Education options

Advice and general information to help you make the right choices for you children's education in the UK.

The school year
The school year comprises three terms, running from September to July. There are holidays of two to three weeks at Christmas and Easter and five to six weeks during the summer with a half-term break of a week in late October, February and May. School holidays in private schools may vary.

Nursery facilities
Private nursery facilities for younger children are available in most areas but there are often long waiting lists.

State schools
State education is in primary schools for children aged 5-11 years, and in secondary schools from 11-16 or 11-18 years.

Most secondary schools are comprehensive, where pupils are automatically taken from the primary schools. However, a few areas retain selective secondary education, where children take an entrance examination to a grammar school at age 11. The remainder attend comprehensive or other secondary schools.

Provided the children of expatriates have a reasonable working knowledge of the English language, they should not experience any difficulty in settling into a local state school. Where language difficulties exist, tuition is arranged, either privately or through the local Education Office, before the child starts at the school. Information concerning state education is available from the local Education Office.

Independent schools
As an alternative to state education, the children of expatriates can enter the independent sector. Many independent preparatory schools take children from the age of three years, usually transferring to private schools at the age of 13.

Relevant Links
Department for Education and Skills (DfES)
This government site offers listings of schools, dates of school holidays and lots more.

Ofsted
The government department responsible for school inspections publishes a wide range of information online from guidance documents to discussion papers.

Independent Schools in the UK
The official website for the 1,300 UK schools accredited by the Independent Schools Council.

Up My Street
Type in your postcode and this site will return a profile of the area, including listings of local schools.

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The content of this page is for information only and should not be relied upon.

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