Pearson Edexcel GCSE (9-1) Business (1BS0)
Exam structure at a glance for Pearson Edexcel GCSE (9-1) Business: every paper with its time, marks and weighting, plus tiers, practicals and the links you need.
- Board
- Pearson Edexcel
- Specification code
- 1BS0
- Tiers
- No tiers (one paper set for all)
- First teaching
- 2017
- First exams
- 2019
- Exam papers
- 2 · 3 h 30 min in total
- Last checked
- 2026-10-20
Business is not a national curriculum subject.
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Papers and weightings
| Paper | Time | Marks | Weight | Calculator | What it is (our summary) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1: Investigating small business | 1 h 45 min | 90 | 50% | Yes | Theme 1: enterprise, business opportunities, putting an idea into practice, making the business effective, external influences. Section A 35, B 30, C 25 marks; calculations, multiple choice, short answers and extended writing. |
| Paper 2: Building a business | 1 h 45 min | 90 | 50% | Yes | Theme 2: growing the business, marketing, operations, finance and human resources. Same three-section layout and question styles as Paper 1. |
Times are exam lengths; weightings are shares of the whole GCSE. Summaries are in our own words.
Good to know
- Version: Issue 2 (July 2022) raised both papers from 1 hour 30 minutes to 1 hour 45 minutes and moved the Section B and C business contexts into a Source Booklet (summary of changes, spec p.2; the at-a-glance pages still say 'given in the paper').
Key dates
Summer 2027 exam series
- Entries deadline: Sun, 21 February 2027
- First exam: Mon, 10 May 2027
- Last GCSE exam: Fri, 18 June 2027
- Contingency day: Wed, 23 June 2027
- GCSE results day: Thu, 19 August 2027 (from a provisional board timetable)
Sources: JCQ key dates June 2027 (final (JCQ key dates)); JCQ key dates and timetables; JCQ timetable commentary. Check each board's final timetable for paper dates. Last checked 2026-10-20.
Specification, past papers and grade boundaries
- Pearson Edexcel: Specification at a glance (board website)
- Pearson Edexcel: Specification (PDF, board website)
- Pearson Edexcel: Past papers and mark schemes (board website)
- Pearson Edexcel: Grade boundaries (board website)
Facts checked against: qualifications.pearson.com, qualifications.pearson.com.
More packs
Exam facts (paper names, times, marks, weightings, tiers, codes) are taken from each exam board's own specification pages and summarised in our own words; no specification text, papers or mark schemes are reproduced. Exam details checked against the board's specification on 2026-10-20. Always check the current specification on the board's website.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (Ofqual and DfE pages on GOV.UK). Classfern is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Department for Education, Ofqual, JCQ, AQA, Pearson Edexcel, OCR or WJEC Eduqas.
Questions teachers ask
How long are the Pearson Edexcel GCSE (9-1) Business exams?
Paper 1: 1 h 45 min; Paper 2: 1 h 45 min.