Education in Wales

Wales had been part of the Kingdom of England and its successors since medieval times, and had no distinct legal status in the United Kingdom as Scotland, Ireland and later Northern Ireland did. Thus throughout most of the 20th century and earlier, the development of education in Wales was closely aligned to its development in England.[5] In the Middle Ages, the vast majority of people had no access to education, with mainly boys of the landowning classes attending the few schools that did exist. But by the 16th century a growing class of traders wanted education for their sons, and some grammar schools were set up to serve this demand. During the Commonwealth of England, sixty "free schools" were set up in Wales. Though little is known about these institutions and they disappeared after the restoration of the monarchy, they represent an early experiment in providing education to a wider section of society. By the end of the 17th century, a network of religious charity schools taught both boys and girls in the Welsh as well as English languages.[6]

At the start of the 19th century, schooling in England and Wales was provided on a haphazard basis by private business, charity and the church. This system saw many children from less wealthy families, in particular, receive a low quality of education and in 1800 around half of people were illiterate. From the early 1800s onwards the state increasingly provided financing for education.[7][8] During the mid 1800s a report into unrest in Wales recommended that use of the Welsh language be cut back in schools. This led to the practice of the Welsh Not which involved children being beaten and stigmatised for speaking Welsh in school. This practice was widespread in some Welsh counties in the middle of the 19th century, though it was never official government policy and the schools where it took place were voluntary at that time, so acted with the endorsement of parents.[9] In 1870 the Elementary Education Act legislated for the creation of a system of state funded schools. Ten years later education became compulsory for five- to ten-year-old children and all school fees at elementary schools were abolished eleven years after that.[8] Over the following decades, compulsory education was steadily expanded into adolescence, until by 1971 the school leaving age was 16.[10][7] In the late 20th century much of Wales' governance, including in education, was increasingly being conducted by the UK government's Welsh Office which began some of the reforms which would continue into the era of devolution, such as making Welsh a universal part of the curriculum for children aged five to fourteen years in 1990.[5][11]

Following the victory of the Labour party in the 1997 general election, the new government enacted its policy of giving significant governing powers to elected bodies based in Scotland and Wales.[12][5] Referendums were held on this matter later that year which passed in Wales by a narrow margin, and two years later the first elections to these institutions were held.[13][5] The Welsh Assembly, which later became the Welsh Parliament, lacked legislative powers to begin with, but did control many public services including education.[14]

Since 5 May 2010, the terms local education authority and children's services authority have been repealed and replaced by the single term 'local authority' in both primary and secondary legislation.[15]

Changes in the years immediately following devolution included compulsory study of the Welsh language for students up to the age of 16 and the removal of statutory testing for children in the middle years of their schooling (though it was later reintroduced).[11][16]

In 2010 the foundation phase was introduced for three- to seven-year-olds in Wales, a curriculum which was designed to focus on a child's developmental needs and emphasised the importance of play and direct experiences for learning in this age group.[17] A 2015 report into the rollout of the phase found that it was associated with improved attainment, including in the later years of primary school after its completion.[18]

The Curriculum and Assessment (Wales) Act 2021 was passed in 2021, which is an act for new curriculum requirements for all learners aged 3 to 16 in maintained or funded non-maintained nursery education.[19] The new curriculum was included in the Plaid Cymru-Labour deal and includes mandatory teaching of Welsh history and ethnic minority history in Wales.[20]

Don Close Nursery School in Newport

From the start of the January, April or September (whichever comes soonest) following a child's third birthday they become eligible for a minimum of ten hours a week in publicly-funded nursery education, though these hours can also be provided through a playgroup or childminder. Nursery lessons are focused on developing children's abilities in a variety of areas such as creativity, communication and general knowledge however, at this age, learning to read and write is not yet considered a priority.[21] Depending on their parents economic and employment status children in this age-range may be eligible for up to twenty additional hours of state-subsidised childcare each week.[22]

The Welsh government is planning to introduce universal state funded childcare for two-year-old children by the mid 2020s. Currently, only the most disadvantaged toddlers in this age group and those in some more deprived areas are entitled to 12.5 hours of care provided by the state.[23][24]

A child's age on 1 September determines the point of entry into the relevant stage of education. Education is compulsory beginning with the term following the child's fifth birthday, but may take place at either home or school. Most parents choosing to educate through school-based provision, however, enrol their children in the reception year in September of that school year, with most children thus beginning school at age four or four and a half. This age was traditionally much earlier than in most other Western nations,[25] but in recent years many European countries have lowered their age of compulsory education, usually by making one or more years of kindergarten compulsory.[26]

Primary school pupils in 1960, in Barmouth, celebrating St David's Day

In 2014/15, there were 1,330 primary schools in Wales with 273,400 pupils and 12,240 full-time equivalent (FTE) teachers. The teacher/pupil ratio was 1:22 and the average class size was 26 pupils.[27] In the same year, there were 13 nursery schools in Wales with 1,076 pupils and 43 full-time equivalent teachers.[27] In 2015/16, there were 276,950 pupils in 1,310 primary schools – a rise of 3,550 since 2014/15.[28]

In 2008 a unique new curriculum – the Foundation phase – was rolled out to all schools in Wales. It began for 3- to 4-year-olds and by 2011 was in place for 3- to 7-year-olds. It is based on experiential learning, in small groups, with a teacher ratio of 1:8 for the youngest ages.

In 2014/15, there were 435 Welsh-medium primary schools with 65,460 pupils, rising from 64,366 in 2013/14, but the number of Welsh-medium primary schools decreased from 444,[27] due primarily to the closure of small rural schools.

