Barbara Keating is concerned about how papers get to examiners

Barbara Keating, from Jesmond, Newcastle, opened the package before realising it was not addressed to her.

Inside were 15 completed exams scripts for a government and politics paper from the Oxford, Cambridge and RSA Examinations board (OCR).

The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) has recovered the papers and described the incident as a "rare occurrence".

A spokesman for OCR said it regretted the incident and was investigating.

Ms Keating said she opened the package because it looked like a catalogue envelope.

No secure delivery

She also said when she contacted OCR officials, she was told to "pop the papers through the right door".

Ms Keating, who works as an artist in Newcastle, said the house number of the examiner and part of the postcode were the same as her own address.

She said she was concerned that there did not seem to be a secure method of ensuring examiners receive completed papers to mark.

The envelope contained 15 completed exam papers

She said: "I immediately contacted the OCR by telephone and I just got passed from one person to another.

"Initially they didn't even want to know my name and just asked me to put the papers through the letterbox of the examiner. I refused.

"Eventually they agreed to have them collected from my home."

In a statement, OCR said: "This is another example of something being misdelivered to the wrong address.

"The two streets have similar names and both are in the primary postcode area of Newcastle.

"The papers are due to be picked up and taken to the examiner's house."

Students not disadvantaged

A spokesman for the QCA said: "Misdeliveries such as this are extremely unfortunate, but rare.

"This incident will not disadvantage students in any way.

"When a student finishes an exam it is a top priority that their scripts safely reach the examiner.

"We are satisfied that OCR has taken immediate action to recover the scripts.

"We have insisted that they are collected by OCR and delivered to the correct examiner."

In 2002 OCR was at the centre of a row over complaints from students who complained about the grades they were awarded.