AQA GCSE Physical Education (8582)
Exam structure at a glance for AQA GCSE Physical Education: every paper with its time, marks and weighting, plus tiers, practicals and the links you need.
- Board
- AQA
- Specification code
- 8582
- Tiers
- No tiers (one paper set for all)
- First teaching
- 2016
- First exams
- 2018
- Exam papers
- 2 · 2 h 30 min in total
- Last checked
- 2026-10-20
The national curriculum content behind this GCSE: KS4 Physical-education programme of study.
Plan the whole year: open this course in the Year Planner – every lesson dated around your term dates, with a coverage check. Free.
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Papers and weightings
| Paper | Time | Marks | Weight | What it is (our summary) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1: The human body and movement in physical activity and sport | 1 h 15 min | 78 | 30% | Applied anatomy and physiology, movement analysis, physical training and use of data. Multiple choice, short and extended answers; all questions compulsory. |
| Paper 2: Socio-cultural influences and well-being in physical activity and sport | 1 h 15 min | 78 | 30% | Sports psychology, socio-cultural influences, health, fitness and well-being, and use of data. Same question styles as Paper 1. |
| Non-exam assessment: Practical performance in physical activity and sport Non-exam assessment | not stated | 100 | 40% | Performance in three activities (one team, one individual, one of either), each 10 marks for skills in drills and 15 in a full context; plus analysis (15) and evaluation (10) of one activity. Marked by teachers, moderated by AQA. |
Times are exam lengths; weightings are shares of the whole GCSE. Summaries are in our own words.
Good to know
- Non-exam assessment: Practical performance in three activities plus analysis and evaluation (40%); raw 100 marks, scaled to 104 (scheme of assessment).
- Marks: Scheme of assessment: papers 78 raw = 78 scaled; NEA 100 raw scaled to 104; total 260 scaled.
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
- AQA: Specification at a glance (board website)
- AQA: Past papers and mark schemes (board website)
- AQA: Grade boundaries (board website)
Facts checked against: aqa.org.uk, aqa.org.uk.
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 AQA GCSE Physical Education exams?
Paper 1: 1 h 15 min; Paper 2: 1 h 15 min.