Undergraduate Admissions Test 2014/15

Candidates name: ..
Date:.
This is a two-hour test in three parts. It is recommended that you divide your
time as follows:
1. English (3 questions) 50 minutes
2. News writing (1 question) 45 minutes
3. Current affairs (20 questions) 25 minutes

For examiners use only:

English Question A score:

English Question B score:

English Question C score:

News Writing score:

Current affairs score:

Total Marks:

1. ENGLISH TEST (45 marks)

Time recommended: 55 minutes

Question A (20 marks)

The report below contains a number of errors. Some of them are factual errors, but
most are in use of English (for example, in spelling, punctuation, grammar etc).
Please make any corrections that you think are needed by writing clearly in pen on
this page.

Acident and Emergency services are facing unsustainable pressure and Britons should copy their
European neighbours and be treated by pharmacists instead, health officials have said.
Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt warned that the NHS is facing an "unprecedented demand" as it
copes with an aging population and a surge in visits during the winter. Mr Hunt today announced a
300 million boost to pay for more staff and extra bed space to cope with the expected spike in
patients over the coming months.
But he warned that its not sustainable to continue to allow A&E to bear the brunt of this extra strain.
Meanwile health bosses urged patients to be treated by pharmacists and parrermedics instead. Mr
Hunt said: "Winter has always been particularly challenging for the NHS. We have been thinking
about it particularly hard this year because of the growing pressure on A&E departments.
"Emergency admisions are growing about 3% to 4% year in, year out. We are very aware that over
this winter there is going to be some real pressure there.
He added: "It is worth also asking the question, is this going to go on like this? Are we going to
have to continue having to put more and more sums into the NHS to withstand these pressures
Hospitals have had to cope with an extra one million visits to A&E every year compared with 2010
and 2,000 extra ambulance journeys a day, Mr Hunt said. Many hospitals are struggling to find
enough beds as admissions have also shot up. Figures from last week show that 104,100 patients
were admitted to hospital compared with 98700 from the same week last year.
Health officials said they want the NHS to shift to a "seven-day cross-system" model. This would
include better hospital staffing at weekends so beds are cleared quicker, and support for the frail and
elderly to get treatment in their homes rather than enter hospital.
And they announced a major push to get Britains using their pharmacists more. NHS England
managing director Sir Bruce Keogh said: "We are keen to encourage people to use pharmacists
more. In other parts of europe pharmacies are very well used. And our GPs, frankly, during the
winter feel really under strain with people coming in with coughs and colds. And a lot of that strain
could be relieved if people use pharmacies more."
Officials are also urging more NHS staff to get the flu jab, warning people carrying the virus but not
displaying symtoms risk unknowingly transmitting the illness to patients.
Shadow health secretary Andy Burnham, of the Liberal Democrats, said: "We've been telling David
Cameron for more than two years to get a grip on the crisis he created in A&E. Throwing money at
it when winters about to start is not good enough.
Continued from previous page

Continued on next page

"This wont make up for the fact that 3 billion was wasted on a top-down reorganisation while
patient care deteriorated. Labour will rescue the NHS with an extra 2.5 billion a year to fund
20,000 more nurses - investment the Tories will not match.
Dr Maureen Baker, chairwoman of the Royal College of GPs said: "During the winter our patients
need care more than ever.
He added: While we recognise that our hospital colleagues will be under increased pressure, so
will GPs and practice teams, who already make 90% of all NHS patient contacts.
ENDS
Question B (15 marks)
Write a headline for the story from Question A above, using between 25 and 35
CHARACTERS (not counting spaces).
Beneath your headline, write a 70-WORD summary of the story that would be
suitable for use in the news in brief column of a national newspaper. Using more
than 70 words will be penalised severely.
Headline: (25 to 25 characters)

Summary (70 words max):

QUESTION C (10 marks)

Your news editor asks you to suggest some ideas for backgrounders or follow ups
to the story in Question A, which could be used on a web site to put the story into
context for readers. For example, a table showing A&E admission numbers for the
last five years would be one backgrounder. Suggest five more ideas.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

2. NEWS WRITING TEST (35 marks)

Time recommended: 40 minutes

You are a reporter for a daily regional newspaper in Kent. Read the following sequence of events
carefully. Using the information provided, write a report for your newspaper of about 200 words.
Your story should contain a quote from at least one person.

