Probe after A-level papers sold to students

Written: 14th June 2001


A police investigation has been launched after A-level papers were sold to students due to sit the examination today.

Head teachers have demanded an urgent inquiry into the sale of the papers which, according to BBC2's Newsnight, changed hands for up to £400.

A copy of a pure maths examination paper, which will be taken by students today, was obtained by the programme.

The exam board Edexcel confirmed the papers were genuine and police were informed.

A spokesman for the Metropolitan Police said: "Kentish Town CID is investigating an allegation that exam papers have been leaked."

He said the investigation was in its early stages and detectives were trying to establish when and where the papers were leaked.

David Hart, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said: "Every effort must be made to uncover the perpetrators of this appalling attempt to make money and to cheat on a widespread scale.

"Nothing can be done realistically to stop the examination proceeding today but it is inevitable that some students will gain an unfair advantage and that some students will be treated unfairly as a result of this appalling episode.

"The examining group must urgently investigate this outrageous breach of security and take action to prevent it happening again otherwise the credibility of public examinations will be undermined."

He said he had not heard of anything like this happening before.

"This is clear evidence that some students will stop at nothing to get better results and secure university places under the new highly competitive system."

Newsnight told how it was informed that the illicit papers were being sold for £400 a time to students in west London.

Edexcel spokeswoman Stevie Pattison-Dick said: "Internal compliance investigations have been launched. We are taking this very seriously."

In an effort to establish the source of the leak, he added: "We are contacting schools to check the seals on the papers."

Edexcel have warned their inspectors who make random checks on schools to see if the seals on the papers have been broken.

They warned that they would compare grades with predictions and fail students if there was any suspicion that they cheated using the leaked papers.

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