subject sheets

choosing a state-
funded school
If you come to the United Kingdom (UK) to study, you may want to bring your children
to be educated. You have the option of sending them to an independent (private)
school or to a school funded by the state. By far the majority of British children are
educated in the state school system, which is free.

1. When can my children go to a state school in the United

Kingdom?

They can go from the age of four to the age of sixteen, provided they are your
dependants (i.e. not married or leading an independent life). They can stay as long as
you stay, provided they first came into the country when they were under the age of
eighteen. But there are some facts you should be aware of:

Checklist: Criteria for entry into state schools

• schools sometimes refuse places to children if they consider their stay too short
• your children have to live with you
• you have to show that you can financially support and accommodate your children
(and your spouse, if he or she is coming with them)
• your children should leave the UK with you when your studies are completed
• if your children are not visa nationals and have started a course that they want to
continue after you leave, they can apply to the Home Office to stay on as students
in their own right (they will need to meet all immigration requirements that apply to
students)
• if your children are visa nationals, they will not be able to stay on as students after
you leave – they will have to leave the UK and apply for a student visa from a
British Embassy or High Commission abroad before re-entering the country.

www.educationuk.org
2. What is a state-funded school?

A state-funded school is essentially a school whose budget comes from public funds.
This can be from the local education authority (a local authority or education board) or
from central government.

Schools that are not state-funded are called private schools, independent schools or –
confusingly – public schools. Private and public schools are independent bodies that
raise their own funds independently and charge fees.

Are all state schools the same?

No. There are two types of state schools, which are organised differently:
• schools under control of local authorities, and run according to their policies and
ethos
• schools under the control of their governors, and run on a more individual basis.

There are also other reasons why state schools may differ from each other:
• Some schools, known as ‘faith’ schools, are given funds by churches, including
(most frequently) the Church of England, the Roman Catholic Church, the Methodist
Church and the Muslim community. These schools are likely to have an emphasis on
faith in their teaching and probably also in their culture.
• Secondary schools are now allowed to emphasise any part of the curriculum in
which they specialise – such as languages, the media, arts or technology. Some
specialist schools are called city technology colleges, for example. These schools
still teach all aspects of the curriculum in England and Wales, Scotland, or Northern
Ireland (which vary slightly), and your child will receive an all-round education.
• Some parts of the UK, including the whole of Northern Ireland and a few counties in
England, have selective systems, under which children take an examination at the
age of eleven and go to a grammar school if they pass and a secondary modern
school if they do not. However, ninety per cent of British children go to state
comprehensive schools, which cater for all abilities.
• Schools may have very different cultures because they are all, within limits,
managed by governing bodies consisting of teachers, parents and people from the
local community (elected in Northern Ireland).

www.educationuk.org
 ENGLAND AND LEA (Local Education Foundation schools
WALES Authority) schools
Funding By grant from the LEA, By grant through the LEA,
largely based on pupil largely based on pupil numbers
numbers
Budget Manage their own Manage their own budget
budget
Governors’ powers Overseeing spending, Governors take all the decisions
most aspects of staffing about school management,
employ and pay staff, and are
responsible for school premises,
including the buying or selling of
land

SCOTLAND Education Authority- Self-governing schools

maintained schools
Funding Funded by their local Direct from central government
education authority (there is only one of these
schools in Scotland)
Budget Education authorities Manage their own budget
manage the budget
Governors’ (known Promoting contact Governors take all the decisions
as School Boards) between parents, the about school management,
powers school and the local employ and pay staff, and are
community; governors responsible for school premises,
are also involved in the including the buying or selling of
appointment of senior land
staff and the use of
school premises by the
community

NORTHERN Controlled Voluntary Voluntary Grant-maintained

IRELAND schools maintained grammar integrated school
schools schools
Funding All largely financed from public funds Direct from central
government
Governors Governing body (teachers, parents, people Managed by a governing
from the local community) is elected body consisting of
teachers, parents and
people from the local
community

www.educationuk.org
3. Are there different schools for different ages?

Yes. The main stages are primary, secondary and tertiary (or sixth form). There are
variations between England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland:
• some local authorities operate primary, middle and senior schools, and children
change schools at different ages
• some secondary schools have sixth forms; others send pupils of that age to
separate sixth-form or tertiary colleges.

4. How do I choose a school?

You can do full research, both formal and informal, on as many schools as you like,
anywhere you like (British parents now have a choice in where they send their children
to school).

Below are some suggestions on how to do this:

• You can look at performance statistics. (These are presented differently in each part
of the UK as the inspection systems are different.) For the performance of schools in
England, go to www.dfes.gov.uk/performancetables/; for Wales
www.education.wales.gov.uk/2000/index.htm; for Scotland
www.scotland.gov.uk/library2/doc08/erss-00.htm; and for Northern Ireland
www.deni.gov.uk/facts_figures/d_performance.htm. You should be aware that many
teachers are critical of school ‘league tables’, saying that they do not accurately
reflect the all-round quality of a school.
• Do your own local research – talk to other parents, ask about after-hours activities,
talk to local people, ask to look round the school.

