Ewan Brady, Qualifications Product Manager for History, Religious Studies, and Law

History education in England is entering a period of significant change. Following the publication of the Curriculum and Assessment Review and the government response to it in November 2025, reforms are expected across all key stages, from Key Stage 1 through to A Level. 

This is the first in a planned series of blogs about the future of history. In this blog I will discuss GCSE History, covering the Curriculum and Assessment Review, the government response, teacher feedback, the new national curriculum, and our hopes for the future at Cambridge OCR.

The Curriculum and Assessment Review on history

The Curriculum and Assessment Review recognises that history is a popular subject: since reform GCSE entries have increased and A Level entries remain consistent. However, it notes that evidence indicates that GCSE requires ‘significant review’. There have been calls to tackle the content overload and reduce content significantly, and the review discusses ways that this could be addressed. 

There is concern that the pressures to cover the content may have led to a focus on exam outcomes, rather than the development of disciplinary knowledge and subject skills. The review recommends that the assessment objectives and approaches are revisited to better develop these areas. There is some discussion about updating subject aims to allow a wider representation of perspectives.

The government response

The government response agrees with the review on the importance of applying disciplinary knowledge, skills, and approaches. It says that GCSE will be reformed to help develop substantive and disciplinary knowledge. British history will be strengthened in the subject content of qualifications. It states that the curriculum will be reformed to ensure that teachers can reflect the innate diversity of British history, including Black British and Asian history.

Local history is also mentioned in the government response – in relation to how local history and contexts can be used to teach history through where children and young people live. GCSE History is scheduled for reform for first teach 2029 or 2030 while A Level History is scheduled for first teach 2031 or 2032. Exact dates are yet to be announced by the Department for Education (DfE).

What teachers are saying about GCSE History now

Across all exam boards, teachers have two main common concerns with the current GCSE: 

• There is too much content – students must study four studies / five elements.
• Assessment is too complicated – there are too many different types of question. 

This has been a consistent message over the past years since reform. This is reflected in the Historical Association’s response to the Curriculum and Assessment Review, in relation to GCSE, stating that:

• Content needs to be reduced
• Content selection must have resonance
• The treatment of sources and interpretations in GCSE specifications needs review 
• Assessment needs to change. 

Their survey has some interesting data: 81% of respondents strongly favoured reducing GCSE content, with only 41% supporting retention of all five current elements. There was broad support for greater representation, especially of women and Black and Asian British history. Very few teachers wanted coursework reinstated (only three out of 385), while reducing question types was a major concern.

What’s next

The DfE tendered for authors for new national curriculum programmes of study and new GCSE and A Level subject content. The Historical Association won the tender for history, and its team is now drafting a new curriculum and subject content. The draft national curriculum is due to be published in September 2026 for public consultation.

What does Cambridge OCR want to see in the reformed GCSE?

Based on our experience of the current qualifications and feedback from teachers we would like to see: 

• Reduced content with the removal of one of the studies: four studies rather than five elements.
• Less complex assessment including a reduction in the number of different types of questions.
• The removal of the restriction that British and World depth studies need be from different time periods, increasing the opportunity for students to learn about modern Britain in depth. 
• Continued importance of the historic environment, allowing schools choice and flexibility.

At reform we would like to see a reduction in content and less complex assessment allowing history teachers and students more time and space to develop their understanding and historical skills and enjoy their courses. 

At present exam boards have a certain amount of flexibility and freedom to design GCSE and A Level courses and we would like this flexibility to continue. This allows exam boards to take different approaches to school history, whilst adhering to the content framework set out by the DfE and the assessment arrangements from Ofqual. 

We aim to develop GCSE and A Level History courses that really engage and connect with young people across the country, courses that feature people and histories that have been under-represented in the past. In recent years there has been a move towards more global history, and histories that are more diverse and inclusive. 

We aim to build on what our teachers love about our current GCSE and A Level courses and make improvements to design the best courses for the students of the 2030s. This world is rapidly changing, and it is vital to talk about the value of history and why it still matters. 

We will be talking more about the future of GCSE and A Level History in the coming months and years. We will be holding stakeholder forums, networks, and focus groups. We are happy to meet with individual teachers and departments. If you would like to be involved, please let us know.

Stay connected

If you have any questions, you can email us at history@ocr.org.uk, call us on 01223 553998 or message us @OCR_History. You can also sign up to subject updates and receive email information about resources and support.

If you are considering teaching any of our qualifications, use our online form to let us know, so that we can help you with more information. 

About the author

Ewan is Qualifications Product Manager for History, Religious Studies, and Law. He was previously Subject Advisor for RS for six years from 2017. Ewan originally joined OCR as a subject specialist in June 2014. He led the redevelopment of the new AS and A Levels in Law for first teaching in 2017.  

Ewan taught for 16 years in Scotland and England, initially training as a history teacher. He held leadership roles including head of humanities, teaching subjects including history, law, politics, citizenship, and religious studies. In his spare time Ewan enjoys walking, sport, reading, going to the cinema, and playing video games.