Independent school (UK)

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This article deals with a meaning of the term "public school" when used to describe some independent schools in the UK. For other uses of the phrase see Public school.

An Independent school in the United Kingdom is a school that relies for all or most of its funding on non-governmental sources. The school has full control over admissions and, within the law and policy guidelines laid down by the Government of the UK, its curriculum. There are more than 2,500 independent schools in the UK, educating about 620,000 children. [1]

The term Public school has traditionally been used in England and Wales for the elite of such independent boys' schools, and more recently independent co-educational schools, that provide 13 to 18 education. Usage differs in other parts of the British Isles: in Scotland and Northern Ireland independent schools are often called private schools, and the phrase "public school" has long been an alternative name for council schools in the state sector.

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Independent schools in the UK

The Independent Schools Council (ISC) through seven affiliated organisations represents 1,276 schools that together educate over 80% of the pupils in the UK independent sector. Those schools in England which are members of the affiliated organisations of the ISC are inspected under a framework agreed between ISC, the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) and the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted). Independent Schools accredited to the ISC in Scotland and Wales and Northern Ireland are inspected through the national inspectorates in each country as are Independent schools not affiliated to the ISC in England. [1]

Independent schools in Scotland educate about 31,000 children. Although many of the Scottish independent schools are members of the ISC they are also represented by the Scottish Independent Schools Council (SISC) which is the body recognised by the Scottish Parliament as the body representing independent schools in Scotland. Unlike England all Scottish independent schools are subject to the same style of inspections by HM Inspectorate of Education as local authority schools and they have to register with the Scottish Executive Education Department. [2]

Many independent schools which are members of organisations affiliated to the ISC are highly selective on academic grounds, as well as financial grounds (parents' ability to pay the high fees, up to £23,000 – c. US$40,000 – p.a. for boarding pupils). Many parents make immense sacrifices to be able to send their children to these schools because there is a continuing belief that the education is not only academically beneficial but can also offer social advantages. Many politicians of all parties, including even Labour Prime Ministers Tony Blair (Fettes) and Clement Attlee (Haileybury), have been products of independent schools. So were 84% of senior Judges in England and Wales, as surveyed in 2003[3].

Preparatory school

See also preparatory school (England)

In England and Wales a preparatory school, or prep school, in current usage, is an independent school designed to prepare a pupil for fee-paying, secondary independent school. The age range is normally eight to eleven or thirteen, although it may include younger pupils as well. A independent school which only caters for under eights is a "pre-prep" and the junior departments of prep schools which cover the first years of schooling are also called "pre-preps".

The Incorporated Association of Preparatory Schools[4] (IAPS) is the prep schools heads association serving the top 500+ independent prep schools in the UK and Worldwide. IAPS is one of seven affiliated associations of the Independent Schools Council.

There are 130,000 pupils in over 500 schools of all types and sizes. Prep schools may be for boys or girls only, or may be co-educational. They may be day schools, boarding schools, weekly boading, flexi-boarding, or a combination. They fall into the following general categories:

  • Wholly independent prep schools.
  • Junior schools linked to senior schools.
  • Choir schools, which educate the child choristers of (generally Anglican) cathedrals and other large religious institutions; they generally accept non-chorister pupils too.
  • Schools offering special educational provision or facilities.
  • Schools with particular religious affiliations.

Public school

Public school in the British Isles is a label applied to certain fee-paying independent schools in England and Wales. In Scotland and Ireland it is not commonly used in this sense for schools in those countries (and indeed in Scotland and Northern Ireland the phrase has long been an alternative name for council schools in the state sector). A public school (in the independent sense) usually teaches children from the ages of either 11 or 13 to 18, and was traditionally a single-sex boarding school, although many now accept day pupils and are coeducational. The majority date back to the 18th or 19th centuries, and several are over 400 years old. It is largely a matter of history and habit that some fee-charging schools are referred to by the "public school" label while others are not; today nearly all such schools, no matter their history, tend to use the phrase "independent school" when referring to themselves formally. It is suggested that the origin of the term came from distinguishing such a public institution open to anybody who paid the fees from the education provided by private tutors and was first used by Eton College.

