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Education spending

Education spending is the second-largest element of public service spending in the UK behind health, representing £116 billion in 2023-24 in today’s prices or about 4.4% of national income.

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Education spending - Reports, comment pieces and more

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Stages of education

An image of children drawing

Early years

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Unlike schooling, further education and higher education, support for learning during the early years does not always fit neatly into a single box.

11 December 2023

School room

Schools

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The government has chosen to increase school spending in England at recent spending reviews.

11 December 2023

Sixth form college

Further education and sixth forms

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Across all areas of education spending, further education and skills saw the largest spending cuts in the decade after 2010.

11 December 2023

University graduation scene

Higher education

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The government pays around £22 billion to fund the education of each cohort of English-domiciled full-time undergraduate students studying in the UK.

11 December 2023

Adult education class

Adult education and skills

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Few areas of public policy have experienced as much change as adult education and skills.

11 December 2023

Annual reports, methods and data

Annual reports

In our annual series of reports on education spending, funded by the Nuffield Foundation, we bring together data on education spending per student across the life cycle and provide analysis about the major issues facing different sectors.

Education spending

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