Overview of the education system in England

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Overview of the education system in England

• Eurydice at NFER, the Eurydice Unit for England,
  Wales and Northern Ireland

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United Kingdom

• England
• pop 49.9 million
• Scotland
• pop 5 million
• Wales
• pop 2.9 million
• Northern Ireland
• pop 1.7 million

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England

• No separate government of its own
• Primary legislation on education made by UK
  Parliament at Westminster

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Scotland

• Has always had a separate system of education
• Devolution Scottish Parliament established 1999
• Limited tax-raising powers and able to pass laws
  on education and health.

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Wales

• Devolution - National Assembly for Wales
  established 1999
• Powers to make secondary legislation
• Primary legislation on Welsh affairs currently
  made by UK Parliament at Westminster

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Northern Ireland

• Northern Ireland Assembly established 1998
• Suspended 2002 NI departments were again under
  direction of Secretary of State for Northern
  Ireland
• Northern Ireland Assembly restored in May 2007

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School educationshared responsibilities

• Government departments (DCSF DIUS, SEED,
  DCELLS, DE, DEL) associated non-departmental
  public bodies e.g. QCA, TDA
• Local authorities (England, Wales and Scotland)
  and Education and Library Boards (Northern
  Ireland)
• Schools (headteachers and governing bodies)

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School governing bodies
represent stakeholders (parents, school staff,
the LA, the community etc). Specifically
responsible for

• setting strategic direction
• approving school budget
• reviewing progress
• appointing headteacher
• challenging and supporting headteacher

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Early years education

• all 3- and 4-year-olds entitled to 2.5 hours a
  day
• foundation stage curriculum
• Providers include
• maintained (state) nursery schools
• maintained (state) primary schools in nursery
  (3) and reception (4) classes
• private and voluntary providers who receive
  government subsidies

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Compulsory education

• Age 5-16
• Divided into 4 Key Stages
• KS1 5-7 years
• KS2 7-11 years
• KS3 11-14 years
• KS4 14-16 years
• But most children start school between the ages
  of four and five (in the reception class).

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Maintained (state) schools

• receive funding from the local authority
• are required to deliver National Curriculum
• are subject to the same system of inspection
• manage their own budgets
• select and manage their own staff (including
  support staff and headteacher).

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• But there are differences between them relating
  to ownership of land and buildings, the
  constitution of the governing body, whether they
  are responsible for deciding admissions policy
  and whether they are the legal employer of their
  staff. Schools fall into the following legal
  categories
• community schools
• voluntary aided (VA) and voluntary controlled
  (VC) schools - typically faith schools
• foundation schools

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• Faith schools

• Around 1/3 of primaries but fewer secondaries
• Mainly Church of England or Catholic but also
  some other faiths
• Fully funded for running costs
• RE and daily collective worship (assembly)
  delivered according to religious character
• Often give preference for admission to members of
  a particular faith or denomination

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Independent schools

• Attended by around 7 of children
• Funded mainly by parental fees
• Dont have to follow National Curriculum

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Schools by age range

• Primary schools
• (as well as all-through primary schools,
  there are also some infant schools, first
  schools, junior schools and middle schools)
• Secondary schools
• KS 3 age 11-14 (Y7, Y8, Y9)
• KS 4 age 14-16 (Y10, Y11)
• and often also
• KS 5 / sixth form age 16-18 (Y12, Y13)
• -

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Types of secondary school

• comprehensive schools the great majority of
  schools do not select on academic ability but
  there are some that do, known as grammar schools
• specialist schools the majority of secondary
  schools now have a curriculum specialism
• academies independent state schools

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Compulsory education National Curriculum

• Originally established in 1988
• A framework which defines the minimum entitlement
  and the starting point for planning a school
  curriculum that meets the needs of individuals
  and groups of pupils
• Defined by programmes of study, attainment
  targets and level descriptions, and assessment
  arrangements, not hours of study

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National Curriculum Assessment (SATs or end of
Key Stage assessment)

