What Is the Phonics Screening Check? A Parent’s Guide

If your child is in Year 1, you’ll probably hear about the phonics screening check some time in the spring. It sounds more formal than it is. This guide explains exactly what the check involves, how it’s marked, and the simple, low-pressure things you can do at home — without turning reading into a test.

What the check actually is

The phonics screening check is a short, one-to-one activity that almost every child in Year 1 in England does each June. A child sits with a teacher they know and reads 40 words out loud. That’s it — no writing, no time limit, no computer. It usually takes just a few minutes, and many children barely notice it’s an assessment at all.

The 40 words are split into two sections of 20. Half are ordinary real words (like “chess”, “clip” or “drill”) and half are made-up alien words (like “vaff” or “splace”), each shown next to a little monster so children know they aren’t real. The point is to see whether a child can decode — turn letters into sounds and blend them into a word — which is the foundation of fluent reading.

Who takes it, and when

It’s taken by children in Year 1, usually aged five or six, during a set week in June each year. Children who don’t take it in Year 1, or who don’t meet the expected standard, get another chance in Year 2. You can see the full list of official papers on our past papers page, and dates for this year on the 2026 guide.

Why made-up words?

The alien words are the clever part. Because a child can’t have seen “splace” before, they can’t recognise it from memory — the only way to read it is to use phonics. That makes it a fair test of decoding for every child, whatever books they have at home. Far from being scary, most children find the monster words the fun bit.

How it’s marked

• Reading the whole word straight off, or sounding it out and then blending it correctly, both count as correct.
• Regional accents are completely fine — the check is designed to accept them.
• If a child reads a word wrong and then corrects themselves, the corrected answer counts.
• For alien words, more than one pronunciation can be accepted.
• The main thing marked wrong is turning an alien word into a real one — reading “jair” as “chair”, for example.

The pass mark

There isn’t a “pass” or “fail” in the way exams have — but there is an expected standard, and in every year the check has run it has been 32 out of 40. We cover what the score means, and how schools tell you about it, in the pass mark guide. If your child doesn’t meet it, that’s genuinely common and easily addressed — see what happens next.

How to help at home (without the pressure)

The single best thing you can do is keep reading together and make sounding-out feel normal and fun. Short bursts beat long sessions. Practising with real past papers helps too, because your child gets used to the exact style of word — especially the alien ones. Our ten ways to help at home has practical, five-minute ideas.

A quick reassurance

The check is a snapshot of one skill at one moment — not a verdict on your child’s reading or their future. Plenty of children who don’t meet the standard first time catch up quickly and go on to love books. Treat practice as a game you play together, keep it light, and stop the moment it stops being fun.