Caravan Insurance

A van containing GCSE exam papers has caught fire, raising concerns for the students that van insurance cannot retrieve their lost work.

According to the BBC, completed papers from three Bedfordshire schools were destroyed.

The damage, believed to have been caused by an electrical problem, can only partially be repaired through appropriate van insurance, as the destroyed papers had not yet been graded.

However, the students will most likely receive their grades based on previous work and the opinion of their teacher, the examination body is reported to have said.

The exam board in question, AQA, has been the subject of considerable controversy over the past few years, most recently seeing 11,000 students provided with an exam paper which lacked an essential source booklet.

It is following such concerns about professionalism that the Institute of Educational Assessors was launched earlier this month, aiming to encourage the development of all staff involved in teaching and examinations.

Speaking at the organisation's launch, Ken Boston of exam regulators the QCA said: "An institute which offers support and advice and professional development for teachers to develop their assessment skills is long overdue."

However, his reassurances are unlikely to console the students whose papers cannot be retrieved, regardless of the level of van insurance cover.