Assessment Design & Inclusion Lead

At AQA, we’re committed to advancing education and we’re committed to our people. As the largest provider of academic qualifications in the UK , we mark over 10 million exam papers each year and it’s our people who make this happen.

Assessment Design & Inclusion Lead 
Permanent 
Guildford: £55,000 - £61,400

Manchester: £52,800 - £59,000  
Hybrid Working – min 2 days per week in office each week

Shape inclusive assessments that give every learner the opportunity to succeed.

At AQA, assessment matters because it shapes futures. As our Assessment Design & Inclusion Lead, you'll play a key role in ensuring our assessments are fair, accessible and inclusive by design.

You'll use your expertise to influence qualification reform, assessment development and organisational practice, helping ensure hundreds of thousands of learners can demonstrate what they know and can do without unnecessary barriers.

This is an opportunity to lead meaningful change at a national scale. You'll work with experts across assessment, research, product and qualification development to embed accessibility and inclusion principles into the heart of assessment design whilst helping AQA remain a recognised leader in high-quality assessment.

Purpose of the role

You'll lead initiatives that strengthen the accessibility, fairness and inclusion of AQA's assessments. Working across assessment design and development including digital assessment projects, you'll provide expert guidance that helps remove construct-irrelevant barriers and supports positive outcomes for diverse learner groups.

Building on the insights you gain from establishing a specialist inclusion network, you'll influence stakeholders, champion best practice and drive evidence-based improvements that embed accessibility from the earliest stages of assessment design.

What's in it for you?

This is your chance to make a meaningful impact on the educational experiences of hundreds of thousands of learners. In this role, you will be able to support learners to be fairly assessed and demonstrate what they can do while continuing to develop your expertise in assessment, accessibility and inclusion.

- A 35-hour working week with flexible, hybrid working.

- 25 days' annual leave, rising to 30 days, plus Christmas closure days.

- A comprehensive benefits package including up to 18.5% combined pension contribution, Private Medical Insurance, healthcare support, wellbeing programmes and volunteering opportunities.

You’ll be responsible for:

- Leading the development and implementation of inclusive assessment and universal design principles across AQA qualifications and assessments.

- Providing expert advice on accessibility, inclusion and assessment design.

- Analysing assessment evidence to identify and remove barriers for learners.

- Leading improvement projects while ensuring compliance with regulatory and legislative requirements.

- Developing initiatives to build organisational understanding of inclusive assessment.

- Reviewing assessments and engaging with regulators and other stakeholders to ensure fairness, accessibility and quality.

You'll thrive in this role if you have:

- Expertise in accessibility and inclusion within educational assessment.

- Experience as a SENCO, Inclusion Lead, Accessibility Specialist or similar.

- Experience designing, developing or managing assessments and delivering quality improvements.

- Knowledge of assessment practice in England and the wider regulatory environment.

- Experience using data and evidence to drive continuous improvement.

- The confidence to influence stakeholders and champion inclusive assessment practices.

Diversity and Inclusion Statement

At AQA, we're committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels they belong and can do their best work. We value the different perspectives, experiences and backgrounds our people bring, knowing they strengthen our culture, decision-making and impact. We foster an inclusive environment where everyone is treated with respect, has access to opportunities to grow and contribute, and feels able to be themselves. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and lived experiences.

What's Next ?

To apply, please submit your CV and supporting statement outlining how your experience matches the requirements of the role.

Application deadline: 23:59 on Monday 12 October 2026 
Interview process: First stage video interviews in the week of 19 October, final stage face to face interviews in the office in Manchester or Guildford (whichever is closest to you) in the week beginning 2 November.

We welcome applications from teachers who may be subject to a teacher's notice period. If this applies to you, please include details of your notice period and availability in your cover letter.

Successful candidates will be unable to maintain an Associate role with AQA or any other exam board.

Please note, this post is exempt from the ROA 1974 and enhanced DBS checks will be required for the successful candidate.

#LI-FH1 #MCRE

Recruitment Agencies

We have a preferred supplier list (PSL) in place.

Unsolicited CVs will be treated as a gift. We will not be subject to or liable under your terms and conditions for agency fees.

#

#

Full Job Description

Summary
Purpose:
Assessment Design & Principles Leads drive excellence in AQA’s assessment design and development by championing the principles of validity, reliability, fairness, and accessibility. They lead initiatives that enhance assessment quality across both new and existing products, ensuring they meet rigorous standards and minimise bias, and they act as a central authority on assessment best practice, fostering organisational knowledge and capability through collaboration with internal stakeholders. The Assessment Design & Inclusion Lead ensure assessments are inclusive by design, minimise construct-irrelevant barriers and provide equitable opportunities for all learners to demonstrate their knowledge and skills.

