GCSE results fell for the first time in the exam's 24-year history on Thursday, prompting a furious backlash from teachers, who claimed that grades had been deliberately suppressed by exam boards under pressure from the government.

They are now planning to appeal against hundreds of results as they say grade boundaries had been "very substantially" raised at the last minute.

What will happen to the schools in England, Wales and Northern Ireland whose pass rate fell below the standards set by the government?

Prof Alan Smithers, director of the centre for education and employment research at the University of Buckingham and Tracy Hemming, head teacher at Clacton Coastal Academy, debate the effect of the downgrade.

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