Requesting a reasonable adjustment for the registration assessment
A reasonable adjustment is an arrangement to help make sure an individual candidate is not unfairly disadvantaged in the registration assessment because of health issues, disabilities, specific learning needs or other specific needs.
The adjustment can be made to the process of assessing a candidate’s knowledge and skills to a specific standard, but not the standard itself.
This means that a candidate may be granted some changes to the way the assessment questions are displayed for example, but all candidates will need to complete the same assessment paper and answer the same number of questions correctly to pass.
If you are planning to sit the registration assessment and have a specific need which you feel could disadvantage you when sitting, you can request a reasonable adjustment. Read the sections below to find out:
To apply for a reasonable adjustment in the registration assessment, you must:
complete an application form to explain both your condition, and also your specific adjustment request
provide information from a qualified healthcare or educational professional to confirm your diagnosis, and that the adjustment you have requested is appropriate to mitigate your condition
submit your form and supporting information by the deadline given for the sitting on the key dates page
The application form you will need to complete and the evidence you need to provide will depend on the type of condition:
complete application A if you have a specific learning need, including dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, and dyspraxia. You will need to include a report of a diagnostic assessment as part of your application.
complete application B if you have any other type of condition or need. You will need to ask a healthcare professional to complete part of the form too.
Important: if you have more than one condition or need, you should provide evidence for each condition, and complete separate forms if the type of each need is is covered by a different form. You should submit these together if possible, so we can assess all the information you provide as a whole.
We recommend that you start your application in good time before the sitting to help make sure that you can get the information you need to support your application from a healthcare professional.
Please read all the information below to make sure you submit all the information we need to assess your request accurately.
There is a specific deadline that we need to receive your adjustment request by for each sitting. Check the deadline for the sitting you plan to take on the key information page.
You can apply at any time before this deadline. We recommend you start your application as early as possible, to make sure you can provide all the evidence and information the assessment panel will need to consider your request.
We aren’t able to accept requests after the deadline for sitting, as we would not have time to assess the request and put the adjustment in place.
As well as completing application A, you must provide a report of a diagnostic assessment of specific learning needs. A diagnostic assessment is a detailed and comprehensive assessment to identify special learning needs and is the official way in which specific learning needs are identified and evidenced.
The diagnostic assessment of specific learning needs must include how the specific learning difficulty impacts you.
The assessment must have been carried out by:
a specialist teacher holding a practising certificate in assessing specific learning difficulties, issued by their relevant professional association, or
a psychologist holding a practising certificate issued by their relevant professional association
You need to provide the entire report.
For dyslexia, dyscalculia, or dysgraphia, you must provide a report of a detailed diagnostic assessment of specific learning needs issued on or after your 16th birthday.
If you only have a report issued before to your 16th birthday, please contact us at as soon as possible, so that we can check if it’s suitable.
For dyspraxia, you must provide a report of a diagnostic assessment or occupational therapists’ report issued on or after your 14th birthday.
University needs assessments or screening reports are not sufficient evidence for adjustment requests.
If your diagnostic report doesn’t specify exactly the adjustment you are requesting, you must ask the specialist who assessed you and wrote your report to write a letter confirming your specific request is appropriate.
Make sure that any diagnostic reports you send are accessible and don’t have any security restrictions on the document.
The British Dyslexia Association and the Dyslexia Foundation provide more information on diagnostic assessment, which you may find helpful.
You must submit an application form completed by both yourself and an appropriately qualified professional.
If you have more than one condition or specific need you must submit a separate application form for each condition.
A healthcare professional who is involved in your care in relation to the specific need or condition that you have described should complete your statement of evidence form.
They should ideally be based in the UK. We will only accept applications completed by overseas practitioners where all the relevant sections have been completed and it is clear how they are involved in your care.
If you are submitting applications for more than one condition, the healthcare professional completing each form must be involved in your care for that condition. This could be the same person, such as your GP, or it could be different people.
Important:
There should be no potential or actual conflicts of interest that could bring into question the professional judgment of the qualified person in supporting your request. For example, they may not be family member, friend, or any other person with whom you have a personal relationship.
Your designated supervisors or any other pharmacy professional will not be eligible to sign the declaration unless they are involved directly in your care. You must provide evidence of this.
