🏴 United Kingdom - Wales
This page describes how schools in United Kingdom - Wales grade pupils, from the first year of primary school (year 1, about age 6–7) to the end of upper secondary, and how to build the same system in MarkBook. Back to Find Your Country.
Check the current rules
This description comes from public sources (ministry pages, national laws, Eurydice) read in October 2026. Rules change with reforms, and schools often have local rules. Check the current official text for anything your school reports to the ministry.
How pupils are graded
Before year 1: Nursery and Reception (ages 3-5) are part of the 3-16 Curriculum for Wales and are not graded. Wales Year 1 starts at age 5, giving 13 years (Years 1-13).
| Years | Stage | Scale | Pass | Recipe |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-6 (Wales Years 1-6) | Primary (Years 1-6) | No marks or levels. Progress described against progression steps 1-3 (broadly ages 5, 8, 11) | Not applicable | Written description |
| 7-9 (Wales Years 7-9) | Lower secondary (Years 7-9) | No national scale; progression step 4 (broadly age 14) | Not applicable | Written description |
| 10-11 (Wales Years 10-11) | Upper secondary (GCSE, Years 10-11) | A*-G, U | G is the lowest awarded grade; C is the key Level 2 threshold | Letters |
| 12-13 (Wales Years 12-13) | Sixth form (Years 12-13) | A*-E, U (AS A-E, U) | E | Letters |
The year. Three terms. Under the 2022 reporting regulations schools must share individual learner information with parents at least once a term (format chosen by the head teacher) and give a summary at least once a year. Personalised assessment reports go to parents.
Averages and rounding. No national averages or grades before GCSE. Assessment is formative along a 3-16 continuum; the guidance says the descriptions of learning 'are not a series of criteria to be directly assessed against' and assessment should not make a one-off judgement of overall achievement at a set age. GCSE and A level grades come from the awarding body (WJEC/CBAC) with yearly boundaries.
Passing the year. Pupils move up by age. No year-level pass/fail.
Conduct. No national conduct grade (schools may report effort or wellbeing in their own way).
Differences between regions or school types. Welsh-medium and English-medium schools follow the same rules. Independent schools may use English 9-1 GCSEs.
Common practice that is not official. Not official: GCSE-style A*-G working-at and target grades from Year 7, percentages on tests, school-made descriptor steps for each progression step, effort grades.
National exams.
- Personalised assessments (reading, numeracy) (year Years 2-9): Adaptive online; age-standardised feedback, no pass mark
- GCSE (WJEC) including Made-for-Wales GCSEs (year Year 11): A*-G, U (8-point scale); double awards on a 15-point scale AA to GG
- AS and A level (WJEC) (year Years 12-13): A level A*-E, U; AS A-E, U
Words you will meet
Curriculum for Wales (Cwricwlwm i Gymru); progression step (cam cynnydd); Area of Learning and Experience (AoLE); personalised assessment (asesiadau personol); GCSE (TGAU); grade (gradd); report (adroddiad); term (tymor).
Set it up in MarkBook
Years 1-9: no numeric scale; use a comment column per term per Area of Learning and Experience and, if the school wants tracking, a school descriptor scale (for example 'Beginning / Developing / Secure' with points 1-3) clearly labelled as internal; no averages. GCSE: an A*-G, U scale (A*=8 ... G=1, U=0) for working-at, target and predicted grade columns per term; A level: A*-E, U (A*=6 ... E=1). Calculated value-added = working-at minus target in points; no rounding needed because grades are whole steps.
The scales, ready to copy
These are the scales as MarkBook shows them in the scale editor. Build yours with the same grades, descriptions and weights. Each scale links to the recipe that explains it on Set Up Any Grading System.
Wales · A*–G
Attainment scale for years 10-11 (Wales Years 10-11) (Upper secondary (GCSE, Years 10-11)). Build it in Configuration → Assessment → Attainment scales. Recipe: Letters.
| Grade | Description | Weight | Pass |
|---|---|---|---|
| A* | Highest grade | 9 | yes |
| A | 8 | yes | |
| B | 7 | yes | |
| C | C (Level 2 threshold) | 6 | yes |
| D | D (Level 1) | 5 | yes |
| E | 4 | yes | |
| F | 3 | yes | |
| G | G (lowest grade) | 2 | yes |
| U | Unclassified | 1 | no |
Before you rely on this page
Confidence: medium
The exact years of personalised assessments (Years 2-9) and the 40% AS weighting come from search summaries, not full official pages. Progression steps are reference points, not grades; schools vary widely in how they track. Made-for-Wales GCSE details (first award 2027) may shift by subject (History moved to 2026 first teaching).