Educational policies

1870 Elementary Education Act

First state-funded elementary schools; ended church control

1880 Education Act

Compulsory attendance ages 5-13; class-based curriculum

1944 Tripartite System

Grammar/Secondary Modern/Technical; 11+ selection; favoured middle-class

1965 Comprehensive System

Non-selective; catchment areas; broader curriculum; 11+ optional

1988 Education Reform Act

Marketisation: National Curriculum, league tables, SATs, Ofsted

1998 Tuition Fees

Replaced grants; £3k+ fees; discouraged working-class from HE

2010 Academies Act

State/faith schools convert to academies; private sponsors; own curriculum

1999 EMA

Cash for post-16 low-income students to stay in education

1999 Sure Start

Early intervention: childcare, parenting support, healthcare in poor areas

1999 EiC

Replaced EAZs; targeted support in urban schools

2001 City Academies

Replace failing inner-city schools; private/voluntary sponsors

2004 AimHigher

Increase uni access for working-class & ethnic minority students

2007 Young Gifted & Talented

Stretch most able students from underrepresented backgrounds

2010 Free Schools

Parents/charities/religious groups run state-funded schools; fees £3k→£9k

2011 Scrap EMA/AimHigher

Cut support for post-16 & HE access; working-class hit hardest

2014 Pupil Premium

Extra funding per FSM pupil; close attainment gap

2016 Replace Grants with Loans

Higher debt burden; deterred working-class from uni

2020 T-levels

Vocational qualifications; skills-based education alternative to A-levels

UK Unis Abroad

Nottingham, etc. open campuses in China, Singapore, Russia

Exam Boards Global

Edexcel, AQA sell GCSEs/A-levels in 160+ countries

UK Students Study Abroad

Netherlands, Germany, USA; lower fees, English-taught courses

Ball, Bowe & Gewirtz (1994)

Marketisation reinforced middle-class advantage

Ball (2007)

Education commodified; "education for profit"; rise of ESI

Chitty (2014)

PFI more expensive than planned; undermined New Right efficiency claim

EPAs (1967)

Extra funding/resources in deprived areas; pre-EAZ compensatory ed

1984 GIST & WISE

Policies to tackle gender gaps in STEM; encourage girls into science/tech

1986 Coursework GCSEs

Favoured girls' continuous learning styles; improved girls' grades

Tomlinson (2005)

More working-class in uni BUT inequality widened (middle-class rose faster)

Gillborn (2008)

Marketisation reinforced ethnic inequality; middle-class White parents navigated choice better