Do not alter any of the information that has been provided by the professional.
Mental health conditions, including anxiety and depression
Adjustments for mental health conditions will only be granted when the condition is classed as a disability under the Equality Act 2010 for Great Britain and the Special Education Needs & Disability (NI) Order 2005 for Northern Ireland.
This is defined as a mental impairment that has a substantial ‘long term’ (that is, 12 months or more) effect on your normal day to day activities.
We will not grant adjustment requests for short term situational exam anxiety.
If your request relates to a mental health condition, the information the appropriately qualified professional provides within the form must confirm:
that you have been formally diagnosed with the condition by an appropriately qualified professional
that the condition has lasted, or is likely to last, for 12 months or more
the impact of the condition on your day-to-day life, and the likely impact on you in the assessment
If you have a received diagnoses of mental ill health or other medical conditions within the last 12 months, we will only accept adjustment applications with substantial supporting medical evidence. This needs to include a detailed history of repeated engagement with appropriate primary or specialist care services relating to the condition.
The adjustments panel may use its discretion to grant adjustments in exceptional circumstances where the evidence does not meet all the above requirements but is sufficient to support the request.
Examples of reasonable adjustments that may be granted to remove a disadvantage due to a specific need include:
25% extra time
use of special equipment or furniture
permission to use specific items during the assessment, for example medical equipment, screen overlays and computer equipment
specific seating arrangements within a test centre, for example sitting in a sole occupancy room, in a smaller room or seated in a particular area of a room (e.g., close to toilet/exit)
seated in a test centre with lift access
permission to leave your seat during the assessment, for example to move or stretch
specific coloured paper for notes and workings
modifications to screen display outside of those available to all candidates as outlined in the Registration assessment specification for sittings in 2023, for example, coloured text or background not specified in the registration assessment specifications.
This list does not cover everything. If you have any questions about specific requirements, please email or phone the GPhC contact centre for advice.
Examples of adjustments that cannot be granted include:
pausing the assessment time during the sitting for any reason or stopping the clock; including for rest breaks and toilet breaks
taking the assessment in extra sittings, for example, over two days
changes to the nature or content of the assessment, for example, changes to the style of the assessment, or to the number of questions
provision of the assessment text in a different type face or line spacing
a paper version of the assessment
providing the assessment in a language other than English
extra time to accommodate candidates whose first language is not English
providing a reader or use of reading software
The standard amount of additional time provided to candidates who are granted extra time due to a specific need is 25% of the total sitting time.
If you need more than 25% additional time, this is considered as ‘enhanced extra time’.
The amount of enhanced extra time available is 35%, 50% or 100% of the standard time available to all candidates in the assessment. If you want to request any amount of enhanced extra time, you must clearly explain in your application:
how much enhanced extra time you are requesting
why more than 25% extra is necessary
Granting an enhanced amount of additional time is at the discretion of the adjustment panel, which will make its decision based on the information you have provided in your application and the supporting information provided by an appropriately qualified professional outlining why you would be disadvantaged without enhanced extra time.
Please bear in mind that, if you are applying for additional or enhanced extra time, this may mean that you start the assessment earlier and/or finish the assessment late in the evening. Dependent on certain test centre closing times, the provision of enhanced extra time may not be possible at some test centres.
Check the permitted items list- this lists all of the items you are allowed to bring with you to the test centre without approval from the adjustment panel.
You do not need to apply for an adjustment if your item is on this list.
If you want to use an item that is not included on the GPhC permitted item list, you will need to complete an adjustment application.
Give full details of the item in your application form and explain why it will help to remove a disadvantage due to a specific need.
There are a limited number of sole occupancy rooms available at some test centres for those who are granted this as an adjustment. If you have this adjustment granted but a room is not available at your local or preferred test centre, you may be offered the opportunity to sit at an alternative test centre.
Alternatively, depending on availability, you may be offered the option to sit in a smaller room with fewer candidates.
Requests for adjustments are considered by the GPhC’s adjustments panel. This panel is made up of members of the Board of Assessors and disability advisors. It makes decisions based on the information provided by individual candidates and decides whether the reasonable adjustment should be granted, if it is practicable to do so.
