Not very many people think that the school system in the UK is adequate. Too many leave without the qualifications needed to see them into higher education or good quality jobs. Universities seeking more state school students are having to lower their standards to admit them.
We have Academies, state-funded schools that operate independently of the local authority. They have more freedom over their curriculum, budget, and staffing than traditional state schools. They are often sponsored by businesses, charities, or other organizations, and are required to meet certain performance targets in exchange for their autonomy.
We also have Free Schools that are similar to Academies in that they are publicly funded but operate independently. They are usually set up by parents, teachers, or community groups who want to provide a different type of education to what is currently available in their area.
Then there are Grammar Schools which are state-funded secondary schools that select their students based on academic ability. They are often seen as providing a higher-quality education than other state schools, but there are very few of them left and they account for only 5% of state school pupils.
The majority in secondary schools are in comprehensive schools, some of which are of high quality, but many are in the category described by Alastair Campbell as “bog-standard comprehensive.”
Competition and choice could improve schooling in the UK if we followed the Swedish system for schools, one which is very popular indeed with parents.
In Sweden, parents have the right to choose which school their child attends, including both public and private schools. This is made possible through the Swedish government's school choice system, under which each pupil is allocated a certain amount of funding from the government, which can be used to pay for education at any public or private school of the parents' choosing. This means that schools receive funding based on the number of pupils they have enrolled, rather than the location or district in which they are situated.
Parents can choose any school that is eligible to receive government funding, and are not limited by geographic location or residential address. The only requirement is that the chosen school must be able to provide education in accordance with the Swedish curriculum. The Swedish government also allows private schools to receive government funding, provided that they meet the same curriculum requirement.
Overall, the school choice system in Sweden gives parents a high degree of flexibility and control over their children's education, and has led to a diverse range of educational options being available across the country.
They include for-profit schools, also known as "independent schools," which are privately owned and operated educational institutions that receive government funding. The for-profit schools in Sweden operate as independent institutions that receive government funding, but they must meet the same standards and follow the same regulations as public schools.
The great value in the for-profit schools is that many are owned and run by companies that take their expertise acquired in running a school and transfer it to others in the chain. A Free School in the UK has to go through the procedures and teething troubles one by one, but the Swedish for-profit schools have already experienced them and learned how to deal with them.
The standard of school education in Sweden is very high, and parents whose children attend the private (state-funded) schools report a higher level of satisfaction than do those whose children attend state-run schools. Because free schooling is open to all, with free choice of school, no child is held back from access to high quality education.
There is a good case for the UK to put the ideological divide that has stymied school excellence behind it, and follow the Swedish model of giving parents a wide choice of different types of institution provided that they meet the quality standards required.