Invigilator contingencies guidance reminder
All centres should nominate a Chief Invigilator and a Depute Chief Invigilator. The Depute Chief Invigilator must be prepared to cover the Chief Invigilator duties in the absence of the Chief Invigilator.
The ratio of Invigilators to candidates for the 2022 examinations will be 1 Invigilator to 35 candidates (or part thereof). As part of this process you should also consider and plan for all separate accommodation requirements and ensure that within the team there is sufficient cover for candidates requiring alternative arrangements. For 2022 exams, additional Invigilators should be nominated to ensure enough are available to cover any shortfalls due to unavailability of invigilators during the examinations.
When making nominations please ensure that the people nominated for the roles:
- are suitable to work within a school environment and are able to undertake the duties of the roles (please see role profiles attached).
- live within easy reach of the centre. Focus should be given to your local community when sourcing new Invigilators.
Additional guidance on appointing ex-centre staff as invigilators:
Ex-centre staff may be considered for any invigilation role, but there are restrictions on how ex-staff can be used if fewer than three years have elapsed since they were employed by the centre.
- More than three years since they worked for the centre: There are no restrictions on using ex-staff three or more years after they were employed by the centre.
- Fewer than three years since they worked for the centre: Former staff who have worked for the centre within the last three years may be used, but to prevent potential conflicts of interest, they must not invigilate on a one-to-one basis for any exam and must not invigilate exams at all for subjects they taught. If appointed as a Chief or Depute Chief Invigilator another invigilator must be present when packaging the scripts for the subject(s) CI/DCI taught. To prepare for these situations an additional invigilator may be required on specific days to ensure adequate cover.
Exceptional contingency: Current centre staff, Local Authority employees or any person associated with the centre are not permitted to undertake invigilation activities except as an exceptional contingency arrangement. For 2022 exams if last minute call-offs mean there is a shortfall of appointed invigilators, current centre staff or Local Authority employees, exceptionally, can be used. Parents cannot be used as a contingency. No prior approval from SQA is required for this, but centres should notify SQA that they have invoked this contingency at invigilation@sqa.org.uk as soon as possible. Temporary invigilators used as contingency must not invigilate on a one-to-one basis for any exam and must not invigilate exams at all for the subjects they currently teach or have taught within the last three years. Nor should they package scripts if unsupervised. For contingency purposes, it is advisable that centres arrange for a small number of current staff, or people associated with the centre, to participate in invigilator training so they can step in should this situation arise.
Any other exceptions to these requirements must be approved in advance by SQA at invigilation@sqa.org.uk.