I still believe the results algorithm should have been the least worst outcome for the vast majority of pupils, but it failed then and will have done so again at GCSE because it was not properly tested in advance as should happen with all such processes. If this had happened the anomalies in the system would have been found out in the months before publication and could have been resolved. 

All students achieving the set entrance grades for their home school Sixth Form should be offered places as they are given admission priority. However, many other students look to change schools at this point in Kent and Medway, often from non-selective to grammar schools. The key problem is that the size of school sixth forms is capped, and unlike universities is unlikely to be able to increase because of staffing and accommodation issues. 

A basic rule is that the sixth form entry criteria for internal and external applicants have to be the same. However, these will always include a set maximum number and give priority to internal students who reach the set academic standard.  In many cases the number of internal pupils qualified and taking up places in the sixth form of popular schools will be larger this year and I therefore anticipate the number of external places will decrease for most schools and the pressure on places will increase, in some cases sharply. 

Sadly, three of the four Further Education Colleges in Kent have closed their A-Level courses in recent years, probably for financial reasons, as the funding for 16-19 pupils has been cut. This leaves only West Kent College at Tonbridge, which last year had just 32 students taking three A Levels. This article is focused solely on A-Level courses, but each of these colleges and most of the non-selective schools also offer a range of vocational courses, some of which, such as the BTec Level 3, offer an alternative route into Higher Education.

The Sixth Form criteria for a typical grammar school, if such a thing exists, are as follows:

 Note that the criteria for Super-Selective Schools will be much more severe. 

I remain concerned as I have for years about the use of conditional offers, which unlawfully cuts out candidates. I successfully established the illegality in a complaint about Maidstone Grammar School for Girls in 2017, but which I consider although altered to be still unlawful fro 2020 entry! I fear that for admissions in September this year, these will be used to the full by some schools to select the most desirable students, rather than the objective admission criteria laid down in the binding School Admissions Code.

 Non-Selective Rainham School for Girls, Medway:

Note: the range of academic requirements for non-selective school sixth forms ranges widely, partly reflecting their popularity

Although I was once a Careers teacher and subsequently Chairman of Kent Careers Services, I no longer claim specific skills in advising on options for individuals. There is a successor organisation, CXK,  which offers independent advice. Otherwise, your current school may be willing to assist. However, some simply do not have the knowledge of alternatives to their own institution. What I have tried to offer in this article and in my Information and Advice article on school Sixth Forms is a framework to assist school pupils.   

• stay in full-time education, at a school sixth form or college
• learn whilst you work, in programmes such as apprenticeships and training.
• get a job with specified training
• volunteer for more than 20 hours a week in combination with accredited learning.

I think that, for some young people, this will be a particular challenge in 2020, with opportunities so limited because of the pandemic. 

I have been extensively quoted in Mail Online here. 

 The difference between data in columns two and three reflects in many cases students who have taken a mixture of A Level and BTec courses. 

Please note that these outcomes are in order of the Progress made by students at the school from GCSE to A Level, I could have used one of several alternative measures which give very different orders.