Predicted Grades when resitting

Hello, I am currently planning on retaking my exams this year, and I have asked my previous head of year for predicted grades and a reference, however he's saying he cannot give me predicted grades and only the reference. Is that okay? I feel like that puts me at a really disadvantageous spot as unis will only have my previous alevel results to go of off and I'll end up getting rejected from most unis. If anyone can provide some advice or reassurance, it would be greatly appreciated.

It's not an uncommon situation to be in, and unis are used to seeing UCAS applications for resitting students without predicted grades. As I understand it, unis will tend to assume that for each subject you'll go up by one grade. Would that be sufficient to make your application competitive?

It won't be enough at all as I went through a tough time during my a-levels and the results I got were nowhere near the grades I could've gotten if I actually applied myself. This year I'm putting in tenfold the work though and am confident I'll get top grades but unfortunately my previous grades will be a bad representation of this and my HOY's refusal to give me predicted grades puts me at a very difficult position as I don't want to only rely on clearing. I really need a solution and was wondering if I can get predicted grades another kind of way. Also, will I have to put down my previous alevel grades even though I'm resitting? Thanks.

Yes you must put your previous alevel grades when you are resitting. Show your head of year on ucas that he can
https://www.ucas.com/advisers/help-and-training/guides-resources-and-training/application-overview/predicted-grades-what-you-need-know-entry-year
Also mention that they know your academic history best and they are best to support you, genuinely just keep emailing and emailing until he says yes

Thanks so much, I'm just going to consistently email him and essentially beg him to give me the grades. I'm just extremely worried that he'll give me really low predicted grades based on last year, even though he is unaware of the amount of work I am currently putting in. I initially asked my form tutor because I thought he'd be more chill and lenient, but he passed it on to my HOY, and I already know I'm not a priority for him and he's not really going to pay my application any mind. I only have so much power in my hands and feel like, even if I do get the predicted grades, they won't be great ones, which I don't understand because I would assume he would want to give me the best chance possible and giving me something low would only hinder my chances, which I don't seem to understand what he gains from that. Hope it all works out though.

It won't be enough at all as I went through a tough time during my a-levels and the results I got were nowhere near the grades I could've gotten if I actually applied myself. This year I'm putting in tenfold the work though and am confident I'll get top grades but unfortunately my previous grades will be a bad representation of this and my HOY's refusal to give me predicted grades puts me at a very difficult position as I don't want to only rely on clearing. I really need a solution and was wondering if I can get predicted grades another kind of way. Also, will I have to put down my previous alevel grades even though I'm resitting? Thanks.

It seems quite reasonable to me that the HOY at a school / college you no longer attend would be reluctant to predict your grades. As you can see from the link which @ja1izo posted:
"Predicted grades should be:
...
data-driven – while each school will have its own process, you should look at past Level 2 and Level 3 performance, and/or internal examinations to inform your predictions"
What data, what evidence, do they have that you are "putting in tenfold the work"? The most recent evidence that they have is you actual A level performance, which it seems were significantly their previous predictions.
I know some people on TSR have talked about hiring a tutor - not to teach them anything, but just to assess them and make grade predictions. The tutor would then supply them to your referee who would, hopefully, use them. (Your HOY may be uncomfortable with this approach too, as some more unscrupulous students could arrange for a family member to pretend to be a tutor and supply bogus predictions.)
As to your last question yes. For each subject you're resitting, you'll need to enter it into UCAS twice - one with your actual achieved grade (and a past date) and once with a "pending" grade (and a future date).
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Say that you will provide evidence to show your academic progress - send essays, completed past papers you’ve done etc. maybe try ask another teacher you know also keep your options open. Email everyone you can. You got this you’ll be fine it’ll all be sorted out soon. Let me know if you need more advice because I was in your situation where my hoy was moving so difficult

Say that you will provide evidence to show your academic progress - send essays, completed past papers you’ve done etc. maybe try ask another teacher you know also keep your options open. Email everyone you can. You got this you’ll be fine it’ll all be sorted out soon. Let me know if you need more advice because I was in your situation where my hoy was moving so difficult

Hello, unfortunately it seems very unlikely that my HOY will supply me with the predicted grades as he isn't even giving me the time of day to reply to my several emails. I am now extremely stressed as I really really don't want to have to go to clearing due to my offers most likely rejecting me, especially since I'm applying for law (a tough course) and want to apply for student accom, so this really just puts alot of stress on me. Do you know if I can ask anyone else and it would still count as a liable reference - like could I just ask my previous bio teacher, and supply her with evidence of my other subjects. Frustratingly, I doubt she'd be able to supply me with a great reference though and she didn't know about the struggles I faced during my sixth form years, and wouldn't mention it in my reference, which would work against my favour. Any advice would be appreciated, thanks.

At this point just go into school and speak to him in personal or like hire a tutor, maybe contact an old teacher and explain the situation so they can do it? Yes you can ask your biology teacher. Just email her with what specific things you’d like her to mention like extenuating circumstances you’ll be fine

fwiw - pestering your exam centre and calling them unprofessional seems a very risky strategy. There's a good chance that they may well refuse to provide you with a reference altogether or if not that refuse to allow you to resit the exams in their centre if you aren't able to accept that they are unwilling to provide predictions for external candidates. It's highly likely that the policy on providing predicted grades is a college wide policy decided on and approved by the board of governors and not something your HoY is in a position to ignore or change just for you.
Does your college/sixth form have a careers adviser that you could arrange an appointment with?

I am not talking about my exam centre, of course I wouldn't ask people that don't even know me for prediction grades - that's just silly. I'm talking about my HOY who knew me for two years and knew the hard times I experienced and how much I had on my plate at the time. And to clarify I am not calling him unprofessional because he's refusing to give me predicted grades, it's because he won't even reply to me, or even tell me if he's willing to give me them, which just leaves me at a crossroads. Of course I didn't say to him that he's unprofessional, and as always, was very very polite and was hardly "pestering" to be honest, I'm just someone who wants a say in my future and I know that sometimes you need to push in order to get something that you want. My personal feelings were merely just that: personal feelings, which I think I am entitled to, as it's a very stressful time for me. And I am unable to set up a meeting with anyone, as no-one will respond to me.
However, thanks for the help from everyone, I appreciate it and it reassures me a bit more