Functional Skills online sample assessments - English and maths
Our past-paper assessments are available as:
- Paper-based: Downloadable from the qualification information pages. You will find them under ‘Assessment materials' on each qualification page.
- Onscreen: ‘Past papers’ are available to schedule via Surpass. A keycode is generated and it must be sat via SecureClient.
- In-browser: Accessible using the links below. Simply click the link and the assessment will open in your browser.
All content within the past papers are retired assessments that were live previously. Mark schemes for all past papers are provided to allow centres to mark on completion. This allows you to identify learner’s strengths and weaknesses to ensure individualised skills plans can be made using the outcomes of the sample assessments.
NCFE recommend using the paper-based assessments as the best form for assessing a learner’s performance.
Our onscreen assessments provide learners with an opportunity to sample taking an NCFE Functional Skills assessment using our onscreen assessment platform.
For in-browsers assessments, we recommend using these to gain learner familiarity with the NCFE onscreen platform.
You may also wish to consider our diagnostic skills assessment tools and resources to support your learner’s journey.
For Learners:
Please note: The sample assessments below are for demonstration purposes. They will not be marked automatically. If you wish to mark responses you will need to screenshot your answers or record them elsewhere to compare to the mark scheme. Answers cannot be retrieved once the assessment has been submitted.
Demo Assessment
For maths assessments, learners can familiarise themselves with the onscreen maths tools demo found below. This will allow learners to become familiar with individual items prior to taking their actual assessment.
Please note:
The sample assessments below are for demonstration purposes. They will not be marked automatically.
If you wish to mark responses you will need to screenshot your answers or record them elsewhere to compare to the mark scheme. Answers cannot be retrieved once the assessment has been submitted.
Level 1 and Level 2 Maths past papers may contain a question where users are unable to plot between the gridlines. However, the mark schemes do allow ± 1/2 tolerance so please plot on the gridline closest to the answer. This is not reflective of the live assessments.
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Qualification |
Past paper / Sample |
Mark scheme |
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Level 1 English Reading |
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Past paper L1 FS English Reading Practice |
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Past paper L1 FS Reading P001724 |
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Past paper L1 FS Reading P002115 |
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OS24 reading L1 past paper P002133 |
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OS25 reading L1 past paper P002109 |
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L1 FS English Reading Practice Paper 2 |
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L1 FS English Reading Practice Paper 3 |
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Level 1 English Writing |
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Past paper L1 FS English Writing Practice |
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Past paper L1 FS Writing P001732 |
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Past paper L1 FS Writing P002117 |
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OS24 writing L1 past paper P002135 |
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OS25 writing L1 past paper P0002111 |
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L1 FS English Writing Practice Paper 2 |
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L1 FS English Writing Practice Paper 3 |
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Level 1 Maths |
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Past paper L1 FS Maths P002125 |
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Past paper L1 FS Maths P002131 |
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Past paper L1 FS Maths P002137 |
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Past paper L1 FS Maths P001753 |
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Past paper L1 FS Maths P001754 |
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Please note:
The sample assessments below are for demonstration purposes. They will not be marked automatically.
If you wish to mark responses you will need to screenshot your answers or record them elsewhere to compare to the mark scheme. Answers cannot be retrieved once the assessment has been submitted.
Level 1 and Level 2 Maths past papers may contain a question where users are unable to plot between the gridlines. However, the mark schemes do allow ± 1/2 tolerance so please plot on the gridline closest to the answer. This is not reflective of the live assessments.
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Qualification |
Past paper / Sample |
Mark scheme |
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Level 2 English Reading |
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Past paper L2 FS English Reading Practice |
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Past paper L2 FS Reading P001740 |
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Past paper L2 FS Reading P002116 |
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OS24 reading L2 past paper P002134 |
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OS25 reading L2 past paper P002110 |
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L2 FS English Reading Practice Paper 2 |
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L2 FS English Reading Practice Paper 3 |
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Level 2 English Writing |
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Past paper L2 FS English Writing Practice |
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Past paper L2 FS Writing P001748 |
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Past paper L2 FS Writing P002118 |
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OS24 writing L2 past paper P002136 |
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OS25 writing L2 past paper P002112 |
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L1 FS English Writing Practice Paper 2 |
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L1 FS English Writing Practice Paper 3 |
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Level 2 Maths |
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Past paper L2 FS Maths P001601 |
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Past paper L2 FS Maths P001604 |
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Past paper L2 FS Maths P001761 |
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Past paper L2 FS Maths P002126 |
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Past paper L2 FS Maths P002132 |
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Past paper L2 FS Maths P002138 |
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