ABSTRACT
There is not one educational system in England; there are two, the private and the State systems. The educational organisation of the country perpetuates class divisions of the past. The British educational system begins with the private school, preparatory and secondary, which is run by private individuals or companies for profit. From the private school the next step is at the age of about fourteen to the public school. The State educational system was built on foundations laid by voluntary and charitable bodies. The Acts of 1899 setting up a Ministry of Education and of 1902 are the first to produce anything which can be called a State system. While primary education has been practically free since 1891, fees being abolished entirely in 1918, secondary education is still officially regarded as the responsibility of the parent in some measure, and only for the exceptional child an obligation of the state.
