# Primary education in England
Primary education in England is the first stage of public schooling, generally covering children from age 4 to age 11, with secondary education generally beginning at age 11; education is compulsory from age 5 to age 16.[9](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1996/56/enacted) The Education Act 1996 defines the statutory system of public education as three progressive stages: primary education, secondary education, and further education, and defines a "primary school" in law.[1](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1996/56/part/I/chapter/I/enacted/data.xht?view=snippet&wrap=true) In practice, primary schooling is organized as Key Stage 1 and [Key Stage 2](https://www.edgepedia.org/key-stage-2). Most primary-aged children attend state-funded schools, which accounted for 89.8% of schools and 93.5% of enrollments at primary and secondary level in 2020/21.[2](https://education-profiles.org/europe-and-northern-america/united-kingdom/~non-state-actors-in-education-england)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Compulsory education ages | 5 to 16, under the Education Act 1996[1](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1996/56/part/I/chapter/I/enacted/data.xht?view=snippet&wrap=true) • [2](https://education-profiles.org/europe-and-northern-america/united-kingdom/~non-state-actors-in-education-england) |
| Statutory stages | Primary, secondary, and further education[1](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1996/56/part/I/chapter/I/enacted/data.xht?view=snippet&wrap=true) |
| Key stages in primary | Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2; languages statutory only at KS2[3](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curriculum-in-england-primary-curriculum) |
| Average class sizes, 2025/26 | 26.1 pupils (all primary), 25.9 (infant), 27.6 (KS2)[4](https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics/2025-26) |
| Infant class size limit | 30 pupils, with limited lawful exceptions[4](https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics/2025-26) |
| Academy/free-school share of primary | 48.8% of schools, 49.9% of pupils, January 2026[4](https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics/2025-26) |
| Faith admissions | Voluntary-aided faith schools may fill 100% of oversubscribed places on faith criteria; other faith schools face a 50% cap[2](https://education-profiles.org/europe-and-northern-america/united-kingdom/~non-state-actors-in-education-england) |
## Structure, key stages and the National Curriculum
The National Curriculum was introduced by the Education Reform Act 1988, which set out a curriculum for every maintained school in England.[5](https://cprtrust.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/research-survey-9-1.pdf) Maintained schools must teach it to pupils aged approximately 5 to 16, divided into four key stages; maths, sciences, English, physical education, and computing are included at all stages.[6](https://dera.ioe.ac.uk/id/eprint/37680/1/SN06798.pdf) The curriculum is organized on the basis of 4 key stages and 12 subjects, classified in legal terms as "core" and "other foundation" subjects, and pupils of compulsory school age in community, foundation, voluntary-aided, and voluntary-controlled schools must follow it.[7](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curriculum-in-england-framework-for-key-stages-1-to-4/the-national-curriculum-in-england-framework-for-key-stages-1-to-4)
At primary level, the statutory national curriculum sets programs of study and attainment targets for all subjects at Key Stages 1 and 2, and languages are only statutory at key stage 2.[3](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curriculum-in-england-primary-curriculum) Within Key Stage 2, the programs of study for English, mathematics, and science are presented as "lower" (years 3 and 4) and "upper" (years 5 and 6), but the legal requirement is only to cover the content of the programs of study for years 3 to 6 by the end of the key stage, giving schools flexibility over pacing.[7](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curriculum-in-england-framework-for-key-stages-1-to-4/the-national-curriculum-in-england-framework-for-key-stages-1-to-4)
## Types of primary school
England's state primary sector is legally divided into several categories that differ in who owns the school, who employs the staff, and who sets admissions.[8](https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-7169/)
**Community schools** are established and fully funded by local authorities and are often referred to simply as "maintained" schools; they are the only category owned by the state.[5](https://cprtrust.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/research-survey-9-1.pdf) • [2](https://education-profiles.org/europe-and-northern-america/united-kingdom/~non-state-actors-in-education-england) **Foundation schools** are funded like community schools but employ their own staff and act as their own admission authorities.[2](https://education-profiles.org/europe-and-northern-america/united-kingdom/~non-state-actors-in-education-england) **Voluntary-aided schools** are owned by school trustees or a founding body, such as the [Church of England](https://www.edgepedia.org/church-of-england) or the [Catholic Church](https://www.edgepedia.org/catholic-church), and receive full state funding for revenue expenditure; they employ their own staff and are their own admission authorities.[2](https://education-profiles.org/europe-and-northern-america/united-kingdom/~non-state-actors-in-education-england) **Voluntary-controlled schools** are the other main church-linked maintained category; maintained school categories differ in governance, building ownership, capital funding, and admissions authority.[8](https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-7169/)
Faith-based voluntary-aided schools may allocate 100% of their places on faith criteria where a school is oversubscribed, while other faith schools (voluntary controlled, foundation, academies, and free schools) may give faith priority only up to a 50% cap.[2](https://education-profiles.org/europe-and-northern-america/united-kingdom/~non-state-actors-in-education-england)
