GCSE Physical education: Exam Structure by Board
Your Teacher Information Pack for GCSE Physical education: how the exams are built for each board, the key dates for summer 2027, and links to specifications, past papers and grade boundaries.
- Qualification
- GCSE (9 to 1)
- Years
- Year 10 and Year 11 (KS4)
- Boards covered
- AQA, OCR
- Entries 2026 (England)
- 82,185 (no. 16 by entries)
- Last checked
- 2026-10-20
Entries: Ofqual provisional entries, summer 2026 (rounded).
The national curriculum content behind this GCSE: KS4 Physical-education programme of study.
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Exam structure by board
Pick your board to see every paper with its length, marks and weighting, plus practicals, tiers and links.
AQA GCSE Physical Education (8582)
Tiers: No tiers (one paper set for all) · first taught 2016
| Paper | Time | Marks | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1: The human body and movement in physical activity and sport | 1 h 15 min | 78 | 30% |
| Paper 2: Socio-cultural influences and well-being in physical activity and sport | 1 h 15 min | 78 | 30% |
| Non-exam assessment: Practical performance in physical activity and sport Non-exam assessment | not stated | 100 | 40% |
OCR GCSE (9-1) Physical Education (J587)
Tiers: No tiers (one paper set for all) · first taught 2016
| Paper | Time | Marks | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Component 01: Physical factors affecting performance | 1 h | 60 | 30% |
| Component 02: Socio-cultural issues and sports psychology | 1 h | 60 | 30% |
| Component 04: Practical performances Non-exam assessment | not stated | 60 | 30% |
| Component 05: Analysis and evaluation of performance Non-exam assessment | not stated | 20 | 10% |
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.
Official documents
- Grade boundaries: AQA
- Grade boundaries: Pearson Edexcel
- Grade boundaries: OCR
- Grade boundaries: WJEC Eduqas
- JCQ access arrangements
More packs
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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 many papers are there in GCSE Physical education?
AQA 8582: 2 exam papers; OCR J587: 2 exam papers. Check the board's specification for options and routes.
Is GCSE Physical education tiered?
No. All students sit the same papers.