Following an instruction from the regulators, the Joint Council for Qualifications, the body that represents awarding bodies, has announced that the GCSE and GCE awarding bodies will include provision for certificate indications and exemptions in the regulations in force between September 2006 and August 2007. Certificate indications are adjustments that take account of the needs of candidates with certain disabilities. This will be welcomed by the affected candidates and their centres who have been concerned about the availability of these adjustments when the Disability Discrimination Act 2005 is extended to cover these qualifications in the coming year.

The regulators will work with government departments, awarding bodies, organisations representing disabled people and legal advisors to find a longer-term solution to the future of certificate indications. At the same time, they will also consider whether oral communicators, another access arrangement for deaf candidates, which have been removed by the awarding bodies, should be reinstated. The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) and the regulators in Northern Ireland (CCEA) and Wales (DCELLS) are committed to ensuring that all candidates, regardless of disability, can have their achievements recognised.