A level and BTEC Level 3: England & Jersey - Analysis of Customer Benchmarks

A level and BTEC Level 3: England & Jersey - Analysis of Customer Benchmarks

Headline information - IMPORTANT

Overall attainment standards at KS5 in England for 2026 is broadly in line with those of 2025. Prior attainment of students completing Level 3 courses in 2026 (GCSE results in 2024) is broadly in line with those of last year's cohort who sat GCSEs in 2023. Therefore the value-added picture for 2026 outcomes was expected to be in line with that of 2025. 

As a result, the analysis of the Alps customer data for the 2026 outcomes for both A level and BTEC Level 3 shows very little deviation from the 2025 DfE national dataset, the current default benchmark set for Connect and Summit. In addition, it is almost identical to the Alps customer benchmark from the 2025 results. 

Here is a video message from us regarding our decisions: 


Decision on the use of the 2026 Alps Customer Benchmark for KS5 in England and Jersey 

In terms of the release of the benchmarks into Connect and Summit, for each qualification type we have independently assessed the usefulness of the analysis that the Alps customer benchmark from 2026 would add compared to that offered on Result Day from the 2025 DfE national benchmark. 

In summary,
  1. It is the opinion of the Alps team that the value-added provided by the 2026 Alps Customer Benchmarks will mirror that provided by the existing 2025 DfE national dataset.
  2. the 2026 DfE national dataset when available (Feb/March 2027) will provide value-added analysis in line with the 2025 DfE national dataset
  3. therefore, we have decided not to release the 2026 Alps customer benchmark for A level or Level 3 vocational qualifications 
  4. When we have the national dataset for 2026 from the DfE we will again use it to replace the DfE 2025 data in the platforms.


We feel that this will simplify the decisions you need to make over benchmark selection both for the analysis of your KS5 results and the subsequent tracking of new cohorts across 2026/2027. 

We are in the process of removing the Customer Benchmark toggle from the platform to aid in keeping Connect and Summit as easy to use as possible. 

You will still be able to access customer reports from previous academic years, if you want to look back in time to previous Alps Customer benchmarks. For example, if you are looking at the 2022/23 results gradepoint, the dataset used which was the 2019 DfE benchmark, and you will potentially look more 'blue' in your value-added. 

The Alps Customer benchmarks have been crucial in supporting all customers across the tumultuous years following the pandemic. They have been instrumental in providing a timely dataset which is representative of the national value-added picture when no DfE progress figures were published. However, we now recognise the return to a normalised standards level at KS5 and therefore the need for the customer benchmark has passed. 

2026 A Level Results in England

Results for attainment showing gaps between 2019 and 2026, and between 2025 and 2026. 
https://www.jcq.org.uk/a-level-interactive-results-dashboard/




A level Subject Attainment 


At a subject level results follow a varied pattern.  

However, for the first time since the pandemic, the analysis of A* grades below indicates that in most subjects outcomes are similar from 2025 and 2026. Similar trends are observed at A*-A and A*-B. 






Value-added analysis for A level 2025

The 2026 results see the return of a consistent baseline for average prior attainment for Key Stage 5 students, although it remains slightly higher than in 2019.
The table below shows that the average prior attainment GCSE score for this summer's cohort of 6.19 is lower than the 2024 cohort, and only slightly higher than the 2025 value of 6.17. 




This means that if we were to represent the value-added profile diagrammatically over the past few years, we would see the following pattern. 



The starting point has fluctuated over the past few years, but the outcome end point has also fluctuated. The arrow shows the relative size of the value-added progress journey.

At the beginning of the 2025/26 academic year, we advised that the 2025 Alps customer benchmark represented the most beneficial benchmark on which to base your target setting and tracking priorities. This customer benchmark was updated with the 2025 DfE national dataset in February 2026. The Alps customer benchmark proved to be largely representative of the national dataset. It was our opinion that the 2026 value-added picture would be similar to the 2025 DfE dataset. 

On Results Day, in August 2026, the default benchmark for KS5 was therefore the DfE 2025 national dataset. The sections that follow will dissect the A level data submitted to Alps since A level Results Day 2026 and present the closeness of fit with the 2025 DfE national dataset, leading us to the conclusion that the 2025 DfE dataset is indeed the best benchmark to use both to analyse your results and for target setting and tracking for 2026/27. 

Alps Customer Benchmarks 2025: MEPs and MEGs

The diagram below shows the Alps prior attainment bands for A level from 1 to 11 and the proportion of students in each band. It compares the 2025 Alps customer dataset, the 2025 DfE national dataset and the latest Alps Customer dataset from 2026.



The proportion of students in each prior attainment band are more in line with the 2019 pre-pandemic standards. The large discrepancies seen in previous years with regards to elevated prior attainment and the proportion of students in Bands 1 and 2 has largely reduced. 

In terms of Minimum Expected Points, the diagram below compares the target points required at the 75th percentile across Alps bands. 





Across all prior attainment bands, the Minimum Expected Points required at the 75th percentile shows very little difference. This promotes a prediction that switching benchmarks will have little impact on the value-added picture.  

Tabulated, the picture looks as follows for the 2026 Alps Customer benchmark to the 2025 DfE national dataset: 




Alps Customer Benchmarks 2026: MEPs and MEGs: Implications

If we analyse the proportion of current Alps customers between the 2025 DfE national benchmark (NBM) and the Alps 2026 customer benchmark (CBM 2026), we see this pattern: 

The proportion of Alps providers in the red zone for the A level Quality Indicator is identical when compared against each dataset. In other words, the usage of either benchmark is not having much impact at the top of the thermometer. 
At the lower end, in the blue zone, we can see that our customer benchmark is slightly more exacting, and therefore more providers are graded in the blue zone. This mirrors the pattern between the Alps customer benchmark in 2025 when compared to the 2025 DfE national. Translating this, we would expect that when we release the 2026 DfE national dataset, the pattern would revert back to one more similar to the 2025 DfE at this lower end. 


Analysis of the BTEC Level 3

We have carried out a less detailed analysis of the BTEC qualifications and provided a brief example below. In short the pattern follows the same narrative as A level. 


There are very small differences between the Minimum Expected Points at the 75th percentile between the three benchmarks, therefore it follows that there would be similar BTEC Quality Indicator patterns when comparing Alps providers over the three different datasets. 


Conclusion and recommendations for analysis 


  1. The value-added picture between 2025 and 2026 has levelled. There is little difference in the progress overview between the two sets of results from prior attainment to outcomes. 
  2. Therefore the 2025 DfE dataset would be our recommended benchmark for both A level and Level 3 vocational qualifications for the analysis of your examination results from 2026, and for target setting and monitoring across 2026/27. 
  3. We do not feel that the Alps Customer benchmarks for 2026 will provide additional information to you when setting priorities over and above that gleaned from the 2025 DfE dataset. 
  4. Therefore it is our decision NOT to publish any Alps KS5 benchmarks for 2026. 
  5. We will go one step further and remove the ability to switch benchmarks in the platform, which will bring a simplicity to your message to colleagues when using Connect and Summit.