This English usage of the word "public" contrasts strongly with the expectations of many English speakers from around the world. Outside the British Isles people usually refer to fee-paying schools as private schools or independent schools; many would assume that the word "public" should imply public financial support. Indeed, in many countries "public school" is the commonplace name for a government-maintained school where instruction is provided free of charge; in England such a school would commonly be called a state school, a local authority school, or a foundation or community school. Usage in Scotland has its own particular nuances; as in England nowadays, there is a tendency to avoid the phrase "public school" altogether, and to speak of "state schools" or "council schools" on the one hand and "private" or "independent schools" on the other. However, contrary to practice in England, the phrase "public school" is used in official documents (and still sometimes colloquially) to refer to Scottish state-funded schools. When the term is applied informally to independent schools located in Scotland some interpret the usage as an Anglicism or a parody of English usage.

History and terminology

The English usage dates to an era before the development of widespread national state-sponsored education in England and Wales, although Scotland had early universal provision of education through the Church of Scotland dating from the mid 16th century, and the system of education in Scotland remains separate and different from the system covering England and Wales. Some schools (often called "grammar schools") were sponsored by towns or villages or by guilds; others by cathedrals for their choir. "Private schools" were owned and operated by their headmasters, to their own profit or loss, and often in their own houses. "Public schools" often drew students from across the country to board; in the 19th-century golden era of public schools, children from upper-class families typically began their education with home tutoring or as a day student at a local private school (what would today be called a preparatory school), and then went off to board at a public school once old enough.

The term in England can be traced to the middle ages, an era when most education was accomplished by private tutoring or monasteries. Public schools, by contrast, were independent charities, often offering free education. As time passed, such schools expanded greatly in size to include many fee-paying students alongside a few scholars, until they aquired their upper-class connotations. By the late 19th century, public schools were characterized not so much by the way the schools were governed or the students educated as by a very specific ethos of student life often celebrated or parodied in the novels of the day.

Origins of public schools

Some public schools are particularly old, such as Westminster (founded 1179), Stamford School (re-endowed in 1532, but in existence as far back as 1309), Eton (1440), St Paul's (1509), and Winchester (1382), this last of which has maintained the longest unbroken history of any school in England. These were often established for male scholars from poor or disadvantaged backgrounds. The educational reforms were particularly important under Arnold at Rugby, and Butler and later Kennedy at Shrewsbury, emphasizing the importance of scholarship and competitive examinations.

Most public schools, however, developed during the 18th and 19th centuries, and came to play an important role in the development of the Victorian social elite. Under a number of forward-looking headmasters leading public schools created a curriculum based heavily on classics and physical activity for boys and young men of the upper and upper middle classes.

They were schools for the gentlemanly elite of Victorian politics, armed forces and colonial government. Often successful businessmen would send their sons to a public school as a mark of participation in the elite. Much of the discipline was in the hands of senior pupils (usually known as prefects), which was not just a means to reduce staffing costs, but was also seen as vital preparation for those pupils' later rôles in public or military service. More recently heads of public schools have been emphasising that senior pupils now play a much reduced role in disciplining.

To an extent, the public school system influenced the school systems of the British empire, and recognisably 'public' schools can be found in many Commonwealth countries. Many prep schools in the United States (such as Groton School) are also recognisably "public" in the English sense.

The ruling class

The role of public schools in preparing pupils for the gentlemanly elite meant that such education with associated accents, vocabulary and mannerisms became a mark of the ruling class. The "public school ethos" promoted ideas of service to the Empire and the Raj, with ideas like "it's not whether you win or lose, it's whether you play the game" and "the battle of Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton", but also imbued an expectation of privilege and command. The "old boy network" of former pupils was a quick way to promotion, and a public school tie helpful in a career. Social class distinctions included sensitivity as to whether someone had gone to "a lesser public school". The English public school model influenced the nineteenth century development of Scottish private schools, but a tradition of the gentry sharing primary education with their tenants remained and Scotland remained comparatively egalitarian.

