This chapter covers the organisation and structure of educational provision for young people aged 11 to 18/19 years.

For the purpose of this description, this provision is divided into:

• general lower secondary education (for ages 11–16)
• general upper secondary education  (for ages 16–18/19)
• vocational upper secondary education  (for ages 16–18/19).*

* In terms of International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED) categorisation, education for ages 11-14, is classified as ISCED 2; education for ages 14-18/19 as ISCED 3. There are no programmes categorised as post-secondary non-tertiary education (ISCED 4).

For 16- to 18/19-year olds, there is a well-established tradition of subject specialisation, with the possibility of combining single subject general and vocational qualifications. More recently, the Government has introduced a policy on study programmes that applies across general and vocational education. For these reasons, the introduction to this chapter provides a combined description of general and vocational upper secondary education.

General lower secondary education, ages 11-16 

Young people enter secondary education at the age of 11 and, under Section 8 of the Education Act 1996, full-time education is then compulsory up until the last Friday in June of the school year in which they reach the age of 16. Secondary schools cater for pupils from age 11 to either 16 or to 18/19.

Study programmes 

Lower secondary education is divided into two key stages of the national curriculum:

• Key Stage 3 - for pupils aged 11 to 14, ISCED 2
• Key Stage 4 - for pupils aged 14 to 16, ISCED 3.

In Key Stage 4, pupils work towards external qualifications. In most cases, these are single subject GCSEs taken at age 16.

The national curriculum key stages are determined by Section 82 of the Education Act 2002. (Key Stages 1 and 2 (5- to 11-year-olds) apply to primary education.)

Although the national curriculum is compulsory only for maintained schools, academies (see below) generally adhere to the same key stage structure for organising the curriculum.

Types of provider 

Publicly funded secondary schools fall into different categories, reflecting differences in their constitution and governance.

There is a major distinction between:

• maintained schools, funded through the local authority
• academies, which have individual funding agreements with the Secretary of State.

There are other, cross-cutting differences between secondary schools.

• They can be either mixed or single sex.
• In a few areas, there are selective schools (grammar schools) which admit pupils on the basis of high academic ability.
• Some schools, often known as faith schools, are designated as having a religious character.
• A small number of schools have a curriculum specialisation. These include university technical colleges and studio schools which are types of academy.

Further education colleges and sixth-form colleges may also provide for young people in Key Stage 4 (aged 14 to 16) in specialist centres.  

General and vocational upper secondary education, ages 16–18/19 

Under the Education and Skills Act 2008, young people aged 16-18 must be in full- or part-time education or training.

Provisional statistics for the end of 2018 show the participation rates at ages 16 and 17 (age at the beginning of the academic year):

Source: Participation in Education, Training and Employment: 2018 (Main Text, Table A, p.4; and Table D, p.10).

Although most post-16 programmes are intended to be of a maximum two years’ duration, the funding framework applies up to age 19. For this reason, the age range 16–18/19 is adopted throughout this description.

Study programmes 

All full-time students are expected to follow a 16-19 study programme, which includes one or more ‘substantial’ qualifications. The qualifications can be general or vocational. They must stretch the student and link clearly to training, employment or higher education. Qualifications that count as substantial include:

• A Levels - Level 3 qualifications (on the Regulated Qualifications Framework), which provide the most common route for young entrants into higher education 
• technical and applied qualifications at Level 3 (such as Applied General Qualifications) and Level 2 (such as Technical Certificates).

Other qualifications may also be studied alongside the substantial qualification(s). For example, core maths is a type of Level 3 maths qualification. It is aimed at students who achieved a higher grade GCSE but who are not taking an A Level or AS Level in maths.

Study programmes should also include:

• meaningful work experience (in line with the Government’s 2017 careers strategy), or other non-qualification activity
• the continued study of English and / or maths for students who did not achieve a high grade GCSE in one or both of these subjects.

