This article covers the organisation of full-time compulsory secondary education for students aged 11 to 16. It includes:

• Key Stage 3, 11–14 years, ISCED 2   

• Key Stage 4, 14–16 years, categorised as ISCED 3.

The main focus is on general (academic) education. There is no separate vocational track, although students may take vocational (applied or technical) subject options in Key Stage 4.

Types of institutions 

Publicly funded secondary schools in England have many common features.

All are subject to the same accountability regime which includes inspection by the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted), and the publication of performance indicators. All are also subject to the same regulation in key areas including school admissions and special educational needs.

All publicly funded secondary schools must also provide:

• a balanced and broadly based curriculum which includes English, mathematics and science
• religious education and a daily act of collective worship
• impartial careers guidance, beginning in Year 8 (pupils aged 12-13)
• a programme leading to national qualifications, predominately the single subject General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) qualifications taken at age 16.

As well as these common features, there are significant differences between schools in terms of their legal framework and governance, and also with regard to characteristics such as religious character and admissions policies. These differences are set out in the following sections.

Legal categories of school

In terms of the legal framework, publicly funded schools in England (also referred to as ‘state schools’) fall into two categories – maintained schools and academies.

Maintained schools are funded via the local authority using grants from central government.

Maintained schools are subdivided into:

• community schools
• foundation schools (including trust schools)
• voluntary schools (voluntary aided and voluntary controlled).

Academies are independent of the local authority and have direct funding agreements with the Secretary of State. They are attended by three-quarters of secondary pupils (source: Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics: January 2019).

Academies include:

• sponsored academies
• converter academies
• free schools
• university technical colleges (UTCs)
• studio schools.

For more information on maintained schools and academies, see the article ‘Administration at Local and/or Institutional Level’.

Beyond these two legal categories (and their subdivisions), a number of schools also have additional particular characteristics, as outlined below.

Schools with special characteristics

Faith schools 

In January 2019, just under a fifth of secondary schools in England were faith schools, designated as having a religious character. Faith schools may be maintained schools or academies.

Most faith schools are designated as Roman Catholic or Church of England, but there is also a small number of Jewish and Muslim schools and schools of other faiths (source: Table 2a in Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics: January 2019).

Faith schools may teach their designated religion as part of the curriculum. They may also give priority in admissions to pupils of their faith where the school is oversubscribed, providing this does not conflict with other legislation. Religion may also be taken into account when employing staff.

Depending on the legal status / category of the school (maintained or academy), and the specific school type within these categories, the buildings may be owned by the religious organisation.

Schools that select by ability 

The great majority of publicly funded secondary schools admit all students regardless of ability and, since 1998, the establishment of new schools with selective arrangements has been banned. Those schools which already had selective arrangements in place in the 1997/98 school year are permitted to continue to select pupils on the basis of high academic ability. 

Grammar schools select all or almost all pupils on the basis of academic ability. In January 2019, there were 164 grammar schools attended by around 5% of all secondary school pupils (source: Table 2a in Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics: January 2019).

Grammar schools are not evenly distributed across the country. For example, the south east has the highest proportion of secondary pupils attending grammar schools, while there are no grammar schools in the north east. Further information is available in Grammar School Statistics (House of Commons Library briefing, March 2017).

Some secondary schools, while not designated as grammar schools, may also select up to 10% of students based on aptitude in a particular subject.

In 2018, the Government introduced the Selective Schools Expansion Fund (SSEF). This is funding to support the creation of additional school places in fully or partially selective schools. In applying for the funding, schools must submit plans highlighting how they will increase the number of places for disadvantaged pupils.

Selective schools may be maintained schools or academies.

Statistics on secondary schools 

The table provides a summary of the numbers and types of secondary schools, and the numbers of pupils catered for, in January 2019.

Source: Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics: January 2019, main tables

Geographical accessibility

Schools are distributed nationally across both urban and rural areas and the average pupil in England lives within a short journey to his / her nearest secondary school. Generally, urban areas have a greater concentration of schools, while distances between schools tend to be greater in rural areas. Table 7a in Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics: January 2018 (LA tables) provides the numbers of schools in each region and local authority area in England.

The Statistical Digest of Rural England July 2019, compiled by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), states that, in 2016, in rural areas, the average minimum travel time to secondary schools accessible by public transport or walking was 30 minutes (page 101). In contrast, the average minimum travel time to secondary schools accessible by car was 13.4 minutes. By comparison, in urban areas, the numbers were 15.7 and 9.7 respectively.

Securing sufficient school places 

The Government’s national projections for pupil numbers indicate that the secondary school population rose to 2.85 million in 2018, as the increased births from 2002 reach secondary school age. The secondary school population is projected to continue increasing until around 2025, reaching an estimated 3.28 million.

