What Is a KS2 Scaled Score?
A plain-English guide to the 80–120 scale, the expected standard and what your child’s result means.
What Is a Scaled Score?
A scaled score is the standardised number your child receives after sitting a KS2 SATs paper. It ranges from 80 at the lowest to 120 at the highest. The scaling exists because SATs papers vary slightly in difficulty from year to year. A raw mark of 28 on a harder paper might be worth the same scaled score as a raw mark of 32 on an easier one.
When one of my own children brought a results sheet home, 100 looked like a percentage at first glance. The 80–120 scale is much easier to read once you know which number marks the expected standard.
Think of it like converting currencies — the raw mark is the local price, and the scaled score is the universal value. This system, introduced by the Standards and Testing Agency (STA) in 2016, ensures that a score of 100 means the same thing every year, regardless of how difficult the paper was.
Raw Marks vs Scaled Scores
When your child finishes a SATs paper, their answers are marked to produce a raw mark — the total number of marks they earned. Each paper has a different maximum: the arithmetic paper is worth 40 marks, the two reasoning papers are each worth 35 marks, the reading paper is worth 50 marks, and the grammar, punctuation, and spelling paper is worth 70 marks (50 for grammar and 20 for spelling).
After marking, the STA applies a conversion table to turn each raw mark into a scaled score between 80 and 120. This conversion table is different every year because it accounts for the difficulty of that year’s specific paper. The table is not published until after results day in July.
To look up the raw marks needed in recent years, use our raw-to-scaled score tables. If you want to understand how marks are awarded on each paper, our mark schemes guide breaks it down question by question.
The Expected Standard: What 100 Really Means
A scaled score of 100 is the threshold for meeting the “expected standard” in each subject. This means the government considers that a child scoring 100 or above has demonstrated a secure understanding of the Key Stage 2 curriculum in that subject.
A score of 100 is the expected-standard boundary. National averages are reported separately and change by subject and year. The DfE KS2 attainment statistics page publishes the latest national figures.
A score below 100 is reported as “expected standard not achieved” for that subject. Your child’s teacher can put the result alongside their classwork and explain where extra support may help.
Higher Standard: Scoring 110 and Above
A scaled score of 110 or above reaches the higher standard in the reading, maths and GPS tests. “Greater depth” is the term used for teacher-assessed writing, so the two labels should not be used interchangeably.
The higher standard records performance above the expected-standard boundary. It is useful context on a results sheet, but it is not a separate qualification.
How secondary schools use SATs results varies. Our secondary school guide explains how different schools use these scores.
How the Conversion Actually Works
The Standards and Testing Agency publishes a conversion table after each test cycle. Its scaled-score guidance explains that more than one raw mark can convert to the same scaled score, and that some scaled scores may not occur in a particular year.
The raw-mark boundary for 100 can move from year to year. That is why the official table for the year of the test is the right one to use. Our raw-to-scaled score tables page shows the current figures.
Historical Context: Why Scaled Scores Replaced Levels
Before 2016, KS2 SATs used the old National Curriculum levels system (Level 3, 4, 5, and so on). Level 4 was the expected standard, and Level 5 was considered above average. The government scrapped levels as part of a broader curriculum reform, arguing that they encouraged “teaching to the level” rather than deep understanding.
The new scaled score system was introduced alongside the more challenging 2014 National Curriculum. The first cohort to sit the new-style SATs was in May 2016. If you sat SATs yourself as a child, you almost certainly experienced the old levels system — which is why the current system can feel unfamiliar.
For a full history of how SATs have evolved, our What Are SATs guide covers the timeline from their introduction in 1991 to the present day.
What Scaled Scores Mean for Secondary School
Secondary schools receive your child’s results before Year 7. Each school decides how to use them alongside teacher information and any assessments it runs. Ask the school directly if you want to know its approach to setting.
KS2 scaled scores are separate from secondary-school admissions. Selective grammar schools use their own entrance arrangements, such as the 11+.
For more on the Year 6 to Year 7 transition, see our guide to SATs and Year 7 sets.
Five Common Score Questions
These are the points that most often need untangling when a results sheet arrives:
- ✗Is 100 the average? A score of 100 marks the expected-standard boundary. National averages are separate figures and vary by subject and year.
- ✗Is there a fixed percentage for 100? The raw mark changes with each year’s conversion table, so one percentage does not apply to every paper.
- ✗How is 99 reported? It is recorded as “expected standard not achieved” because it sits below the boundary of 100. Your child’s teacher can explain the result in the context of their wider work.
- ✗Is a scaled score a percentage? The scale runs from 80 to 120. Use the raw mark when you need the number of marks awarded and the scaled score when you need the reported standard.
- ✗Can a practice-paper mark predict the final score? It can give an estimate when paired with that paper’s conversion table. The official 2026 tables are now published; a future test will use its own table after marking is complete.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the highest possible scaled score?
The maximum scaled score is 120. The raw mark needed varies by subject and year, and is often at or near full marks. The minimum scaled score that can be awarded is 80; check the official table for the test year because not every scaled score appears in every subject.
Do all three maths papers produce separate scores?
No. The raw marks from the arithmetic paper and both reasoning papers are added together, and this combined total is converted into a single maths scaled score. Your child’s results letter will show one maths score, not three.
When do we find out the conversion tables?
The STA publishes the official conversion tables on results day in July, at the same time schools receive the results. They are not available during the revision period or immediately after the tests.
Can I appeal my child’s scaled score?
You cannot appeal the scaled score directly, but schools can request a re-mark of the papers. If the raw mark changes after a re-mark, the scaled score is recalculated accordingly. Speak to your child’s school if you believe there has been a marking error.
What about the writing assessment?
Writing is assessed by teacher judgement, not a test, so it does not receive a scaled score. Teachers assess writing against a framework and report whether the child is working towards, at, or above the expected standard. For more on how all subjects are assessed, see our scoring guide.
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