A Level Psychology: professional development and events to support your journey
02 November 2026
Nicola Heath, Psychology Subject Advisor
Getting ready to teach a refreshed qualification can feel like a big undertaking, but you won’t be doing it on your own. Whether you’re new to Cambridge OCR or already teaching our A Level Psychology (H569), we have a range of professional development (PD), events and resources to support you at every stage.
In this blog, I’ll take you through what’s available for the qualification, from your first look at the specification through to preparing students for their exams.
What support is right for you?
Finding out about the qualification
Showcases
Showcase events are specifically designed to help you decide whether Cambridge OCR A Level Psychology is the right qualification for you and your students. We offer these 30-minute online sessions at lunchtime or after work to provide maximum flexibility.
I run these events as your Psychology Subject Advisor. I’ll present an overview of the qualification and answer any questions you have. We run showcases throughout the autumn term and you can book your place from our showcase page.
Ask the Subject Advisor
Have a question? Ask me! These informal Q&A webinars are run throughout the year and offer a chance to ask me anything about the content, assessment, resources or teaching of the refreshed qualification. You can bring along a question or simply listen to the discussion with other teachers.
Book this and other professional development events via Teach Cambridge or our website.
And remember, you don't need to wait for a webinar to get in touch. You can email me at psychology@ocr.org.uk with any question, big or small.
Getting ready to teach
Starting to teach
If you’re preparing to teach H569, our Starting to Teach webinars will help you feel confident about getting underway. Running from spring 2027, these webinars will take a closer look at the content and assessment and introduce suggested resources and approaches to teaching the course. There will also be plenty of opportunities to ask your trainer questions about delivering the qualification as well as discuss teaching and learning ideas with other participants.
Enhance your teaching
Want to take a closer look at a specific aspect of the course? That’s where the Enhance your Teaching courses come in. These events are focused on delivering training for a particular part of the course content, with subjects decided in advance in response to teacher demand and feedback.
The title reflects the subject matter so you can choose those that interest you the most. You’ll have the chance to ask questions as well as upskill in a particular area. These online courses typically run for a half day and are delivered by subject specialists.
Teacher Networks
Sometimes the most useful support comes from talking to other teachers. Our network events give you the opportunity to share ideas, discuss approaches and learn from colleagues teaching Psychology in other centres.
These events are run for teachers, by teachers and can be online or in-person. I’d particularly love to see more face-to-face psychology networks developing as we launch the refreshed qualification. If your centre is interested in hosting one, do contact me and I’ll be very happy to support you.
Subject briefing
At the start of each autumn term I run a subject briefing webinar, where I highlight some of the most important psychology news, new resources, blogs, PD and any other important changes. It’s a chance for you to find out what has been happening and what is coming up for Cambridge OCR Psychology qualifications.
As this is a live online event, there will also be an opportunity to ask questions as you prepare to start the new academic year.
Preparing for assessment
Preparing for the exam
We’ll run these live webinars from autumn 2027 to give you an in-depth look at how to best prepare your students for the upcoming exams. They will include a chance to practice your own marking so you can be confident with marking mock exams and using our mark schemes.
The half-day courses will be run by experienced examiners so you can feel confident about the content delivered and you can ask them the questions that matter most to you.
Exam review
After the first exam series in 2029, we’ll run a short online Exam Review webinar, with examiners providing an overview of what we can learn from the latest set of exams. They will provide insight into the overall strengths and weaknesses and provide suggestions of what to focus your teaching and exam practice on with your own students.
Exploring the exam
Building on the Exam Review course, this half-day event will also run after the first live series. The trainers will be experienced examiners who will provide an in-depth understanding of the assessment expectations, marking criteria and outcomes from the most recent series.
You’ll be able to practice marking with new candidate exemplars and receive expert guidance on how and why candidates secured a range of marks. As this is a live event, you can ask our trainers any questions you want answering about supporting students and you’ll also have a chance to discuss teaching and learning ideas.
Summary and further support
Professional development is only one part of the support we offer. You’ll also find a wide range of free resources on Teach Cambridge, including teacher guides and student worksheets to support your planning and teaching. Our detailed schemes of work includes suggested activities and links to Cambridge OCR and external resources.
Throughout your planning and teaching, you’ll have dedicated Subject Advisor support. If you’re unsure about something, please get in touch. No question is too small, and we’re here to help.
If you’re new to Cambridge OCR, complete our expression of interest form so we can keep you up to date with the information and support you'll need, including access to free services such as Teach Cambridge and ExamBuilder.
Starting a refreshed qualification is an exciting opportunity, and we want you to feel confident and well supported from the outset. Whether you’re exploring H569 for the first time, planning your first lessons or eventually preparing students for their exams, there will be support available at every stage. We look forward to working with you.
Stay connected
If you have any questions, you can email us at psychology@ocr.org.uk or call us on 01223 553998.
You can also sign up for subject emails to make sure you get the latest news, information and resources.
If you are considering teaching any of our qualifications, please do let us know using our online form , so that we can make sure you get all the support you need.
About the author
Nicola joined Cambridge OCR in 2022 as the Subject Advisor for Psychology. Before that, she taught psychology for over 10 years and has had various other responsibilities in that time, including being Head of Year, SENDCo and Subject Leader for PSHE. Nicola has a personal interest in mental health and wellbeing and enjoys reading, baking and spending time outdoors to relax.
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