Choices and destinations at transfer to secondary schools in London

Abstract

It has been argued that the recent parental choice reforms in the UK favour middle‐class families. The paper reports quantitative and qualitative research evidence drawn from a recent ESRC‐funded study. In this study, middle‐class children were neither significantly more likely to be offered a place at their family's first‐choice school nor to be offered more places per application made. It is argued that routes through the education system have to be understood both in terms of patterns of applications and selection by schools. Various familial preferences are examined according to the child's sex, whether the child attends a private primary school, whether the child's primary school is affiliated to the Roman Catholic church, the ethnic background of the family and the family's social class. It is reported that middle‐class families prefer selective and higher scoring (in terms of performance league tables) schools. We examine why middle‐class families tend to use higher scoring schools. It is suggested that the tendency for middle‐class children to attend higher scoring schools cannot be attributed to a middle‐class preference for selective schools. Other possible explanations are presented including social geography, the importance of transport and resources and unfair admissions procedures.