Today the Ofqual Board is due to confirm a selection of A level reforms, and the Society of Biology has co-signed a letter to The Times. SCORE, a partnership of leading scientific societies, has written to 'implore' Ofqual not to separate practical marks from core A level science grades.

The letter reads:

Sir,

As a partnership of the leading scientific learned societies, SCORE has grave concerns that Ofqual will today decide to separate practical marks from the core A level grades in biology, chemistry and physics.

At a time when the UK needs to be cultivating a scientifically skilled workforce, we're standing on the verge of depriving our children of a grounding in hands-on scientific experimentation.

We implore Ofqual to reconsider or delay this process in order to address unresolved questions surrounding the proposals.

Practical work is integral to the sciences, and Ofsted recently published a report on its importance.