Local authorities (LAs) must respond to population growth and fluctuations in their local area. This is in accordance with their statutory responsibility, under the Education Act 1996, for ensuring sufficient school places. Procedures for changes, such as expanding a school, changing the age range, opening a new school, or closing a school are set out in government guidance.

For further information on the school organisation strategies adopted by LAs, see the subheading ‘Geographical accessibility’ in the article on the ‘Organisation of Primary Education’.

Local authorities are also responsible for organising education in an alternative provision setting for pupils who have been excluded, are ill, or, for any other reason, are not able to attend mainstream education. Further information is available in the article on ‘Support Measures for Learners’.

Home-school travel 

Local authorities have duties in respect of home to school travel arrangements under the Education Act 1996, as amended by the Education and Inspections Act 2006, and as set out in statutory guidance (July 2014).

These duties are to:

• promote the use of sustainable travel and transport
• make free travel arrangements for eligible children of compulsory school age to attend the relevant nearest suitable school
• have regard to religion or belief in the exercise of these travel functions.

Eligibility for free transport to and from the nearest suitable school is based upon living beyond walking distance of the school. Walking distance is defined as a distance of up to 3 miles (4.8 km) in the case of a child aged 8 and over.

Secondary school pupils eligible for free transport include:

• all pupils of compulsory school age whose nearest suitable school is beyond 3 miles (4.8 km)
• all pupils who cannot reasonably be expected to walk to school because of mobility problems, or because of associated health and safety issues related to their special educational needs (SEN) or disability
• all pupils who cannot reasonably be expected to walk to the nearest suitable school because the nature of the route is deemed unsafe to walk
• some pupils who are entitled to, or whose parents are in receipt of, financial support / benefits.

Parents who choose to send their child to a school that is not within walking distance,  and whose child could be offered a place at a suitable school within walking distance,  assume responsibility for providing any necessary transport. However, the LA must take into consideration any parental preference for a child to be educated at a school or institution in which the religious education provided is that of the parents’ religion or denomination.

Local authorities also have discretionary powers to provide transport for children who do not meet the eligibility criteria.

Admission requirements and choice of school 

Most secondary schools cater for students from the age of 11.

Applying for a place 

Parents apply to the local authority (LA) in which they live for places at their preferred schools. They are able to express a preference for at least three schools, as stated in the (2014) School Admissions Code. The application can include schools outside the LA where the child lives: a parent can apply for a place for their child at any publicly-funded school in any area. The Government provides guidance for parents on school admissions.

The LA is responsible for operating the admissions system in its local area. On receipt of applications, it collates all preferences and parents then receive an offer from the LA at the highest preference school at which a place is available. All offers of secondary school places are made on ‘national offer day’ which is 1 March or the next working day. Parents have a right of appeal if a place is not offered at the school of their choice. Statutory guidance is provided in the School Admission Appeals Code.

Pupils with an education, health and care (EHC) plan which names a particular school must be offered a place in that school.

If there are more applicants than places 

Admission authorities must ensure that their annual admission arrangements are clear and include the criteria which will be applied in the event of oversubscription.

For maintained schools, the admission authority – the body charged with determining the admissions arrangements for a particular school – may be the local authority or the school governing body, depending on the legal category of the school.

For an academy, the admission authority is the academy trust.

All admission authorities must comply with the (2014) School Admissions Code. This is statutory guidance, made under Part III of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998, with the aim of ensuring that school places are allocated and offered in an open and fair way.

Highest priority in an admission’s authority’s oversubscription criteria must be given to looked after children and previously looked after children.

Thereafter, oversubscription criteria are determined in accordance with the School Admissions Code. The criteria used must be reasonable, clear, objective and procedurally fair and must comply with the School Standards and Framework Act 1998, the Human Rights Act 1998 and the Equality Act 2010.

It is permissible under the Code for priority to be given to:

• children with siblings attending the school
• children who live closest to the school
• children attending ‘feeder’ primary schools
• children of staff employed at the school for more than two years
• children of staff who meet a skills shortage
• disadvantaged children who are eligible for the Pupil Premium.

Where oversubscribed, a faith school may give preference in its admission arrangements to members of a particular faith or denomination, providing this does not conflict with other legislation. Faith schools are encouraged to have admission arrangements which are inclusive of other faiths and reflect the general population of the local area.

All new academies with a religious character (which are all now set up as free schools), where oversubscribed, are required to admit, as a minimum, 50% of their pupils without reference to faith.

In May 2018, the Government announced the provision of funding for local authorities to create vountary-aided faith schools. These schools are permitted to select all of their pupils on the grounds of faith.

Selection by ability

There is a general restriction on selection by ability and most publicly funded secondary schools admit pupils regardless of ability.