## Governance, funding and assessment
Alongside the maintained sector, England operates academies and free schools: state-funded, non-fee-paying schools that are independent of local authorities. They are funded directly by the Department for Education and sign a funding agreement with the Secretary of State to receive that money.[8](https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-7169/) Free schools are academies in law; they are normally new schools ("additional schools" under the Academies Act 2010), whereas existing state schools that convert are referred to simply as academies.[8](https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-7169/)
The result is a dual system of maintained schools and academies. Academies, including sponsored academies, converter academies, and free schools, are run by non-profit academy trusts (charitable companies limited by guarantee) and remain independent from the state in terms of curriculum and organization; approximately two-thirds of academies operate as part of multi-academy trusts.[2](https://education-profiles.org/europe-and-northern-america/united-kingdom/~non-state-actors-in-education-england) Academies and free schools do not have to follow the national curriculum, but they must offer a broad and balanced curriculum covering English, maths, sciences, and religious education, and they are not required to hire teachers with Qualified Teacher Status.[6](https://dera.ioe.ac.uk/id/eprint/37680/1/SN06798.pdf) • [8](https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-7169/)
Curriculum freedom does not extend to assessment: primary academies and free schools must still take part in national curriculum assessments, commonly referred to as SATs.[6](https://dera.ioe.ac.uk/id/eprint/37680/1/SN06798.pdf) Maintained schools and academies alike are subject to national assessment arrangements and school performance tables aligned with the national curriculum, while independent schools face no statutory assessment.[2](https://education-profiles.org/europe-and-northern-america/united-kingdom/~non-state-actors-in-education-england)
## By the numbers
The Department for Education's 2025/26 school census shows a sector that is shrinking in pupil numbers while academisation continues. Total pupil numbers across all school types fell by 112,200 (1.2%) year on year to over 8.9 million pupils, across 24,499 schools.[4](https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics/2025-26)
Class sizes have edged down. The average primary class size decreased by 0.3 to 26.1 pupils in 2025/26, after a period of stability between 2020/21 and 2023/24.[4](https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics/2025-26) Average infant class size fell to 25.9 from 26.2 in 2024/25, the lowest since 2008/09, against a statutory limit of 30 pupils in an infant class.[4](https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics/2025-26) The number of pupils in infant classes over that limit fell from 47,500 to 39,500, representing 2.7% of all pupils in infant classes; under the School Admissions (Infant Class Sizes) (England) Regulations 2012, limited lawful exceptions to the 30-pupil limit apply.[4](https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics/2025-26) At Key Stage 2, the average class size decreased to 27.6, and pupils in large KS2 classes fell from 439,000 to 413,900, representing 18.8% of KS2 pupils (years 3 to 6).[4](https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics/2025-26)
## How it compares across the UK
Education is a devolved policy area, and schools in Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales follow different curricula from England's national curriculum.[6](https://dera.ioe.ac.uk/id/eprint/37680/1/SN06798.pdf) Detailed comparison of structures, testing regimes, and school types is covered in the sibling articles on primary schools in Scotland and [Northern Ireland](https://www.edgepedia.org/northern-ireland).
## References
1. Education Act 1996 (c. 56), Part I, Chapter I — https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1996/56/part/I/chapter/I/enacted/data.xht?view=snippet&wrap=true
2. United Kingdom | Non-state actors in education, Education Profiles — https://education-profiles.org/europe-and-northern-america/united-kingdom/~non-state-actors-in-education-england
3. National curriculum in England: primary curriculum, GOV.UK — https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curriculum-in-england-primary-curriculum
4. Schools, pupils and their characteristics, 2025/26, DfE — https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics/2025-26
5. The structure of primary education: England and other countries, Cambridge Primary Review Trust — https://cprtrust.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/research-survey-9-1.pdf
6. The school curriculum in England, House of Commons Library briefing SN06798 — https://dera.ioe.ac.uk/id/eprint/37680/1/SN06798.pdf
7. National curriculum in England: framework for key stages 1 to 4, GOV.UK — https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-curriculum-in-england-framework-for-key-stages-1-to-4/the-national-curriculum-in-england-framework-for-key-stages-1-to-4
8. The School System in England, House of Commons Library briefing CBP 7169 — https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-7169/
9. Enacted (legislation.gov.uk). https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1996/56/enacted
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › Education and knowledge institutions › Schools and school districts › International schools by region › United Kingdom and Ireland schools › Primary schools in England*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 11, 2026 · Last review: Sep 30, 2026*
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