Secondary education is, for most young people, the final stage before they begin adult life and face future challenges with confidence

The later years of education are supposed to equip children with the necessary knowledge and skills to cope with further education or life in the workplace. All children are required by law to remain at school until the age of 16, except where, as in the case of around 140,000 children in the UK, parents have exercised their legal right to educate their offspring at home.

The starting age for secondary education is usually 11, except where the local education authority operates a three-tier system. In this case children go to a middle school until the age of 12 or 13, then move on to an upper school.

On reaching the age of 16, pupils are given the option to stay on for a further two years, and the majority now do so.

State secondary schools
Large-scale reform of the education system in September 1999 resulted in four new categories of state secondary school:

• Community schools: these are comprehensive schools under the control of a local education authority. They make up the bulk of secondary schools in this country.
• Foundation schools: while funded by the government, these schools have a greater degree of independence. Each school is controlled by its own governing body, which sets the admissions policy for the school.
• Voluntary-aided schools: similar to foundation schools but often church-based, these schools are self-governing and are part-funded by charitable foundations.
• Voluntary-controlled schools: these schools are owned by charitable foundations, but the staff are employees of the local education authority, which is also responsible for setting the school's admissions policy.

An additional educational model was established in 2000, when the government introduced City academies. Established with sponsorship from businesses or private foundations (which are often religious in nature), their day-to-day running costs are met by the government.

State specialist schools
Nearly 90 per cent of all pupils in the UK attend state secondary schools. The modernisation of these schools has been central to the government's plans for the education system. To this end they have increased diversification by moving away from a 'one size fits all' approach with the introduction of specialist schools.

Specialist schools offer advanced, or 'specialist', teaching in particular subjects. The normal curriculum is maintained but the school is expected to provide 'enriched' learning opportunities within their specialist area and allocate a third of their government-enhanced budget to sharing this knowledge with other, non-specialist, local schools and the community in general. To qualify for the scheme a specialist school must raise at least £50,000 in sponsorship and produce a four-year plan that sets targets for teaching and learning within the area of specialisation.

Initially, there were four types of specialist school promoting excellence in arts, languages, sports, and technology. A further four were added recently and these are business and enterprise, engineering, mathematics and computing, and science. The government's stated aim is to transform half of all state secondary schools into specialist schools by 2006.

Independent secondary schools
At present there are around 900 fee-paying independent secondary schools in the UK. Although they are not required to teach the National Curriculum, they must register with the Department for Education and submit to regular inspections. These schools are often referred to as 'public' schools, even though most would-be pupils are excluded on the grounds of cost. (The name originated as a means of drawing a distinction between private education taught in the home by a tutor and that received alongside the sons of other gentlemen, 'in public'.) Independent secondary schools tend to be selective, with potential pupils being judged on their performance in the Common Entrance Examination and at interview.

Fees for independent schools vary between approximately £1,500 and £3,500 per term for day pupils (those who do not live at the school), and £2,500 to £4,500 for boarders. The high cost of private education is reflected in much smaller class sizes than ordinary state schools and, in many cases, vastly superior equipment and facilities.

Between 1981 and 1997 many independent schools offered reduced fees to parents of limited means under the Assisted Places Scheme. This scheme was, however, abolished in 1997 by the incoming government and seems unlikely to return in the near future. Some schools have compensated for this by increasing the number of scholarships they award but, inevitably, competition for these places is fierce in the extreme.

The Independent Schools Information Service provides details on fees and entry requirements for independent schools in the UK.

Single-faith schools
Until the Elementary Education Act of 1870, most people who received a free education did so at the hands of the Church. Despite state involvement dating from this time, religious bodies such as the Church of England and the Catholic Church still play a major role in the education of children in this country.

Priority for admission to church schools is given to children whose parents are active members of the church community. Unless you are especially active within your community your involvement will have to be verified by an appropriate church authority - but only if you are claiming this as grounds for preferential treatment. (If your attendance at church is limited to weddings and funerals you will not be considered to be an active member of your local church community.)

The coming years will see a significant rise in the numbers of schools under the care of other religious bodies. Children at single-faith schools are taught the same subjects as children in the mainstream, but the teaching of the faith runs like an unbroken seam through the curriculum. Anecdotal evidence suggests that children at single-faith schools tend, on the whole, to do slightly better in national examinations than their non-denominational counterparts.

In addition to Church of England and Catholic schools, the range of religious schools in the UK currently includes institutions set up by the Jewish, Muslim, Sikh and Methodist faiths.