If your centre delivers A Level sciences, the practical endorsement work is subject to practical endorsement monitoring. Monitoring runs in two-year cycles, with most centres being monitored for a single science subject during each cycle.

Cycle 4 of the practical endorsement monitoring was due to begin in September 2021, but this was postponed to allow time to catch up with the delayed cycle 3 visits and to allow time for centres to complete additional practical work with Year 13 students.

We can now confirm Cycle 4 monitoring will start in January 2022 and run until June 2023. Monitoring will continue to be carried out remotely until further notice, but will be reviewed on a termly basis. We hope to avoid centres having back-to-back remote monitoring, so if your centre was monitored remotely in Cycle 3, we'll aim to carry out your Cycle 4 monitoring when face-to-face monitoring is once again possible.

You can view more information on Cycle 4 of the monitoring process and how the current remote monitoring process works on our Positive About Practical web page.

Please make sure your science department has read both the Cycle 4 cross-board messaging, which explains the monitoring arrangements, and the additional practical endorsement guidance, which outlines the changes to the practical endorsement requirements for summer 2022.

If you have any queries, please call our Customer Support Centre on 01223 553998 or email science@ocr.org.uk.

Qualifications

• Biology A - H020, H420 (from 2015)
• Biology B (Advancing Biology) - H022, H422 (from 2015)
• Chemistry A - H032, H432 (from 2015)
• Chemistry B (Salters) - H033, H433 (from 2015)
• Physics A - H156, H556 (from 2015)
• Physics B (Advancing Physics) - H157, H557 (from 2015)
• Geology - H014, H414 (from 2017)