced that they will agree to alternative arrangements where students are unable to complete fieldwork and coursework assignments because of restrictions on access to land. Both announcements have been placed on the awarding bodies' websites. We will continue to monitor the situation closely.