However, your real choice is likely to be limited by several factors:

• some schools select a proportion of their children academically (they are allowed to
do this)
• schools that are aided by churches usually give preference to church members
• schools are obliged to give priority to certain children if they have facilities for them
- these include children with special needs
• each school has its own admissions policy and may set certain criteria for
admission, such as giving priority to siblings of children already at the school;
proximity to the school may also be used, but living close to a school does not
guarantee you a place
• your own views about travelling distances and journey times if you want your child
to go to a school some distance away.

www.educationuk.org
Will my child be taught the same things?

Every state-funded school in the UK has to teach according to a formal national

curriculum, although the curricula differ slightly between England, Wales, Scotland, and
Northern Ireland. Your child’s education will be broadly based wherever they attend
school.

What if my child has special educational needs (SEN)?

Parents of children with a statement of special educational needs can express a

preference for which type of state school they want their child to attend: either a
mainstream school or a specialist (‘special’) school. Many ordinary schools also have
special needs facilities, such as good access for physically disabled pupils or special
teaching for pupils with hearing or sight difficulties or dyslexia.

You can ask to see schools’ policies on SEN to make sure you know what they can offer.
The local education authority will send you details of state mainstream and special
schools in the area. They will also send you a list of all schools known as ‘non-
maintained’ special schools and all independent schools that are approved by the
Secretary of State for Education and Skills as suitable for children with SEN. To find the
contact details for the local education authority for your area go to
www.dfes.gov.uk/leas.

Could my child attend a state-funded boarding school?

There are state-funded boarding schools, but not many (about thirty-five in England).
If you are from the European Union or have the right of residence in the UK, your child
can receive free education and you pay only the cost of boarding - go to
www.stabis.org.uk for more information.

5. What safeguards do I have about the quality of education?

Inspectors undertake regular inspections of state-funded schools and produce reports

on them. The presentation and amount of information made public vary.

www.educationuk.org
 Countr Schools’ inspection body Where to find their reports
y
Englan The Office for Standards in www.ofsted.gov.uk/inspect/index.htm
d Education (Ofsted) inspects
schools every six years
Northe The Education and Training www.asayami-
rn Inspectorate inspects schools design.co.uk/insp/index.asp
Ireland every five years
Scotla HM Inspectorate of Education www.scotland.gov.uk/hmie/insprep.ht
nd (HMIE) is m
Currently working towards setting
up a ‘Generational Cycle’ for the
schools inspection programme, so
that parents can expect to receive
both a primary and a secondary
inspection report as their children
move through school education.
Wales Office of Her Majesty's Chief www.education.wales.gov.uk
Inspector of Schools for Wales
(OHMCI) inspects schools every
five years

6. Will my child’s academic qualifications be recognised in my

country?

Yes. Qualifications awarded by state-funded schools are tightly controlled and

assessed. British qualifications are recognised all over the world. Your child would also
have a head start in spoken English and would thus have a smooth transition into a
British university, although they would have to apply in the usual way and fulfil the
usual entrance requirements. If they are not EU citizens, they would also have to pay
the full cost of their fees unless they could gain a scholarship or bursary (refer to
Tuition fees and the cost of living in this series).

www.educationuk.org
7. Next steps

Checklist: Your next steps

1. When you know where you will be studying, obtain a list of local schools from the
local education authority (usually a county or borough council). Find the contact
details for your local education authority at www.dfes.gov.uk/leas.
2. Research informally the quality of the local schools by talking to other parents,
asking to look round, and asking about after-hours activities.
3. Research formally the schools’ performance by looking at information provided by
government education departments and inspectorates (but be aware of its inability
to provide a full picture of a school’s qualities).
4. Apply to your chosen school as soon as possible; new school years begin in late
August or early September.

8. Where can I find more information?

Key contacts and resources

British Council Education London SW1P 3BT

information
Web site www.educationuk.org
For further information, you can find
details of your nearest office at
www.britishcouncil.org/where/index.htm
, which includes links to all our country
web pages and a worldwide address
book giving contact details for all our
offices.
Scottish Education + Training
Web site www.educationukscotland.org
Department for Education and
Skills
Sanctuary Buildings
Great Smith Street
Telephone +44 (0) 20 7925 5000
E-mail info@dfes.gsi.gov.uk
Web site www.dfes.gov.uk and
www.dfes.gov.uk/leas (for contact
details of all the local education
authorities)
Department of Education for
Northern Ireland
Rathgael House
43 Balloo Road
Bangor
County Down BT19 7PR
Telephone +44 (0) 28 9127 9279
Fax +44 (0) 28 9127 9100
E-mail mail@deni.gov.uk
Web site www.deni.gov.uk

www.educationuk.org
Scottish Executive Education
Department
Victoria Quay
Edinburgh EH6 6QQ
Telephone +44 (0) 131 556 8400
Fax +44 (0) 131 244 8240
E-mail: ceu@scotland.gov.uk
Web site www.scotland.gov.uk

National Assembly for Wales

Cardiff Bay
Cardiff CF99 1NA
Telephone +44 (0) 2920 825111
Website www.wales.gov.uk

www.educationuk.org
While every effort has been made to ensure that the information given here is correct
and up to date, the British Council accepts no legal liability for its accuracy, currency or
completeness.

May 2002

British Council
classification
Choosing state-funded
school (brown) 2/1

www.educationuk.org