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 primary 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 (LA) area in England.

The Statistical Digest of Rural England, compiled by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), states that, in 2016, the average travel time by public transport or walking to the nearest primary school was 9 minutes in urban areas, compared with 13.7 minutes in rural areas (page 101).

Securing sufficient school places

Under Section 14 of the Education Act 1996, local authorities (LAs) have a statutory responsibility to ensure sufficient school places for primary education in their respective areas. Section 2 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 amended the 1996 Act to also require LAs to ensure diversity of provision and increased opportunities for parental choice.

In addition, in cases where a pupil has been excluded, is ill, or, for any other reason, is not able to attend mainstream education, LAs must organise for the pupil to be educated in an alternative provision setting. This is determined by Section 19 of the Education Act 1996. Further information is available in the article on ‘Support Measures for Learners’.

The number of school places required has been increasing since 2009, as the increase in births in England since 2002 started to affect the number of pupils in primary schools. In February 2017, the National Audit Office reported in Capital Funding for Schools that the primary school-age population had been growing, with the number of 5- to 10-year-old pupils in primary schools increasing by 446,000 (13%) between 2010 and 2016. The Government’s national projections for pupil numbers forecast that the annual rate of increase for the primary school-age population is now slowing due to falling birth rates, and will stabilise in 2019 before starting to fall.

School organisation changes are made or facilitated by local authorities to respond to population growth and fluctuations in their local area. 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.

Local authorities (LAs) receive funding to create new places from central government through ‘basic need’ funding, the allocation of which is informed by data from the annual school capacity survey.

The ability of LAs to make school organisation changes is subject to a number of constraints as summarised below.

LAs can direct some categories of maintained school to expand, but they cannot direct other categories of school such as academies to do so; instead, they must rely on cooperation from individual schools.

Where a need for a new school is identified by the LA, it must seek proposals to establish a free school. This is known as the free school presumption and was introduced by the Education Act 2011, which amended the Education and Inspections Act 2006. The final decision on whether to go ahead with a new free school is taken by the Department for Education.

With respect to school closure, there is a presumption against the closure of a rural school. Section 15 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 requires that those proposing the closure of a rural primary school must take into consideration specific factors, including the likely effect of the closure on the local community and any alternatives to the closure of the school. Proposals to close a rural school should clearly be in the best interests of educational provision in the area. Under The Designation of Rural Primary Schools (England) Order 2018, the DfE maintains a list of primary schools which are designated as ‘rural’. LAs or governing bodies proposing to close a school should consult this list to confirm whether or not it is rural.

There are legal limits on the size of certain primary classes (see the sub-section on ‘Age levels and grouping of pupils’ below).

LAs must arrange transport at no charge to parents for children required to travel more than two or three miles to school, depending on their age (see the subheading below on ‘Home to school travel’).

Further information is available in government guidance on Opening and Closing Maintained Schools.

New school places may also be created through another route. The free school programme, introduced under the Academies Act 2010, enables groups such as academy trusts or faith groups that can provide evidence of local demand to set up a free school. Local demand may be indicated by a shortage of school places or by a demand for a specific type of provision, such as a school with a particular curriculum offer or ethos, or for a school which provides support for students with particular needs. Groups wishing to set up a free school apply directly to central government, which provides advice and funds the capital costs directly.

Following the publication of its Integrated Communities Strategy Green Paper in March 2018, and of the Integrated Communities Action Plan in February 2019, the Government is introducing a requirement for a closer assessment of the potential impact of a new free school on the intake of neighbouring schools. See the subheading ‘Integrated Communities Action Plan’ in the section on ‘Admission requirements and choice of school’ below for further information.

Home to school travel

Local authorities (LAs) 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. 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 for pupils of compulsory school age is based upon living beyond walking distance of the school. Walking distance is defined as a distance of up to 2 miles (3.2 km) in the case of a child below the age of 8, and up to 3 miles (4.8 km) in the case of a child aged 8 and over.

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.

The LA must also provide free transport in situations where there is no safe walking route or where the child cannot walk to school because of their special educational needs (SEN), a disability, or mobility problems.

The Education and Inspections Act 2006 amended the Education Act 1996 by adding provisions intended to reduce the impact of transport as a barrier to parents with low incomes exercising their choice of school. As a result, since September 2007, primary school pupils aged 8-11 have been entitled to free school transport if they are from a low income family and the nearest suitable school is more than 2 miles away from their home.

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

Admission requirements and choice of school 

School starting age

A child reaches the age of compulsory full-time education (Year 1, ISCED 1) at the start of the school term following his/her fifth birthday (1 September, 1 January or 1 April). However, most children are admitted to primary school in the September after their fourth birthday and spend a full year in the reception class. They are entitled to this full-time school place from the age of four in accordance with the School Admissions Code (2014). The reception class forms the final year of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) (ISCED 0).

Delaying school admission

Parents who do not feel their child is ready to start school in the September following their fourth birthday may have their child attend part-time. They may also defer the date their child is admitted to school until later in the school year, but not beyond the age at which the child reaches compulsory school age.