For those students who are not ready for study at Level 2 of the Regulated Qualifications Framework, a study programme should include a traineeship or extended work experience.

Types of provider 

Depending on the local offer and their own preferences, young people aged 16+ who wish to remain in full-time education may:

• continue at the same maintained school or academy (see the section on ‘General lower secondary education’ above), in the sixth form
• transfer to another school sixth form or 16-19 academy
• transfer to a sixth-form college or further education (FE) college. 

The different providers may offer many of the same programmes, although FE colleges offer a wider choice of vocational programmes.

Provisional statistics for the end of 2018 show participation at ages 16-17 by institution type and mode of study:

Source: Participation in Education, Training and Employment: 2018 (Main Text, Table B, p.5).

Legal framework 

Although the age groups they cater for and the programmes they provide overlap, schools and further education and sixth-form colleges operate under different legal frameworks.

Post-16 education provided full- or part-time in further education colleges, or in sixth-form colleges, is considered to be further education. Education provided full-time in the sixth form of a school is considered to be secondary education and is subject to schools regulations. This distinction is not based on the programmes offered.

Schools 

There is no single framework Act for secondary education.

Most schools legislation applies to both primary and secondary maintained schools but not to academies, which are governed by individual contractual funding agreements with the Secretary of State. Maintained schools and academies can include mixed or single sex schools, grammar schools, and faith schools. Studio schools and university technical colleges are types of academy.  

Key aspects of compulsory education, school structures, and curriculum and assessment are underpinned by the Acts of Parliament summarised briefly below. For a fuller list, with brief notes, of the Acts of Parliament and Statutory Instruments that provide the legal framework for education in England, see the Legislation chapter. (More detailed information on the legal framework for particular aspects of education is also provided in the various articles within this chapter.)

Section 2 of the Education Act 1996 defines secondary education, while Section 7 sets the requirement for full-time compulsory education, by placing the following duty on parents:

'The parent of every child of compulsory school age shall cause him to receive efficient full-time education suitable—

1. to his age, ability and aptitude, and
2. to any special educational needs he may have, either by regular attendance at school or otherwise.' 

Under Section 8 of the Act, full-time education is compulsory up until the last Friday in June of the school year in which a pupil reaches the age of 16.

In addition, the provisions of the Education and Skills Act 2008  made participation in full- or part-time education and training compulsory for all young people aged 16-18 from September 2015.

The School Standards and Framework Act 1998 established the current framework for maintained schools, categorising them as community, voluntary aided, voluntary controlled or foundation schools. It also clarified the procedures for opening, closing and altering maintained schools, and placed local authorities (LAs) under a duty to promote high standards of education. In addition, it extended LAs’ power to intervene in failing schools and also simplified the roles and responsibilities of school governing bodies in maintained schools.

The Education Act 2002 made provision for academies, which were previously known as city academies, to be set up in any area, not just in urban areas. The Academies Act 2010 later enabled all schools to apply to become an academy.

The 2002 Act also introduced a modernised framework for teachers’ pay and conditions, along with a more flexible system for the constitution of governing bodies in maintained schools. In addition, it included provisions relating to the curriculum for maintained schools in England. Explanatory Notes are available.

The Education and Inspections Act 2006 introduced the ‘free school presumption’. This requires local authorities to seek proposals to establish a free school where they have identified the need for a new school in their area. It also introduced a presumption against the closure of a rural school. The Explanatory Notes on the Act provide further information.

Further education and sixth-form colleges

Most further education and sixth-form colleges are statutory corporations, set up under the Further and Higher Education Act (FHEA) 1992.

The core of the legislative framework for FE and sixth-form colleges is set out in the FHEA, amended in part by the Learning and Skills Act 2000, the Education and Inspections Act 2006, the Further Education and Training Act 2007, and the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009.

