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Access arrangements and private candidates: what tutors can and cannot do

A practical guide to supporting evidence, centre conversations and exam preparation without overpromising extra time, readers, scribes, rest breaks, word processors or other arrangements.

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  • Portrait of Robin GibbonsLead authorFounder & CEO·Latimer Tuition
  • Reviewed byHeather LatimerTutor Matching & Customer Service·Latimer Tuition
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Current answer

Quick answer: tutors can support evidence, not approve arrangements

A private tutor can help a private candidate prepare evidence, practise under realistic conditions and communicate patterns of need clearly. A private tutor cannot award, guarantee or personally provide exam access arrangements. Under JCQ guidance, the centre decides appropriate arrangements and the SENCo leads the evidence process.

This guide covers JCQ qualifications in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It is not a guide to Scotland, admissions tests, professional exams or non-JCQ qualifications.

This guide is for the private tutor role. A tutor who is separately employed, appointed or approved by an exam centre may have different duties in that centre role, but that is not the same as acting as the candidate’s private tutor.

“picture of need” — JCQ

“normal way of working” — JCQ

Those two JCQ phrases are the safest lens for tutor support: help the centre see the candidate’s needs and usual working pattern, without presenting your observations as the centre’s decision.

Key terms tutors should use accurately

Using the right language helps tutors stay helpful without overstating their role.

Access arrangements

Pre-agreed exam arrangements that help a candidate with specific needs access the assessment without changing what is being assessed.

Special consideration

A separate process for issues affecting performance at or around the time of the assessment, rather than a pre-agreed arrangement.

Private candidate

A candidate who enters through an exam centre without being taught there as a normal enrolled student. The centre still controls entry and exam processes.

Centre

The school, college or exam centre accepting the entry and responsible for running the exam process.

SENCo

The person in the centre who leads the access-arrangements evidence process and gathers the candidate’s needs and usual working pattern.

JCQ

The Joint Council for Qualifications. For this page, it is the main cross-awarding-body framework for England, Wales and Northern Ireland because its members include AQA, OCR, Pearson, WJEC and CCEA.

Access Arrangements Online

The online system used by centres for relevant access-arrangements applications. It is not something a private tutor submits independently.

Form 8

A JCQ form commonly linked to learning-difficulty evidence, completed within a centre-led process with the required centre involvement.

Form 9

A JCQ form process used for some candidates with physical, sensory, medical, neurodevelopmental or mental-health needs, alongside appropriate evidence and SENCo judgement.

Normal way of working

The candidate’s usual, established way of working. This is often where careful tutor observations can help.

Picture of need

The joined-up evidence showing the candidate’s difficulties and needs. A diagnosis or preference alone is not enough.

Who does what in the access-arrangements process?

Tutors are part of the evidence picture, not the decision-making body. This table shows the practical split.

A responsibility map for tutors supporting private candidates with access arrangements.

RoleWhat they can doWhat they cannot doTutor takeaway

Tutor

Observe learning, keep factual notes, set timed practice, save work samples and share relevant observations if the candidate or centre asks.

Approve arrangements, guarantee extra time, submit Access Arrangements Online applications independently or provide live-exam support as the private tutor.

Phrase your role as evidence support, not exam authority.

Private candidate or family

Choose an accepting centre, disclose likely needs early and provide existing evidence when asked.

Assume that a diagnosis, preference or old report automatically gives exam arrangements.

Encourage early contact with the chosen centre before exam-season pressure builds.

Host exam centre

Accept the entry, gather evidence, decide appropriate arrangements and organise approved exam-day support.

Use arrangements without the required evidence and controls.

The centre is the place to ask about deadlines, evidence and exam-day staffing.

SENCo

Lead the centre evidence process, gather the candidate’s needs and usual working pattern, and complete relevant centre paperwork.

Treat outside opinion as a substitute for the required centre evidence where JCQ rules require more.

Address factual observation notes to the centre or SENCo, not to the awarding body as a demand.

Centre-approved assessor

Carry out relevant assessments after the centre has been involved and the required information has been provided.

Assess privately first and expect the report to count automatically for a JCQ application.

Do not suggest a family can solve the issue by buying a private assessment before speaking to the centre.

Awarding body and JCQ framework

Set rules, forms, systems and inspection expectations across the qualifications in scope.

Turn a tutor’s preference or advocacy into an approved arrangement without centre evidence.

Use official wording carefully and avoid promising an outcome.

A tutor-safe sequence to follow

Use this order when a private candidate mentions access arrangements. It keeps the official process with the centre while allowing the tutor to be genuinely useful. JCQ private-candidate overview, OCR, and Pearson all support early contact with the chosen centre.

  • 1. Ask whether the candidate has chosen an exam centre

    Access arrangements for private candidates need a host centre. Without a centre, there is no official centre/SENCo process to support.