Youre having a drink with a friend, who mentions that his brother-in-law has been involved in a
campaign group fighting to stop a new coal-fired power plant being built in Kent. But hes become
uncomfortable with the groups controversial methods and has quit. Your mate says hell get him to
give you a call.
In the office the next day, you do a bit of research. You discover that The Kingsnorth power plant
on the River Medway has been regularly targeted by campaigners in the past few years because of
plans by E.On, the company that owns it, to build a new, bigger plant on the site.
During the summer of 2008, about 1,500 people gathered at what became known as The Climate Camp,
which is one mile from Kingsnorth on the Hoo Peninsular.
In August 2008, police claimed to have discovered a stash of knives and weapons near the Camp. At the
time, the BBC reported that protester Simon Evans denied police claims and said: "This is a smear
campaign against the camp - an alleged find that has nothing to do with the camp. We condemn the
police in the strongest possible terms for suggesting anyone in the community would use a knife against
a police officer. We are environmentalists and a vegan community. It's just crazy."
In September 2008, six Greenpeace members went on trial for causing criminal damage to the
Kingsnorth plant. In October 2007 five of them had climbed over fences to get into the plant, and had
then scaled a 200 metre tall chimney and painted the name Gordon in large letters down the side of it.
The sixth member of the group was said to have co-ordinated the protest from the ground. E.On, the
company that owns the plant, claimed the damage they had caused amounted to 30,000. However, the
jury cleared all six of them.
Your mates brother-in-law calls. His name is Brian Groom. He tells you hes been a member of a
small group called the Hoo Fighters, which has made direct action protests at Kingsnorth. There are
about 10 active members, he says, and they are not affiliated to Greenpeace, the World
Development Movement, Oxfam or any other major campaign organisation. Their aims have been
to highlight the environmental damage caused by coal-fired power.
Their most successful protest so far has been to project images of climate change disasters from
around the world onto the side of the Kingsnorth plant. But now he says some of the members want
to get more aggressive in their approach. Theyre planning to fly a small plane over the power
station and drop bags filled with coal on to the site to highlight how dirty the fuel is. They want to
make a real mess of the place. But Im worried someone on the ground will get hit and could be
seriously hurt, he says. And some of them also seem to be getting obsessed with knives. Ive told
them I want nothing more to do with it. Im going to join Greenpeace instead.
Groom gives you the number of the Hoo Fighters leader, who likes to be known as Chainy. You
ring Chainy, who wont give his real name. He tells you he wont confirm or deny any of the details
you put to him. But he does say: You might want to take your video camera down to Kingsnorth
next Wednesday morning.
Your news editor tells you Chainy is well known in the area. His real name is Norman Parkinson.
Hes 35 and unemployed.
You ring E.On and ask them whether they have increased security at the site lately. Head of
Security Charles Downing tells you: We are always in a state of readiness. We take the safety of
our workforce extremely seriously. Off the record, Downing tells you hes aware of the Hoo
Fighters aeroplane plan but that hes very confident nothing will come of it. He describes Chainy as
a fantasist.

You ring Greenpeace, whose press officer gives you a statement saying: Greenpeace would never
undertake any protest which put members of the public or E.On employees at risk. And we would
never advocate the use or carriage of any weapons. We are always glad to welcome new members.
Your news editor tells you he needs about 200 words on this story.
Your Name:
Todays Date:
Start your story here (continue overleaf if necessary):

NEWS WRITING TEST (continued)

(Continue your story here if necessary):

3. CURRENT AFFAIRS (20 marks)

Time recommended 25 minutes

1. Who is the Secretary of State for Health?

2. Which Premiership football club is managed by Louis van Gaal?
3. Which UK supermarket chain was investigated by the Serious Fraud Office for overstating its
profits in 2014?
4. What does the abbreviation IMF stand for?
5. Who shot and killed Reeva Steenkamp?
6. From which music streaming service did pop star Taylor Swift pull her music as a protest at low
payments to artists?
7. Who is Kanye West married to?
8. Nicola Sturgeon took over from Alex Salmond as the leader of which political party in November
2014?
9. What is the name of the militant jihadist organisation that has announced the creation of a
caliphate across Iraq and Syria, and is responsible for the deaths of several British and US
hostages?
10. Name one of the main presenters of the BBC Ten OClock News.
11. Why was former News of the World editor Andy Coulson sent to prison in 2014?
12. What is the current rate of VAT?
13. Where will the Olympic Games be held in 2016?
14. What is the name of the strip of land between Egypt and Israel that is governed by Palestinian
political group Hamas?
15. What is HS2?
16. Name one of the west African countries hardest hit by the Ebola virus.
17. On what did the European Space Agencys robot named Philae catapulted there by its parent
spacecraft Rosetta land in November 2014?
The answers to the next three questions are all contained within the data table and the
notes beneath it on page 8, overleaf.
18. How many robberies involving a knife or sharp instrument were recorded between July 2013
and June 2014?
19. What is the percentage proportion of the total number of recorded threats to kill that involved a
knife or sharp instrument in July 2013 to June 2014?
20. What new offence has been included in homicide statistics from 2012 onwards?

Table: Number and proportion of selected violent and sexual offences involving a
knife or sharp instrument recorded by the police in England and Wales

Selected offence
type

Attempted
murder

Number of selected offences

involving a knife or sharp
instrument
Jul 2012 to
Jun 2013

% change Percentage proportion of selected

year ending offences involving a knife or sharp
June 2013
instrument
to year
Jul 2013 to ending June
Jul-12 to Jun-13 Jul-13 to Jun-14
Jun 2014
2014

200

261

31

46

50

Threats to kill

1,220

1,432

17

16

15

Assault with
injury and
assault with
intent to cause
serious harm2

11,441

12,194

Robbery

12,766

11,520

-10

20

21

Rape

199

294

48

Sexual assault3
Homicide4
Total selected
offences

91
194

111
195

22
1

0
35

0
39

26,111

26,007

Table notes:
1. Police recorded crime statistics based on data from all 44 forces in England and Wales
(including the British Transport Police).
2. Changes to offence codes in April 2012 mean the category of assault with injury and assault
with intent to cause serious harm is not directly comparable with previous years.
3. Sexual assault includes indecent assault on a male/female and sexual assault on a
male/female (all ages).
4. Homicide offences include the offences of murder, manslaughter, infanticide and, as of
2012/13, corporate manslaughter