Acceptance of such social elitism was set back by perceived ineptitude of generals during the First World War, and by the widespread mixing of people from wildly different social backgrounds in the Second World War, but despite portrayals of the products of public schools as "silly asses" and "toffs" the system continued well into the 1960s. This can be seen in fiction such as Len Deighton's The Ipcress File which has a sub-text of tension between the grammar school educated protagonist and the public school background of his superiors and his posh but inept colleague. The British rock phenomenon brought working class chic and a tendency for some public school graduates to hide their accents, a trend which continued in the Thatcherite 1980s (and beyond) with the wide adoption of mockney or estuary English. At the same time fears of problems with state education pushed parents to get their children into what were now presented as "independent schools".

Differing definitions

The head teachers of major British independent boys' and mixed schools belong to the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HMC), and a common definition of a public school is any school whose head teacher is a member of the HMC[5]. However some do not consider every HMC school to be a typical public school, and thus other definitions are sometimes employed. Nor does this definition include any girls' schools; it is debatable as to whether girls' schools can be considered to be public schools. Public schools are often divided into "major" and "minor" public schools, but these are not official definitions and the inclusion of a school in one or the other group is purely subjective (although a select few would be included in any list of "major" schools).

Prior to the Clarendon Commission, a Royal Commission that investigated the public school system in England between 1861 and 1864, there was no clear definition of a public school. The commission investigated nine of the more established schools: two day schools (Merchant Taylors' and St Paul's) and seven boarding schools (Charterhouse, Eton, Harrow, Rugby, Shrewsbury, Westminster and Winchester). A report published by the commission formed the basis of the Public Schools Act 1868. These nine are sometimes cited as the only public schools, albeit mainly by those who attended them.

Some suggest that only particularly old independent schools should be afforded the dignity of "public school". (see Lists of independent schools in the UK below).

The Public Schools Yearbook published in 1889 named the following 25 boarding schools, all in England:

However, it notably omitted the Merchant Taylors' and St Paul's day schools that had been listed in the Act. It also omitted others, including Highgate School as well as the City of London School, another day school, which derived from a mediæval foundation of 1442, was reconstituted by a private Act of Parliament in 1835, and was held to be a public school by the Divisional Court in the case of Blake vs. City of London in 1886.

It is often thought unsatisfactory that the designation of a "public school" in England is given primarily to old boarding schools. University College School, founded in 1830 as part of University College London, was unique in that it neither took boarders nor gave religious education; indeed, by not limiting its intake to a specific religious denomination, it gained the claim of being the first truly "public" school, open to all. By 1880, it was undoubtably clear, by both the school's reputation and its list of alumni, that it was a major public school; by 1907, it was important enough for the King, accompanied by the Archbishop of Canterbury, to open the school's new site in Hampstead. Similarly, King's College School, Wimbledon, founded by King's College London, quickly became a top school. Both are now members of the exclusive Eton Group of public schools.

Perhaps the best way to tell if a school is a "Grand Public School" in modern times is to check an edition of Who's Who. The headmasters of many of the most prestigious schools have an entry there by virtue of their position.

English public school language

The following list includes some terms peculiar to, originating from or commonly used in public schools in England ("independent schools"):

