In addition to the day-to-day writing support that DocsPlus provides, it can also be used to support learners who qualify for a reader or a scribe in exams as their normal way of working.
Ofqual’s findings from 2023-24 show that the average secondary school in England had to source, fund and find exam rooms for 53 human scribes and/or readers for each exam, costing them over £17,000 per year!
- 625,000 students qualified for additional exam arrangements 29% of whom would have needed at least a reader (131,630 students) or a scribe (49,080 students)
Assuming these 180,710 students were split equally through the 3,400 secondary schools in England, then on average each school will have:
- 14 students who require a scribe
- 39 students who require a reader
Not only does DocsPlus save schools thousands of pounds on exam access arrangements, but its support can be used year round in school and at home.
Supports students in...
Human exam scribe/reader
DocsPlus
Exams
Day-to-day lessons
Homework
Coursework
Making the most of your most valuable asset – your people
At £17,000 a year, hiring this many extra scribes and readers for exams is out of reach for many schools. Instead, schools are forced to rely on existing staff like librarians, office workers, TAs and leadership teams — leaving libraries unstaffed, admin delayed, and leaders distracted from core responsibilities. Offices and meeting rooms are repurposed as exam spaces for weeks at a time, disrupting the entire school community.
This patchwork solution disrupts the school community and puts unnecessary pressure on students relying on human scribes in a high-stakes environment. DocsPlus offers a smarter, cost-effective alternative. It provides reliable, consistent support during exams without draining staff resources and doubles as a powerful classroom tool that benefits all students year-round.
Internally sourcing scribes and readers
- School staff pulled away: librarians, admin, TAs, leaders
- 1:1 support less available for SEND students
- Offices and communal spaces used for exams
- Disruption to operations and learning school-wide for weeks at a time
- Inconsistent and unfamiliar exam support
DocsPlus
- Supports all students year-round
- No disruption to school operations and other learning
- Reliable, consistent exam support
- Can be used as normal way of working
What schools using DocsPlus for exams have to say
DocsPlus offers every day writing support for every student
As you can see, DocsPlus isn’t just for exams! And it’s not just for the students who need exam access arrangements either…
What sets DocsPlus apart from other exam solutions is the extensive support it offers in day-to-day learning, for every student.
We know that exams are just one part of school life and that enabling your students to access their lessons confidently and independently is a huge priority.
By choosing DocsPlus, you can provide the opportunity for every student to:
- Access lesson content across the curriculum and to plan and prepare for writing.
- Improve their writing output using built-in scaffolding and productivity tools like writing frames, vocabulary banks and intelligent word prediction.
- Proactively review and edit their writing.