They continuously improve assessment creation processes by embedding evidence-based assessment accessibility and inclusion principles, grounded in research and best practice in assessment.

The Assessment Design & Inclusion Lead play a pivotal role in shaping and reviewing AQA’s assessment design principles, contributing expertise to cross-functional teams and new product development. They represent AQA as a subject matter experts in assessment internally and externally. They also engage stakeholders effectively to embed assessment expertise into broader business initiatives, ensuring AQA remains a leader in high-quality assessment.Landscape:

Each year over 2000 question papers, assessment artefacts, mark schemes and modified large print papers are created, quality assured and sent to press for domestic and international qualifications by teams across Assessment. These materials are sat by 100,000s of students across three examination series and are pivotal part of their next step in education.
The Assessment Design & Principles team sits within Assessment and is accountable for leading initiatives and establishing design principles to ensure validity, reliability, fairness, accessibility and manageability of AQA GQ assessments, both paper-based and digital. The team provide assessment expertise on GQ qualifications to AQA to support work on redevelopment and reform as well as any external regulatory work. They work closely with internal teams across Assessment and EDD as well as the wider business to champion fair and inclusive assessment and best practice.
The Assessment Design & Inclusion Lead role reports into the Head of Assessment Design & Principles or Senior Assessment Design & Principles Lead and works closely with Coordinators and Graduates in the team.

Activities:
Assessment design
Work with internal and external stakeholders to ensure the design of, inclusive and accessible assessment models and SAMs through both DfE-led and AQA-driven qualification reform.
Lead the continuous development and implementation of universal design for assessment principles across AQA assessments, ensuring accessibility and inclusion are embedded from the earliest stages of assessment design.
Work with internal stakeholders to ensure assessment designs minimise construct-irrelevant barriers and appropriately meet the needs of diverse learner populations, including students with disabilities, special educational needs and additional learning needs.
Assessment expertise & alignment
Stay current with assessment research and policy, ensuring AQA’s approach align with best accessibility and inclusion assessment practices across all products.
Act as a subject matter expert on inclusive assessment design, accessibility and universal design principles.
Data analysis & evidence-based Improvement
Analyse assessment performance data to identify trends, strengths, and areas for improvement, particularly focusing on evidence related to accessibility or inclusion-related barriers.
Leadership & Project Management
Lead assessment design & principles projects related to inclusion, managing cross-team collaboration, resources, budgets, and compliance with regulatory requirements.
Mentor and coach graduates and team members to build capability.
Training & knowledge sharing
Deliver induction, training, and briefings on assessment accessibility and inclusion principles.
Support organisational understanding of good inclusive assessment practice and embed it into qualification design.
Provide expert guidance and resolution for complex accessibility escalations and assessment accessibility queries.
Quality assurance & external engagement
Review assessments for QA purposes to ensure adherence to accessibility and inclusion guidelines and engage with external stakeholders (including Ofqual) to ensure fairness and inclusion by design.
Governance & compliance
Ensure adherence to AQA policies, legislative requirements, and regulatory conditions related to accessibility and inclusion.
Adapt to changing business needs by taking on additional responsibilities as required.

To be successful in this role, you will need to:
Behaviours
Collaborative – Work effectively with others, sharing expertise and fostering development to achieve excellence
Innovative – Challenge existing approaches and drives creative, improved ways of working
Empowered – Take ownership, accountability, and understands their role in achieving success
Positive – Maintain a flexible, solutions-focused, forward-looking mindset
Ambitious – Strive for high standards and consistently deliver for customers
Technical expertise
Deep expertise in accessibility, inclusion and universal design principles and their application within educational assessment
Strong understanding of assessment practice in England and the regulatory environment
In-depth knowledge of inclusive assessment design and delivery best practice, including AQA’s products and systems
Ability to design assessments across subjects, balancing regulatory, customer, and stakeholder needs, ensuring that accessibility is embedded by design
In-depth understanding of digital assessment design, including knowledge of inclusive design in digital exams, technical functionality of digital providers, and expertise in designing directly for digital contexts
Skilled in analysing complex data, conducting root cause analysis, and applying continuous improvement principles
Leadership & influence
Proven experience in leading change initiatives and managing assessment design & principles projects related to inclusion
Excellent communication, presentation, and networking skills to influence and engage stakeholders
Open-minded yet confident in constructively challenging orthodoxy and championing good inclusive assessment principles
Qualifications & experience
Degree-level education or equivalent professional experience
Experience in managing assessment creation (e.g. question paper setting) and delivering strategic improvements
Experience of applying accessibility, inclusion or universal design principles within education, assessment or related contexts
Desirable: experience as a SENCO, inclusion lead, accessibility specialist or similar role;