Grammar schools, however, are permitted to select pupils on the basis of their academic ability and generally operate their own entrance examinations.

There are also some secondary schools which select up to 10% of pupils on the basis of ability or aptitude in a specialist subject.  

Pupil ability banding is also a permitted form of selection used by some admission authorities to ensure that the intake for a school includes a proportionate spread of children of different abilities. Banding can be used to produce an intake that is representative of the full range of ability of applicants for the school; the range of ability of children in the local area; or the national ability range.

Tests for all forms of selection are determined by the admission authority but must be clear and objective, and give an accurate reflection of the child’s ability or aptitude, irrespective of sex, race, or disability. Admission authorities must also publish details of the process for selection.

In general, only those schools which had selective arrangements in place in the 1997/98 school year, and have used them every year since, are permitted to continue to select pupils. 

For further information on grammar schools, see the:

• House of Commons Library briefing on grammar school statistics (March 2017)
• House of Commons Library briefing on policy developments on grammar schools (October 2018).

An overview of school admissions is also provided in this February 2019 House of Commons Library briefing (SN07147).

Integrated Communities Action Plan 

In February 2019, the Government published the Integrated Communities Action Plan. This followed a consultation on its Integrated Communities Strategy Green Paper, which ran from March to June 2018. The action plan is a cross-government plan to build stronger, more integrated communities. It includes actions to trial different models of admission arrangements in five local authority ‘Integration Areas’. These models can be used to allow admission authorities to prioritise applications from a wider, more representative area. The aim is to ensure that schools are inclusive environments, which enable students to mix and build positive relationships with those from different backgrounds. Following the trials, the best practice identified will be shared and may impact on the admissions process more widely.

Following publication of the Integrated Communities Strategy, the application criteria for the setting up of new free schools have also been updated. The revised criteria include strengthened expectations for free schools on promoting integration and community cohesion. They also include the requirement for a closer assessment of the potential impact of each new free school on the intake of neighbouring schools.

Age levels and grouping of pupils / students 

A year group consists of all pupils whose birthdays fall within the same academic year, that is, between 1 September and 31 August.

Secondary schools cater for year groups and key stages as follows:

Note: Many secondary schools also have sixth forms which cater for 16- to 18/19-year-olds (in Years 12 and 13).

Classes are normally taught by a specialist teacher for each subject.

Teaching in secondary schools is typically organised by year group, and on a mixed ability basis, for some subjects. Grouping pupils by year group and attainment for some subjects is also common practice, on the assumption that it is possible to teach more effectively or more efficiently with a narrower range of attainment.

There are no official recommendations on maximum or minimum numbers of pupils in a class or group in secondary schools.

Organisation of the school year 

The school year is usually divided into three terms: autumn term, spring term and summer term. Each of these is divided into two half-terms separated by a half-term holiday. There is normally a long summer break of about six weeks in July and August and shorter breaks of two to three weeks at Christmas and at Easter.

Maintained schools are required to be open for a minimum of 380 half-day sessions (190 days) each year. Teachers in maintained schools are also required to be available for five additional days when pupils are not present. These days are used for staff training and development.

For academies, there are no regulations about the organisation of the school year.

The organisation of the school year in secondary education is broadly the same as for primary education. For further information, see the subheading ‘Organisation of the school year’ in the article on the ‘Organisation of Primary Education’.

Organisation of the school day and week

There is no minimum weekly lesson time in maintained secondary schools. Schools are free to decide the amount of time they allocate to each subject, providing that they allow sufficient instruction time to deliver a broad and balanced curriculum that includes all statutory requirements. The Government stopped providing guidance to maintained schools on minimum weekly lesson time in 2011.

In organising their school week, academies must meet the requirements of their funding agreement with the Secretary of State, but there is no minimum weekly lesson time requirement.

Maintained schools are required to be open to pupils for a minimum of 190 days each year, and for each school day to consist of two (half-day) sessions divided by a break. This is in accordance with The Education (School Day and School Year) (England) Regulations 1999, as amended. Within this framework, the school governing body determines the length of the school day, including session times and breaks, taking into account the recommendation of the headteacher.

The typical pattern is for secondary schools to be open from Monday to Friday, between 9.00 a.m. and around 3.30 p.m., with approximately one hour for lunch. There may be a break of around 15 minutes in the morning and / or afternoon sessions.

Schools may provide optional / extra-curricular activities outside the school day such as breakfast clubs, after-school activities and sports clubs.

For academies, there are no regulations about the minimum number of school days each year and the academy trust  determines the length of the school day, including session times and breaks. In doing so, it takes into account the recommendation of the headteacher / head of school.

Article last reviewed April 2021.