EDUCATION IN

GREAT BRITAIN:
FROM NURSERY
TO UNIVERSITY

EDUC ATION IN GREAT

COMPULSORY
BETWEEN THE AGES OF
BRITAIN
5 AND 16
OVER 90% ATTEND STATE
SCHOOLS
PRIVATE SCHOOLS:

PUBLIC SCHOOLS: FROM 13 TO 18

PREPARATORY SCHOOLS:
PREPARING PUPILS FOR PUBLIC
SCHOOLS

EDUC ATION IN GREAT

PRIMARYBRITAIN
EDUCATION
SECONDARY EDUCATION
FURTHER EDUCATION
HIGHER EDUCATION

PRIMARY EDUCATION
NURSERY:
UNDER 5
INFANT: 5 TO 7 OR 8
JUNIOR: UP TO 11
OR 12

The main objetives of primary

education :
are achieving basic literacy and numeracy
amongst all pupils
as well as establishing foundations in science,
mathematics and other subjects

SECONDARY
Comprehensive schools largely admit pupils without reference to
EDUCATION
ability or aptitude
and cater for all the children in a
neighborhoods.
Grammar school which is a school teaching classical languages
but more recently an academically oriented secondary school.
Academies benefit from greater freedoms to help innovate and
raise standards. These include freedom from local authority
control, the ability to set their own pay and conditions for staff,
freedom around the delivery of the curriculum and the ability to
change the lengths of terms and school days. The Academies
Programme was first introduced in March 2000 with the objective
of replacing poorly performing schools.

SECONDARY
At the end of EDUCATION
this stage of education:
GCSE (General Certificate of Secondary Education)
in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and
Standard Grades in Scotland.
In Scotland pupils study for the National
Qualifications (NQ) Standard grade (a two-year
course leading to examinations at the end of the
fourth year of secondary schooling) and NQ Higher
grade, which requires at least a further year of
secondary schooling.

FURTHER EDUCATION
The education of people who have
left school but who are not at a
university or a college of education.

ADDRESSED
People
TO over 16 years old

What is the mission of Further

education?
It is post-compulsory education (in
addition to that received at secondary
school), that is distinct from the
education offered in universities (higher
education).
It can be understood from basic training
to higher vocational education (for
example: Guilds or Foundation Degree).

Why choose UK further

education?
Many
courses
are
designed

in
partnership with, and taught by,
industry professionals. Some offer you
the option of a year in industry too, an
excellent way to prepare you for the
world of work (check your visa status
allows you to do this).

HIGHER EDUCATION
Higher education in England is provided by many
different types of institutions. Alongside the traditional
roles of teaching and research, the provision of higher
education makes a valuable contribution to the UKs
economic and social development.
Through the efforts of higher education institutions,
knowledge is built upon and shared, skills are
developed and social mobility, innovation and
enterprise are enabled.

HIGHER EDUCATION
The main purposes of higher education are:
to enable people to develop their capabilities and
fulfil their potential, both personally and at work
to advance knowledge and understanding
through teaching and research
to contribute to an economically successful and
culturally diverse nation.

HIGHER EDUCATION
Students:
The number of higher education students at
universities and colleges in England has increased
dramatically over the past 40 years and now totals
more than 2 million.
The normal minimum age for an undergraduate to
start a course is 18.
The higher education sector in the UK reaches way
beyond national borders. Many staff and students
are recruited from overseas, and international
collaboration in research is commonplace.

HIGHER EDUCATION
Governance
Higher education institutions are legally independent entities.
Their governing bodies or Councils are responsible for ensuring
the effective management of the institution and for planning its
future development. They are ultimately responsible for all the
affairs of the university or college.
Nearly all higher education institutions are charities and must
therefore comply with charity law and regulation. HEFCE
performs the regulatory role for the great majority of these, but
some are regulated by the Charities Commission.

THE END .