  • 2. Encourage early disclosure to the centre

    The candidate or family should raise likely needs when arranging entry or enrolment, not shortly before the exam.

  • 3. Let the centre specify the evidence it needs

    Do not create your own entitlement test. Ask what factual tutor observations or work samples would help.

  • 4. Provide factual tuition evidence

    Share what you have observed: timed work, logs, samples, pacing, fatigue, legibility, spelling, reading load or effective use of support.

  • 5. Keep assessment decisions centre-led

    Where an assessment is needed, the centre and SENCo must be involved before the evidence is treated as part of the JCQ process.

  • 6. Leave exam-day delivery to the centre

    Even if you practise support in tuition, the centre must appoint any approved live-exam reader, scribe, prompter or other support.

Evidence a tutor can help a private candidate gather

Tutor evidence is most useful when it is factual, dated and linked to the candidate’s usual working pattern. It should help the centre understand what you have seen, not tell the centre what it must award.

  • Record consistent difficulties

    Note patterns you have actually observed: pacing, fatigue, spelling, legibility, concentration, reading load, writing stamina or reliance on agreed support tools.

  • Use timed practice sensibly

    Set timed past papers or timed sections where appropriate, and record what happens within standard time and any additional-time practice.

  • Try the pen-colour example when appropriate

    JCQ private-candidate guidance gives a practical example: work in standard time, then change pen colour for the extra-time period so the centre can see what the additional time changed.

  • Keep a work log

    A short log can show how often the difficulty appears, what support was used and whether a pattern is consistent over time.

  • Save short work samples

    Samples can illustrate legibility, spelling, planning, completion speed, fatigue or reading-load issues better than a general statement.

  • Write observation notes carefully

    Keep notes limited to what you have seen. Avoid diagnosis, entitlement language or requests that sound like an instruction to the centre.

  • Encourage early centre contact

    Ask the candidate or family to contact the chosen centre at application or enrolment and ask what evidence and deadline apply.

What tutors must not do or promise

Clear boundaries protect the candidate, the tutor and the centre. JCQ Instructions for Conducting Examinations states: “A private tutor cannot facilitate an access arrangement.” The same JCQ document also states: “A private tutor cannot act as a prompter for the candidate.”

Common requests from private candidates and safer tutor responses.

RequestBetter tutor responseBoundary to keepWhy it matters

Can you get me extra time?

I can record what I observe in timed work and share factual evidence if the centre asks.

Do not promise extra time or imply that tutor support can secure it.

The centre needs evidence of need and usual working pattern.

Can you complete or submit the forms?

I can provide an observation note for the centre if requested.

Do not act as though you run the centre process or submit Access Arrangements Online applications.

JCQ places the evidence process with the centre and SENCo.

Can you be my reader, scribe or prompter?

I can practise permitted support in lessons where that helps learning and evidence, but the centre must appoint live-exam support.

A private tutor must not carry that private-tuition role into the exam room.

JCQ ICE gives explicit limits for private tutors and prompters.

Can I use a laptop because I type faster?

I can note whether typing is an established working pattern and whether it affects access to the task.

Do not say a word processor is automatic because the candidate prefers typing or types quickly.

JCQ links word-processor use to the candidate’s usual working pattern and exam-device controls.

Will this private report secure arrangements?

Share existing reports with the centre early and ask whether any centre-approved assessment is needed.

Do not treat a privately commissioned report as enough on its own where JCQ requires centre involvement.

The centre-led evidence process matters for Form 8 and online applications.

Can you supervise or authenticate coursework or NEA?

I can support subject learning, planning and revision within normal tutoring boundaries.

Do not produce, co-author, formally supervise, authenticate or replace the centre’s internal-assessment duties.

OCR states that the chosen centre is responsible for internal assessment supervision, authentication and marking arrangements.

Common arrangements: how tutors can practise support without promising exam approval

Tutors often see the practical barrier before the centre does. The useful step is to record that pattern clearly, not to name the final arrangement as guaranteed.

Common access arrangements and the tutor/centre split.

ArrangementWhat a tutor may observe or practiseWhat the centre must decide or provide

Extra time

Whether the candidate uses additional time effectively, what changes after standard time and whether speed is a consistent barrier.

Whether evidence and criteria support extra time for the relevant exams.

Supervised rest breaks

Patterns of fatigue, attention, anxiety, stamina or concentration during longer tasks.

Whether rest breaks are more appropriate than extra time and how they will be supervised.

Human reader

Reading load, comprehension when material is read aloud in practice and independence with written questions.

Whether a reader is permitted for that paper or section, especially where reading is being assessed.

Computer reader

Whether text-to-speech tools are part of the candidate’s usual working pattern.