Policy objectives 

The Department for Education’s (DfE) single departmental plan, updated in June 2019, is driven by the vision of providing ‘world-class education, training and care for everyone, whatever their background’. It has the aim of ensuring that ‘everyone has the chance to reach their potential’ and of creating a more productive economy, and is guided by seven cross-cutting principles in five delivery areas.

The seven principles relate to:

• ensuring that academic standards match and keep pace with key comparator nations
• striving to bring technical education standards in line with leading international systems
• ensuring that education builds character, resilience and well-being
• recruiting, developing and retaining the best possible workforce
• prioritising the most disdvantaged
• protecting the autonomy of institutions
• ensuring the effectiveness of funding.

Of the five main delivery areas (children’s services, early years and well-being; schools; post-16 and skills; corporate transformation; and Brexit), the priorities relating to ‘schools’ and ‘post-16 and skills’ are most relevant to secondary and post-secondary non-tertiary education. They include the key policy priorities of:

• promoting the educational outcomes of disadvantaged children and young people
• ensuring there are sufficient high-quality teachers in schools, by delivering the teacher recruitment and retention strategy and the Early Career Framework
• elevating the status of the teaching profession by strengthening qualified teacher status, reducing unnecessary workload and supporting the Chartered College of Teaching
• supporting schools and colleges in developing young people’s character, resilience and well-being
• introducing new T Level technical and professional qualifications
• continuing to reform apprenticeships
• improving the quality of careers advice and guidance for children and young people so that they are aware of the breadth of opportunities available to them.

The single departmental plan is supported by the Government’s social mobility plan, Unlocking Talent, Fulfilling Potential (December 2017). This national plan to improve social mobility through education has an overarching ambition of delivering better educational and career outcomes across the country, and ‘leaving no community behind’. It is supported by four ambitions which cover the key life stages of education. The final three are relevant to secondary and post-secondary non-tertiary education:

• closing the word gap in the early years
• closing the attainment gap and raising standards for all pupils
• creating high-quality post-16 choices by improving technical education through a series of major reforms
• helping everyone achieve their potential in rewarding careers by improving access to networks of advice and work experience.

Policy reforms 

The reforms to technical and professional education being introduced under the single departmental plan and the social mobility plan will see a vast number of post-16 courses being replaced with new ‘T Level’ courses. T Levels – the first three of which will be available in September 2020 – offer routes into skilled employment.

These reforms build on the Post-16 Skills Plan, an independent review of technical education published in 2016, and on the changes recommended by the Wolf Report, a review of vocational education published in 2011.

The Wolf Report also recommended the introduction of study programmes in secondary education. Launched in September 2013, the programmes have the overarching aim of offering young people aged 14+ a broad range of study options. Since their introduction, post-16 further education and sixth-form colleges have been able to cater for school students in Key Stage 4, ages 14-16, in specialist centres.

The ongoing reforms to apprenticeships being implemented under the single departmental plan follow the publication of the Richard Review in 2012, and of English Apprenticeships: Our 2020 Vision (2015). The Richard Review made recommendations on redefining apprenticeships to focus more rigorously on outcomes, and on involving employers at the heart of their design and delivery. English Apprenticeships: Our 2020 Vision outlined the Government’s plan to raise the quality of apprenticeships and increase the numbers of young people following an apprenticeship pathway.  

The Government’s ambitions to improve the quality of careers advice and guidance are supported by the December 2017 all-age careers strategy. Measures outlined in the strategy include the requirement for all schools and colleges to have a dedicated careers leader, and to provide all young people (aged 11-18) with yearly encounters with employers.

The single departmental plan and social mobility plan follow on from and continue reforms introduced by the Coalition Government in office from 2010 to 2015. These included a major review of the national curriculum as well as reforms to general and vocational qualifications. The aim was to raise levels of achievement; encourage schools and colleges to offer a broad and balanced curriculum with a strong academic core, particularly in maths and English; and ensure that the qualifications offered are rigorous and prepare pupils for progression to further study or employment.

Article last reviewed April 2021.