For the adjustments panel to make fair and consistent decisions about granting reasonable adjustments, they need to have full information available to them. It is the candidate’s responsibility to provide all the information required by the specified deadline to allow the panel to make an informed decision.
The possible outcomes of your application are:
Granted for all eligible sittings
The adjustment will automatically be applied for each sitting, which means that you won’t need to reapply for the specific adjustment again if you sit another assessment, unless you want any additional or enhanced reasonable adjustments.
Granted for all sittings within the year
The adjustment will automatically be applied for sittings with a particular 12 month period. Your outcome letter will clearly state which sittings the reasonable adjustments will automatically be applied to.
You will then need to reapply for a reasonable adjustment for any future sittings you are eligible for after this date.
You will only need to submit a separate application with supporting evidence if you want to request any additional or enhanced reasonable adjustments during this period.
Granted for one sitting only
The adjustment will automatically be applied one sitting. Your outcome letter will clearly state which sitting the reasonable adjustments will automatically be applied to.
You must submit a separate application with supporting evidence for adjustments for any other sitting other than one in the outcome letter, including if you are not able to sit. This applies even if you withdrew from a previous sitting.
Partially granted (for one, some or all sittings)
The adjustment panel has made a decision that granting part of a reasonable adjustment request is sufficient.
The outcome letter will clearly state the number of sittings that the partially approved adjustments have been granted for.
It will also be made clear to you which of the adjustments you have requested have not been granted, where appropriate reasonings will be provided.
Not granted
The adjustment panel has made a decision that your request does not meet the criteria for granting a reasonable adjustment.
The outcome letter will explain on what grounds your request has not been granted.
See the What happens if my adjustment request is not granted? for information about your next steps.
If your adjustment is granted, the GPhC team will make the arrangements needed with Surpass to accommodate your adjustment.
If your adjustment has been granted by the panel but cannot be accommodated for any reason, we will get in touch to discuss the options available to you.
If your request for adjustment is not granted, you should consider:
whether, without the adjustment, you are fit to sit
Being fit to sit means that you know of no reason why your performance would be adversely affected during the assessment.
submitting an appeal if you feel that you have grounds to
You will receive your outcome in good time to submit an appeal, should you believe you have grounds to do so. The deadline to submit an appeal and a link to the appeal form and guidance will be in your reasonable adjustment outcome letter.See the What happens if I’m not happy with the outcome of my request? section for more information on submitting an appeal.
reapplying for an adjustment
You may be able to re-apply for the same sitting, or a later one, depending on the application deadline for each sitting.
If you decide that you are not fit to sit the assessment, do not have grounds for an appeal and are not able to reapply for an adjustment, you should consider withdrawing from the assessment in line with the registration assessment regulations.
If you have been granted an adjustment but are unable to sit that particular assessment, whether you will need to reapply for an adjustment depends on the outcome you received, and when you next intend to sit. Check your outcome letter when you plan to sit again.
Once the panel has made its decisions, we will email you to let you know the outcome of your request. If you are a GPhC candidate, please make sure that within your myGPhC account you have agreed to receive essential GPhC emails. You can check your communication preferences in the ‘Accounts’ section on myGPhC.
For PSNI candidates, we will send a letter to you via email with the outcome of your request.
Please refer to the deadline on the adjustment page on when to expect your outcome. If you have not received an outcome of your request by the date above, please email us.
Please ensure that the email address we have for you on our records is correct.
If you have received the outcome of your request, and are not satisfied, you can appeal.
Please make sure you read the guidance information that comes with the form to make sure you complete it correctly and that you have grounds for an appeal.
There will be a deadline to submit your appeal for the sitting you are planning to take. See the key information page to find the relevant deadline.
If you do not have grounds for an appeal, you may want to submit a new adjustment application form with enhanced evidence to support your request. Please be mindful of the key dates, if you are planning to sit the next assessment.
If there isn’t another adjustment panel meeting before the next sitting, you will need to decide if you are fit to sit without a reasonable adjustment in place or wait for the next sitting where you may have a reasonable adjustment granted.
I've read the information and I'm ready to apply...
Download application A if you have a specific learning need
Download application B for other conditions or needs
If you need any help to complete the application, please come back to this page for reference. If your question isn’t answered here, you can contact us at adjustments@pharmacyregulation.org.