Pupils in secondary school take part in the compulsory GCSE and the non-compulsory A-level or BTEC qualifications at ages 15/16 and 17/18 respectively. Since 2007 the Welsh Baccalaureate Qualification has also been available as an option although it was ungraded until 2014.

In 2014/15 there were 207 secondary schools (a drop of six since 2013/14) in Wales with 182,408 pupils and 11,269 FTE teachers (a drop of 310 since 2013/14). The pupil/teacher ratio was 17:1, which has remained largely the same since 2000/01.[27] In 2015/16, there were 178,650 pupils in 205 secondary schools – a drop of 3,700 since 2014/15.[28] The same report found that in 2015/16, there were 8,000 pupils in 34 independent schools, 4,540 pupils in 32 independent special schools, and 730 pupils in 25 pupil referral units.

In 2014/15, there were 50 Welsh-medium secondary (a drop of 2 since 2013/14) schools with 36,485 pupils, dropping from 37,400 in 2013/14. In the same year, there were 4 Welsh-medium middle schools (a rise of 2 since 2013/14) with 2,448 pupils, a rise from 1,577 in 2013/14.[27]

In 2016, 60/3% of Year 11 pupils (aged 16) achieved the Level 2 inclusive threshold (Level 2 including a grade A*-C in English or Welsh first language and Mathematics). 35.6% of pupils eligible for FSM (free school meals) achieved the L2 inclusive threshold. 66.9% of pupils achieved A*-C in maths. 70.4% of pupils achieved A*-C in either English or Welsh first language.[29]

PISA results, by which the performance of Welsh pupils is compared to that of other countries, is also of enormous concern, with Wales lagging behind all other countries in the UK, leading to the then Minister of Education Leighton Andrews to describe the performance as "unacceptable".[30]

Education Consortia

There are four formal education consortia in Wales covering:

• North Wales (GwE) (Flintshire, Conwy, Wrexham, Gwynedd, Isle of Anglesey, Denbighshire)
• South West and Mid Wales (ERW) (Swansea, Neath Port Talbot, Carmarthenshire, Pembrokeshire, Powys, Ceredigion)
• Central South Wales (CSC) (Bridgend, Cardiff, Merthyr Tydfil, Rhondda Cynon Taff, Vale of Glamorgan)
• South East Wales (EAS) (Caerphilly, Monmouthshire, Newport, Blaenau Gwent, Torfaen)

Each of the consortia are responsible for school improvement services throughout their respective local authorities and schools. Whilst all aspects of school improvement are considered consortia roles, they are specifically targeted with addressing the three Ministerial priorities of; improving levels of literacy, numeracy and reducing the impact of poverty on education attainment.

A further education college in Merthyr Tydfil.

Further education (FE) includes full- and part-time learning for people over compulsory school age, excluding higher education.[31] Young people often enrol in FE as an alternative to staying at school after the age of 16.[32] FE and publicly funded training in Wales is provided by 15 FE institutions in 2014/15 and a range of public, private and voluntary sector training providers, such as the Workers' Educational Association. Colleges vary in size and mission, and include general FE, tertiary and specialist institutions, including one Roman Catholic Sixth Form College and a residential adult education college. Many colleges offer leisure learning and training programmes designed to meet the needs of business.[33][34] In 2014/15 there were 263,315 FE students in Wales spanning the entire availability of FE at multiple placements, including FE, HE (higher education), LA (local authority) Community, and work-based learning.[27]

Adult Community learning is a form of adult education or lifelong learning delivered and supported by local authorities in Wales.[35] Programmes can be formal or informal, non-accredited or accredited, and vocational, academic or leisure orientated.[36] In 2018–2019, there were 23,970 learners in Local Authority Community Learning.[37]

Main Building of Cardiff University

St David's building of the University of Wales Lampeter – Wales' oldest University

Students normally enter higher education (HE) from 18 onwards. Undergraduate students contribute £9,000 a year in fees, and are generally entitled to student loans and grants depending on their family's economic situation for maintenance.[38] The state does not control syllabi, but it does influence admission procedures and monitors standards through the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales.

The typical first degree offered at Welsh universities is the Bachelor's degree, typically taking three years to complete full-time. Some institutions offer an undergraduate master's degree as a first degree, typically lasting four years. During a first degree students are known as undergraduates. Some universities offer a vocationally based Foundation degree, typically two years in length.

Within Wales, medical undergraduate education is provided by only Cardiff University, while graduate fast track route training is provided at Swansea University. In recent years there has been an increase in the number of universities with their own degree awarding powers owing to the change in the University of Wales from a single awarding body for most of the Universities in Wales to a confederal structure, along with former institutes gaining university status. In 2014/15, there were 8 HE institutions in Wales including one music conservatoire, the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff which is part of the University of Glamorgan Group. The University of Glamorgan, the second largest university in Wales, has never been a member of the University of Wales and awards its own degrees: the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama also awards University of Glamorgan degrees.

In 2014/15 there were 145,735 enrolments at HE institutions in Wales, including 97,900 first degree and other undergraduates and 27,780 postgraduates. Welsh HE institutions had a total of 10,140 full-time and part-time staff.[27]

In 2012, the minister with responsibility for education within Wales, Leighton Andrews, made a significant statement in relation to the merger of Cardiff Metropolitan University (CMU, formerly UWIC), the University of Glamorgan and University of Wales, Newport (UWN),[39] in which he proposed the dissolution of CMU and UN as part of the process towards merger. However significant such changes may seem, it is arguable that the effective imposition of an average undergraduate fee of £7.5 K pa for the three institutions (and others, but not to Cardiff, Swansea, Bangor and Aberystwyth all of whom will charge £9 K pa) will cause much more substantial long term damage to these universities and reinvent the 'binary divide' between universities and the former polytechnics and HE institutes.[40]