Jun
Advice For Schools
KS2 Writing Moderation: Key Information for Schools
Education Adviser SFE and the current Moderation Manager for Birmingham, Emma Mudge, explains the KS2 Writing Moderation process, including what to expect and key documents to refer to…
External writing moderation is a process which not only ensures that the assessment levels which are being submitted are accurate but also provides an opportunity for teachers to articulate their understanding of the standards and the ‘pupil can’ statements, and to deepen their understanding of these. It should not increase teacher workload and aims to validate the teacher judgements where the evidence has been clearly collated.
External writing moderation takes place every 4 years, although there may be additional visits within this time period if necessary.
Who Are The Moderators?
KS2 writing moderators go through a rigorous selection and training process so as to ensure that they have the depth of knowledge in order to fulfil this role affectively. In Birmingham, this encompasses an interview process which involves the completion of a past standardisation training, the successful completion of that year’s standardisation exercise and comprehensive moderator training.
What To Expect
In Birmingham, we have a clear process for completing writing moderation. In 2026, you will have been informed if your school has been selected for moderation on Friday 15th May. If you have been selected, you will be given access to a portal where you will be able to book an initial phone conversation with your moderator, who will discuss your staffing for teaching writing in year 6, confirm the date and time of the moderation visit and clarify pupil numbers on roll.
For the moderation visit itself, the length of time and number of moderators you have allocated will be dependent upon the size of your school. In Birmingham we have year 6 cohorts which range from less than 20 children to 180 pupils! This obviously means that there needs to be an adaptive approach to how the moderation is conducted.
During the moderation visit, the moderator will confirm the teacher assessments which have been made for the sample group (15% of the cohort) and will then proceed with a conversation with the moderation of the judgements themselves. This involves the teacher presenting a pupil as writing at a particular standard and then articulating the evidence against the ‘pupil can’ statements which led to this judgment being made. The moderator will need to see between 4 – 6 pieces of writing for each pupil being moderated to ensure that the standard has been securely met across a range of writing.
At the end of the visit, the moderator will confirm the outcomes with a senior leader and will discuss if there are any implications for the cohort beyond the sample selected. There may also be discussions as to whether it may be agreed that some limited further evidence could be submitted in order to secure a judgement. If this is the case, your moderator will discuss this process with you and confirm exactly what would be required.
Ascertaining Independence
One of the key things which your moderator will want to do is to establish the independence of the writing presented. Any writing which forms part of the pupil collection should have been produced following the STA guidelines (section 6.2 of the Key stage 2 teacher assessment guidance 2026 – GOV.UK).
In order to confirm that the writing does meet the stated requirements, moderators will ask to see the writing journey which led to the piece of independent writing. This means that schools are required to present more than a ‘finished’ or ‘published’ piece. Drafts are often the preferred choice of moderators to review, as these may provide more evidence of the editing made by the pupils and enable us to track some of the child’s thinking as they were writing – supporting the evidence of the selection of specific vocabulary and grammatical features for effect. As some writing presented may fulfil the criteria for independent evidence for some pupil can statements but not for others, it is crucial that teachers evidence any adult input clearly so that this can be discounted.
Early Data Submission – What Does that Mean?
In Birmingham, under the local written agreement, we provide the option for Head Teachers to choose to submit their writing data to their moderator early (up to 1 week in advance, but no less than 3 days before the visit). This does not mean that the data is submitted early to the Local Authority Data Team, it simply means that your moderator is able to view the current teacher assessment before they come into school. This enables them to select the sample group which they will externally moderate and then send their selection to you up to 24 hours before the moderation visit itself.
If you choose not to submit the data to the moderator early, then your moderator will still require this same information so that they can select which pupils they will moderate when they arrive on the day.
The data, whether supplied before the visit or on the day of the moderation itself, needs to be categorised into the standard assessed at and the teacher group. It needs to also contain the name of the pupil and their date of birth. For your convenience, this year we have created a template which you can use for this purpose should you choose to. This can be accessed via the SFE Moderation portal.
We provide this option to lessen the stress and anxiety of the day itself as many schools prefer to collate the books and supporting evidence of each pupil who is to be moderated, in advance of the visit.
What To Do If You Don’t Agree with the Judgements Made
External writing moderation can generate some interesting discussions, and it is possible that we may not always agree! If this is the case, then there is a clear Appeals Process which you can go through. Your moderator will discuss this process with you and it will also be made available for you to access via the SFE Moderation portal should you wish to refer to it.
Key Documentation To Refer To
It is crucial that both leaders and class teachers ensure that they are familiar with the STA guidance on teacher assessment and the teacher assessment framework, links to which you can find below:
- Key stage 2 teacher assessment guidance 2026 – GOV.UK
- 2018/19 Teacher assessment frameworks at the end of key stage 2
The Importance of Peer Moderation
It can sometimes feel that the teacher assessment of writing can be different from one teacher to the next. This is why regular training and peer moderation, led by knowledgeable and experienced moderators, is crucial.
At Services For Education, we provide opportunities for Year 6 teachers to deepen their understanding of the end of Key Stage Writing expectations and to practise articulating and locating their evidence for pupils in their class. See the links below for further information:
Final Thoughts
As School leaders, and as Year 6 class teachers, we have are incredibly busy and so have limited time! Consequently, we often live in fear of missing some key guidance about these important processes. It is key therefore that we take on some useful tips to help us to prepare for and correctly complete both the administration of the Key Stage 2 SATs and the assessment of writing:
- Register to receive the STA alerts so that you get emailed when there is an update to any guidance
- Be prepared – read through any guidance beforehand, train your staff and carefully consider the individual requirements of the children
- Regularly log into the NCA Portal to ensure that you know where the key forms and documentation are located, and to keep abreast of any requirements and deadlines.
- Arrange for year 6 teachers and leaders (where possible) to attend peer moderation and/or training which is led by trained moderators. Misconceptions are common!
- If necessary, delegate tasks (and reading) between key staff members
Good Luck!
If you found this blog useful, you may also be interested in reading the following blogs:
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find out more About the Author
Emma Mudge - Adviser, Services For Education
Emma has more than 20 years' experience in primary education and has worked in a variety of roles, including Assistant Head Teacher, Deputy Head Teacher, and Acting Head Teacher - working at the forefront of school leadership and improvement for the majority of her career.
Emma now works as an Educational Adviser, sharing her experience and knowledge to continually promote and improve the standard of teaching and learning in English, develop and extend the safeguarding culture within schools and to support leaders with their school improvement implementation overall.
Supporting schools with the accuracy of their KS1 and KS2 writing assessments is an important part of her role, using her expertise as a member for the moderation team to inform, train and support teachers and school leaders.
Emma is also part of the team which delivers the Health For Life programme (improving the healthy opportunities for primary aged children) and the NPQSL, where she proudly supports the development of our aspiring leaders in the city.
