ABSTRACT
In order to consider the processes at work in the ‘new’ education market place it is important to examine the context that underlies them. According to Ball (1986) there are two underlying facets to the changing structure of educational provision - the political nature of change and the relationships with social class divisions. However, rather surprisingly, Ball overlooked another key feature of the education system in England and Wales - many of the education market processes operate at different spatial scales. One of the most significant agents in the education market is the LEA, which generally operates at the regional scale. This Chapter will, therefore, focus on the education market place at the regional or administrative level in order to provide a context to the more detailed processes at work in later Chapters.
