How the UK’s 2025 Curriculum and Assessment Review Will Affect Computer Science
By Julia Roebuck
In November 2025, the UK government published its curriculum and assessment review. The first in over a decade. It was comprehensive, covering everything from preschool right through to post-18 education, including A levels. If you’re involved in computer science education in any way, this review has some significant implications worth understanding.
As a computer science teacher for home-educated children, I want to break down what the review means specifically for the GCSE, what’s changing, and what the timeline looks like.
The Key Recommendations
The review put forward several recommendations relating to computing and digital skills across all age groups. In terms of computer science specifically, the main changes are as follows:
A broader computing scope. The GCSE in Computer Science will be renamed and restructured as a GCSE in Computing. This is a significant shift — one I’ll explore in more detail below.
Increased digital literacy. The review recommended that digital literacy be strengthened across all age groups, from the very earliest school years upwards.
AI and data awareness. The curriculum should include content on artificial intelligence and data awareness — reflecting the modern world more accurately.
Cross-curricular digital skills. Teachers in other subjects will be expected to incorporate digital skills into their teaching. Whether that happens in practice remains to be seen.
Tackling the gender gap.
One of the review’s prominent recommendations was to address the low uptake of computer science among girls. The shift from “Computer Science” to “Computing” is partly aimed at making the subject more appealing to a broader range of students. Schools have already been trying to improve this, but the hope is that a refreshed syllabus might help encourage more girls to take the subject.
It’s worth noting that this review was aimed at schools. If you’re home educating, it may not affect you directly but many home-educating parents like to stay aligned with what schools are doing, so it’s useful to be aware of these changes.
From Computer Science to Computing: What Does It Mean?
The GCSE in Computer Science will officially become a GCSE in Computing. If you’re currently studying for the Computer Science GCSE, there’s no need to panic. The first exams for the new Computing qualification won’t take place until 2031. The last sitting of the current Computer Science GCSE will be in 2030, so there’s still plenty of time.
We know that more digital literacy and AI and data awareness content will be added, but the exact details haven’t been finalised yet. Even the people setting the curriculum and liaising with the government don’t have the full picture at this stage. It’s still very early days.
What we do know is that core computer science topics — programming, hardware, and the like — will still feature in the new Computing exam. They’re not scrapping everything. However, the review also noted that the current Computer Science GCSE contains too much content, so the new qualification will be slimmed down to make it more manageable.
What About the IGCSE?
If you’re sitting the IGCSE rather than the GCSE, the situation is less clear. The exam boards that set the GCSE are answerable to the UK government and must implement these changes. The international exam boards that run the IGCSE, however, are not obligated to follow suit, though they typically do.
Historically, IGCSE boards tend to make changes around two to three years after the GCSE has been updated. When they do, their syllabuses tend to be around 80–85% the same as the GCSE equivalent, with minor tweaks. So if the new Computing GCSE has its first sitting in 2031, the IGCSE could remain as Computer Science for a couple of years beyond that before following suit.
If you prefer the more science-focused approach of the current qualification, this may give you a little extra time before the change comes into effect.
The Official Timeline
Spring 2026: The draft curriculum is published for consultation.
Spring 2027: The final national curriculum is published.
September 2028: First teaching of the new curriculum begins in schools.
September 2029: First teaching for the new GCSE Computing begins (Year 10, the first year of the two-year course).
September 2030: Students enter their second and final year of the new GCSE Computing course.
Summer 2031: First exams for the new GCSE Computing.
There are also timelines in place for A levels, though the details of what will change at that level haven’t been confirmed yet. If the GCSE is being broadened from Computer Science to Computing, it seems likely that the A level will need to be adjusted too — but we’ll have to wait and see.
What to Watch For
By next summer (2027), we should have a much clearer picture of what the new Computing GCSE will actually contain. Until then, if you’re currently studying Computer Science, carry on as normal — nothing changes for you in the short term. And if you’re home educating and wondering how this affects your plans, keep an eye on the draft curriculum when it’s published in spring 2026.
I’ll be posting updates as more information becomes available. In the meantime, if you know anything I haven’t covered here, do get in touch — I’d love to hear from you.