Whether the software and exam conditions meet current rules.

Scribe

Writing stamina, physical writing barriers, dictation practice or typed alternatives during learning.

Whether the candidate meets the criteria and who is appointed for the exam.

Prompter

Whether the candidate loses focus, stops working or needs neutral reminders during practice.

Whether prompting is approved and who may act in that exam role. A private tutor cannot be the candidate’s prompter.

Word processor

Whether typing is the candidate’s established working pattern and whether handwritten work creates an access barrier.

Whether use is appropriate, and that exam-device restrictions such as spellcheck, predictive text and AI tools are followed.

Tutor-safe wording

Suggested wording when someone asks you to sort access arrangements

When this applies

A parent, carer or adult private candidate asks you to get extra time, a word processor, a reader or another access arrangement.

Suggested wording

Thanks for asking. I can help by recording what I observe in tuition, such as timed work, pacing, fatigue, legibility, reading load or how additional time is used in practice. I cannot approve or arrange exam access arrangements as the private tutor. Please contact the exam centre as soon as possible and ask for its access-arrangements deadline and evidence requirements. If the centre asks for tutor observations, I can provide a short factual note limited to what I have seen.

Why this helps

The wording keeps the tutor helpful, separates observation from decision-making and directs the candidate to the centre early.

Official sources used for this guide

This guide is led by JCQ and exam-board sources, with Latimer used only for the tutor professional-practice action.

  • JCQ: Access Arrangements and Reasonable Adjustments

    Official 2025/26 access-arrangements guidance.

    Open source

  • JCQ: centres accepting private candidates

    Official private-candidate evidence examples and timing guidance.

    Open source

  • JCQ: parent or candidate requests with no centre evidence

    Official guidance on evidence of need and usual working pattern.

    Open source

  • JCQ: guidance for parents, carers and students

    Official summary of access-arrangements principles.

    Open source

  • JCQ: Instructions for Conducting Examinations

    Official exam-day support and private-tutor boundary rules.

    Open source

  • JCQ: Who we are

    JCQ membership context including AQA, OCR, Pearson, WJEC and CCEA.

    Open source

  • OCR: access arrangements for private candidates

    Private-candidate timing and access-arrangements overview.

    Open source

  • OCR: internal assessment arrangements

    Private-candidate coursework and internal-assessment responsibilities.

    Open source

  • Pearson: private candidates

    Private-candidate centre contact and fee context.

    Open source

  • AQA: private candidates

    Private-candidate entry and centre-dependence context.

    Open source

Related guidance

More guidance from this section

More guidance from this part of the Ed Centre that may help with the same decision, stage or next step.

Support and clarity

Frequently asked questions

Straight answers to the questions people ask most often.

Can a tutor arrange access arrangements for a private candidate?

No, not in the private tutor role. A tutor can provide factual observations and evidence support, but the centre and SENCo control the official process and decision.

What evidence can a tutor provide for access arrangements?

Useful evidence can include timed work, work logs, examples of pacing, fatigue, legibility, spelling, concentration, reading load and whether additional-time practice is used effectively. Keep it factual and observational, not diagnostic.

Does a dyslexia, ADHD, ASD or anxiety diagnosis guarantee extra time?

No. JCQ guidance makes clear that a diagnosis or preference alone is not enough. The centre needs the right evidence of need, usual working pattern and criteria for the arrangement being considered.

Can a privately commissioned assessment secure access arrangements?

Not by itself where the JCQ centre-led assessment process is required. For a learning-difficulty assessment to count, the assessor must liaise with the centre, be approved by the head of centre, and receive the required Form 8 information from the SENCo before assessing.

Can a private tutor act as a reader, scribe or prompter in the live exam?

In the private tutor role, no. Practice support in tuition does not carry into the exam room. JCQ Instructions for Conducting Examinations states: “A private tutor cannot facilitate an access arrangement” and “A private tutor cannot act as a prompter for the candidate.” The centre must appoint any approved live-exam support.

Can a private candidate use a word processor in exams?

A word processor may be possible where it reflects the candidate’s usual working pattern, but it is not automatic because the candidate types faster, prefers a laptop or uses one at home. Exam-device controls, including spellcheck, predictive text and AI tools, must follow current rules.

Are supervised rest breaks sometimes better than extra time?

Yes. For some candidates, the main barrier may be stamina, fatigue, concentration, anxiety or a medical need rather than processing speed. A tutor can observe patterns in practice, but the centre decides whether rest breaks, extra time or another arrangement is appropriate.

When should a private candidate ask about access arrangements?

As early as possible, ideally when arranging entry or enrolling with the chosen centre. Centres have internal deadlines and may need time to gather evidence, arrange assessment, process applications or order modified papers.

Sources and references

Sources and references

Official guidance

Internal pages