In addition, the  parents of a ‘summer born’ child (born between 1 April and 31 August) may choose not to send their child to school until the September following their fifth birthday. This will normally mean starting school in Year 1, but parents may request that the child is admitted to the reception class rather than Year 1, i.e. not in their normal year group. The final decision in such cases is taken by the relevant admission authority which, as outlined in guidance from the Department for Education, is expected to make such decisions in the child’s best interests. Admission authorities must also make this process for requesting admission out of the normal year group clear in their admission arrangements.

This May 2019 House of Commons Library briefing (CBP-7272) summarises the position on admissions for summer-born children.

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 local authority (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 primary school places are made on ‘national offer day’ which is 16 April or the next working day.

Parents have a right of appeal if a place is not offered at the school of their choice. The School Admissions Appeals Code provides statutory guidance on how schools should conduct the appeals process.

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 School Admissions Code. This is statutory guidance made under Part III of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998, which aims to ensure 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
• those who live closest to the school
• those attending linked or ‘feeder’ schools in the case of transfer from infant schools (catering for pupils in Key Stage 1, ages 4/5 to 7) to junior schools (catering for Key Stage 2, pupils aged 7-11).

Priority may also be given to children of staff employed at the school for more than two years, to children of staff who meet a skills shortage, or to 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 new vountary aided faith schools. These schools are permitted to select all of their pupils on the grounds of faith.

An overview of school admissions is 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 criteria now include strengthened expectations for free schools on promoting integration and community cohesion. The application criteria 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

Classes are normally organised so that children of the same year group are taught together. A year group usually consists of all the children whose birthdays fall within the same academic year, i.e. between 1 September and 31 August.

The national curriculum is divided into four key stages. Primary schools cater for the first two of these key stages. They also include children in the reception class, which is the final year of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). The arrangements are summarised in the table below.

Although the national curriculum is a legal requirement for maintained schools only, academies generally adhere to the same key stage structure for organising their curriculum.

The size of an infant class (reception class and Key Stage 1) during an ordinary teaching session is normally limited to 30 pupils per teacher. These limits were introduced in September 2001 under the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. In 2012, the circumstances under which exceptions to the class size limit are lawfully accepted were broadened, as detailed in the School Admissions (Infant Class Sizes) (England) Regulations 2012.

As outlined in Table 6a of Schools, Pupils and their Characteristics, in January 2018, the average infant class size was 27.3 and, in Key Stage 2, it was 27.8.

Apart from the infant class size limit, the organisation of classes and teaching groups is decided by the school. Mixed-age classes are used in some schools, particularly small schools.

Primary school teaching is most commonly organised on a mixed-ability basis. Many schools also group children by attainment for all or part of the curriculum, on the assumption that it is possible to teach more effectively or more efficiently with a narrower range of attainment. The most common models are:

• flexible within-class grouping
• setting – grouping together pupils with similar levels of attainment for specific lessons (e.g. mathematics and / or English) on a regular basis.

Less commonly, pupils are streamed (grouped by ability) across several subjects.

Pupils typically have the same teacher for all or most subjects, but schools may choose to employ additional teachers for particular subjects, such as foreign languages or music. Primary schools also make extensive use of teaching assistants, working in the classroom in a direct, but usually informal, instructional role with pupils on a small group and one to-one basis.

Teachers are allocated to classes by the headteacher each year. Typically, pupils are taught by a different class teacher each year. There is, however, no legislation to prevent pupils having the same teacher for more than one year, i.e. the same teacher remaining with the class as pupils progress up the school.

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.

The dates of school holidays are normally planned to take into account and cover most national public holidays including Easter, although a minority of schools operate a standardised year. Schools with a significant number of pupils who celebrate religious festivals such as Eid-Ul-Adha, Eid-Ul-Fitr, Guru Nanak's birthday or Diwali may close on these days.

The body responsible for making decisions on the organisation of the school year depends on the legal category of school.

• Maintained schools are required to be open for a minimum of 380 half-day sessions (190 days) each year. This is in accordance with The Education (School Day and School Year) (England) Regulations 1999, as amended. Within this framework, term dates are determined by the local authority for community and voluntary controlled schools, and by the school governing body for foundation and voluntary aided schools. Teachers in maintained schools are also required to be available for five additional days when pupils are not present (i.e. for 195 days in total). These days are used for staff training and development. Individual schools decide when to schedule these days within term time, and many schools schedule some or all of these days either at the start or end of term. 
• For academies, there are no regulations about the organisation of the school year. It is the academy trust that determines the number of school sessions and the term dates.

The Deregulation Act 2015 provides for the responsibility for determining term dates to pass from the local authority to school governing bodies in community and voluntary controlled schools. However, this provision is not in force.

For further information, see the July 2019 House of Commons Library briefing (SN07148) on the school day and year.

Organisation of the school day and week

There is no minimum weekly lesson time in maintained primary 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.

In academies, there are no regulations about the organisation of the school day. It is the academy trust that 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 primary 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 session. All breaks must be supervised by competent staff.

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

Article last reviewed April 2021.