• End of KS1 (age 7) English and maths
• End of KS2 (age 11) English, maths, science
• End of KS3 (age 14) English, maths, science

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Qualifications at 16

• GCSEs are single subject exams
• students typically take 7 to 10 subjects
• externally regulated, set and marked with some
  internally assessed coursework
• graded A-G
• 5 A-Cs (five good GCSEs) is a key benchmark
• School level results published including
  contextual value added
• Some qualifications for lower attainers e.g.
  Entry Levels

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Post-compulsory education

• Provided in
• schools (sixth forms)
• sixth form colleges
• further education colleges
• Currently only 75 of young people stay in
  full-time education at 17.

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Post-16 qualifications

• No compulsory core curriculum
• GCE A levels AS at 17 A2s at 18
• Single subject qualifications students study 3
  or more subjects in depth
• Passes graded A to E
• Externally regulated, set and marked with some
  internally assessed coursework
• Also vast range of vocational qualifications

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Higher education

• Very diverse in terms of size, mission, subject
  mix and history
• 130 HEIs (86 universities and 44 HE colleges)
• Single sector all are independent
  self-governing bodies subject to same QA and
  funding arrangements
• Structure of UK degrees already conforms to the
  Bologna model
• Variable tuition fees introduced 2006, typically
  3,070 per annum in 2007/08
• Government committed to widening access

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School workforce

• Includes leadership group (eg heads and
  deputies), other qualified schoolteachers,
  teaching assistants and administrative staff
• Each school decides its own staffing complement
  in terms of numbers and type, recruits staff and
  makes appointment decisions
• Schoolteachers are employees of local authority
  (LA) or school, not civil servants
• National framework for schoolteachers pay and
  conditions

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Initial Teacher Training (ITT)

• 3- or 4-year Bachelor of Education (BEd), or
  1-year Postgraduate Certificate of Education
  (PGCE)
• Also School Centred Initial Teacher Training
  SCITT and employment-based options, such as the
  Graduate Teacher Programme (GTP)
• All training routes lead to Qualified Teacher
  Status (QTS)
• ITT is followed by an induction year

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Further informationQualifications and
curriculum authorities

• QCA Qualifications and Curriculum Authority
  (England)
• CCEA Northern Ireland Council for the
  Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment
• Both advise on school and early years curriculum,
  examinations and assessment approve and regulate
  external qualifications. Remit excludes higher
  education
• DCELLS Department for Children, Education,
  Lifelong Learning and Skills (Wales) took over
  the functions of the former Qualifications,
  Curriculum and Assessment Authority (ACCAC)
  in April 2006.

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Further informationInspection and quality
assurance

• Ofsted The inspectorate for children and
  learners in England, a non-ministerial
  government department accountable to
  Parliament
• Estyn Her Majestys Inspectorate for
  Education and Training in Wales
• ETI Education and Training Inspectorate (Northe
  rn Ireland)
• QAA Quality Assurance Agency for Higher
  Education (UK-wide)

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Further informationbodies involved in further
and higher education

• LSC Learning and Skills Council (England) plans
  and funds all full- and part-time post-16
  education and training with the exception of
  higher education.
• The Department for Children, Education, Lifelong
  Learning and Skills (DCELLS) and DEL (Department
  for Employment and Learning) undertake this role
  in Wales and Northern Ireland respectively.
• The HEFCE and HEFCW are the funding bodies for
  higher education in England and Wales
  respectively DEL performs this role in Northern
  Ireland.

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Further informationTeacher training (including
CPD)

• TDA Training and Development Agency for Schools.
  Responsible for the training and development of
  the whole school workforce, including initial
  teacher training, continuing professional
  development and training for the wider school
  workforce. England.
• GTC General Teaching Councils (E) (W) (NI) are
  professional bodies for teachers with which
  teachers must register
• NCSL National College for School Leadership
  

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Further informationGovernment departments and
related agencies in England
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Further informationDCSF key policies and
strategies
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Further informationGovernment departments
Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
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Further informationEducation in the UK
elsewhere - international perspectives