EDEXCEL maths past papers & more: HIGHER
Practicing past papers should rank highly on any students list of prioritys. But practice alone, is not enough to ensure improvement and success. It vital is that the student also marks their answers and then seeks help/support to "plug" the gaps in their knowledge and understanding . This support can come from teachers/friends/family or a private tutor. Just be aware, that seeking help from too many different people, can become a hinderence to the learner. Since, different people may have differerent teaching styles and different ways of solving problems which could potentially become confusing for the learner.
I recommend that students
- Access and download a past paper.
- Mark their answers using the mark scheme.
- Seek help to understand questions you are unable to answer
- Complete more revision on weak topic areas
Below you will find all the available past papers, mark schemes and grade boundaries for the EDEXCEL GCSE higher examination. Also included on this page are the course's specification and other useful information, including the dates of the next examination.
Unavailable papers
The impact of covid
Summer 2020 = no formal examinations took place.
Summer 2021 = no formal examinations took place.
The two most recent set of past papers are not available for public viewing, so you will not find them listed on the internet. This is because typically, schools will use the most recent past papers for their year 11 mock examinations.
The dates of the GCSE maths examinations 2025
In a 12 month window, there are two opportunities for a student to sit their GCSE maths examination. First in May/June and then in November. A student will complete their first set of maths GCSE examinations in the summer term of school Year 11. If a student fails to obtain a grade 4 or higher in the summer exam, they are expected to resit the maths GCSE during their two years at a sixth fom/college. With this first retake typically being in November during the Autumn term of college Year 12.
| 2025 | Autumn paper 1 | Autumn paper 2 | Autumn paper 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday 5th November | Friday 7th November | Monday 10th November |
| 2026 | Summer paper 1 | Summer paper 2 | Summer paper 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday 14th May | Wednesday 3rd June | Wednesday 10th June |
EDEXCEL HIGHER grade boundaries
(9 - 3)
This examination comprises of three test papers.
Paper 1 is a non-calculator exam
= Duration 1.5 hours and maximum score of 80.
Paper 2 uses a calculator
= Duration 1.5 hours and maximum score of 80.
Paper 3 uses a calculator
= Duration 1.5 hours and maximum score of 80.
The scores from each paper are combined to give the students examination total score.
A maximum of 240 marks is possible.
So for example in June 2017, a student with a total score of 120 which equates to 120/240 = 50%, would have been awarded a grade 6.
| Edexcel higher | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 2017 | 79.0% = 190 | 65.4% = 157 | 51.6% = 124 | 40% = 96 | 28.3% = 68 | 17% = 41 | 11.3% = 27 |
| November 2017 | 79.0% = 189 | 62.5% = 150 | 46.6% = 112 | 35.5% = 85 | 24.0% = 58 | 13.3% = 32 | 8.0% = 19 |
| June 2018 | 84.0% = 202 | 71.0% = 170 | 58.0% = 139 | 45.5% = 109 | 33.0% = 79 | 21.0% = 50 | 14.6% = 35 |
| November 2018 | 81.0% = 194 | 66.3% = 159 | 52.0% = 125 | 40% = 95 | 27.5% = 66 | 15.4% = 37 | 9.0% = 22 |
| June 2019 | 82.5% = 198 | 69.6% = 167 | 57.0% = 137 | 45% = 108 | 33.3% = 80 | 21.6% = 52 | 16.0% = 38 |
| November 2019 | 82.0% = 197 | 69.0% = 165 | 55.4% = 133 | 43% = 103 | 30.4% = 73 | 18.0% = 43 | 11.6% = 28 |
| Covid NOV 2020 | 79.0% = 189 | 65.4% = 157 | 52.5% = 126 | 40% = 96 | 27.5% = 66 | 15.4% = 37 | 9.0% = 22 |
| Covid NOV 2021 | 80.0% = 187 | 64.0% = 154 | 51.0% = 122 | 39% = 93 | 27.0% = 65 | 15.4% = 37 | 9.6% = 23 |
| June 2022 | 81.0% = 194 | 69.0% = 165 | 57.0% = 137 | 43.3% = 104 | 29.6% = 71 | 16.0% = 38 | 9.0% = 21 |
| November 2022 | 81.0% = 194 | 69.0% = 165 | 57.0% = 137 | 43.3% = 104 | 29.6% = 71 | 16.0% = 38 | 9.0% = 21 |
| June 2023 | 84.6% = 203 | 72.5% = 174 | 60.4% = 145 | 46.6% = 112 | 32.9% = 79 | 19.6% = 47 | 12.9% = 31 |
| November 2023 | 84.6% = 203 | 72.5% = 174 | 60.4% = 145 | 46.6% = 112 | 32.9% = 79 | 19.6% = 47 | 12.9% = 31 |
| June 2024 | 82.1% = 197 | 68.8% = 165 | 57.1% = 137 | 43.8% = 105 | 30.4% = 73 | 17.5% = 42 | 10.8% = 26 |
| November 2024 | 83.3% = 200 | 70.1% = 170 | 58.35% = 140 | 44.6% = 107 | 31.3% = 75 | 17.9% = 43 | 11.3% = 27 |
| June 2025 |
NOTE: percentages are rounded to nearest 1 d.p.
Grade boundaries can change a little from year to year, as you will see in the table above. Although EDEXCEL work hard to produce exam papers that are of the same level of difficulty each year, small variations do occur. To compensate for this the exam board adjusts the grade boundaries.
EDEXCEL HIGHER past papers and mark scheme
Summer 2021 = no examinations took place.
Instead, the summer 2021 papers were transfered to/used for the November 2021 examinations in Autumn.
Summer 2020 = no examinations took place.
Instead, the summer 2020 papers were transfered to/used for the November 2020 examinations in Autumn.
More about maths series 1MA1
Edexcel is an internal exam board owned by a company called Pearson. Their name represents their key values of education and excellence. Questions on the Edexcel GCSE maths series 1MA1 can feel both wordy and challenging. Questions early on in its' papers may call for a ‘problem-solving’ approach where a candidate may not ‘see' a way forward immediately. Despite this, this Edexcel exam is the UK's most popular maths examination.