Term Meaning School
ABROAD Out of the sick room. Winchester
BAD EGG A nasty and unpleasant person. —
BARGE YARD An outside area in a boarding house with a covering net and fences to play games. Sherborne
BEAK Teacher or tutor. Harrow, Eton, etc.
BEARDS! An exclamation of surprise. The Leys School
BEDDER A bedmaker and cleaner. Also used in Cambridge University
BEEF(CHOP) To not do or not care about something when having an ability to do so Shrewsbury
BIBBLING Six strokes of the cane Winchester
Baited To be anoyed Uppingham
BOK One / school site Perse School, Cambridge
BRUSHING Flogging. Christ's Hospital
CHINNER Wide grin Winchester
CLIPE To tell tales. Also a common term in Scots language
CORPS Combined Cadet Force (formerly Junior Division of the Officers Training Corps) —
COXY Conceited —
EVENING SCHOOL Homework. Lancing College
EXECUTION Flogging by the Head Master with a birchrod. Eton
FAG A junior boy who acts as servant for a sixth-former. Obsolete
FOUNDATION YEAR The first year (pupils usually aged 13-14). Malvern College
GOD A prefect or sixth former. Eton
GOOD EGG A trustworthy or reliable person (later inversion of BAD EGG). —
HALL Homework. Malvern College, Sherborne
HUNDRED The academic year in which pupils take their GCSEs. Malvern College, Marlborough
MAJOR Such as Smith Major, the elder brother. —
MAXIMUS Such as Smith Maximus, the eldest brother (of three or more). —
MINIMUS Such as Smith Minimus, the youngest brother (of three or more). —
MINOR Such as Smith Minor, the younger brother. —
MONITOR Prefect. Bedford, Bolton, Harrow, Westminster
MUCK-UP DAY The last day of term for the Remove or sixth form students, where sponsored 'misdemeanours' are common. Westminster, Stamford
MUZZ To read. Westminster
NEWBIE New boy. Now a general term.
OIK Junior boy or non-public-school person. —
OPTION Minor prefect. Bedford.
PEANUT A very tight tie knot. Lancing College
PEPPER To fill in the accents on a Greek exercise. —
Pitt Study Bedroom. Lancing College
PLAY A day off for all members of the school; often requested by a visiting dignitary, known as "begging a Play". Westminster
PLEB Junior boy or non-public school person (derives from the Latin "plebeius" referring to those of plebeian (common) stock). —
PREP Homework (from "preparation"). —
QUAD(RANGLE) School courtyard. Also used at some universities.
QUAD BASHING Meeting people in the quads (esp. evenings). Lancing College
QUILL To flatter. Winchester
RAG A misdemeanour, hence: —
RAG WEEK Where sponsored "misdemeanours" are common. Also used at universities
REMOVE The year before the 4th form (age 14 (usually 15)) and 5th form (age 16). Bedford
The academic year before the year in which pupils take their GCSEs, and in which they are usually aged 14-15. Malvern College
Final years before one is 'removed' from the school (ages 13 and 18). Westminster Under School and Westminster, respectively
SAPPY Severe flogging. —
SCHOOL SIXTH Lowest rank of prefect. Plymouth
SHAG DAY A day when, on payment of a small amount to a charity, pupils can wear own-clothes instead of uniform. Westminster
SHELL A boy in the youngest year. Westminster, Harrow, Marlborough, St. Edward's
SWIPE A sweater in House colours used for sports. Marlborough
TITCHING Caning. Christ's Hospital
TOPSCHOOLS Homework. Shrewsbury

Lists of independent schools in the UK

For a fuller listing of public and other independent schools in Britain, see List of UK Independent Schools.

Amongst the oldest independent schools in the UK are (chronologically):

Criticisms

While, under the best circumstances, independent schools generally and public schools in particular were superb examples of education, historically the reliance on corporal punishment and the prefect system could also make them a cruel and hostile environment.

The classics-based curriculum was also criticised for not providing skills in sciences or engineering. It was Martin Wiener's opposition to this tendency which inspired his 1981 polemic "English Culture and the Decline of the Industrial Spirit: 1850-1980". It became a huge influence on the Thatcher government's opposition to old-school gentlemanly Toryism.

The Thatcher government introduced the Assisted Places Scheme in England and Wales in 1980, whereby the state paid the school fees of those students capable of gaining a place but unable to afford the fees. This was essentially a response to the decision of the previous Labour government in the mid-1970s to remove government funding of direct-grant grammar schools, most of which then became private schools; many Assisted Places students went to the former direct-grant schools such as Manchester Grammar School. The scheme was axed by the Labour government in 1997, since when the private sector has moved to organise various means-tested bursaries of its own.

In the past, it was Labour Party policy to remove charitable status from independent schools. Although this policy has been dropped, there is presently some debate, emanating from Labour circles, as to whether independent schools deserve their charitable status – a tax break which, some critics argue, amounts to a government subsidy for the privileged. Independent schools argue that they are charitable and educational foundations which do not seek profits; many schools raise money for charities, encourage their pupils to take up community service, and lease their facilities to the public.

See also

Notes

  1. ^  a ISC Frequently asked questions
  2. ^  SISC Frequently asked questions
  3. ^ Judges education, survey results
  4. ^  Incorporated Association of Preparatory Schools(IAPS)
  5. ^  What is a prep school and IAPS:
  6. ^  Newspapers tend to mix up Private, Public, and Independent as terms often in the same article but they usually quote the HMC:
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