A National school was a school founded in 19th century

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

by the

National Society for Promoting Religious Education The National Society (Church of England and Church in Wales) for the Promotion of Education, often just referred to as the National Society, and since 2016 also as The Church of England Education Office (CEEO) is significant in the history of educ ...

. These schools provided elementary education, in accordance with the teaching of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

, to the children of the poor. Together with the less numerous British schools of the

British and Foreign School Society The British and Foreign School Society (BFSS) offers charitable aid to educational projects in the UK and around the world by funding schools, other charities and educational bodies. It was significant in the history of education in England, suppo ...

, they provided the first near-universal system of elementary education in England and Wales. The schools were eventually absorbed into the state system, either as fully state-run schools or as

faith school A faith school is a school in the United Kingdom that teaches a general curriculum but which has a particular religious character or formal links with a religious or faith-based organisation. The term is most commonly applied to state-funded f ...

s funded by the state.

History

Prior to 1800, education for poorer children was limited to isolated charity schools. In 1808 the Royal Lancastrian Society (later the British and Foreign School Society) was created to promote schools using the Monitorial System of

Joseph Lancaster Joseph Lancaster (25 November 1778 – 23 October 1838) was an English Quaker and public education innovator. He developed, and propagated on the grounds both of economy and efficacy, a monitorial system of primary education. In the first de ...

. The National Society was set up in 1811 to establish similar schools using the system of Dr Andrew Bell, but based on the teachings of the Church of England in contrast to the non-denominational Christian instruction of the Lancastrian schools. The aim of the National Society was to establish a National school in every parish of England and Wales. The schools were usually next to the parish church, and named after it. From 1833, the state began to pay annual grants to the societies, with the much larger National Society receiving a proportionally larger share. The grants increased over time, but they were accompanied by inspections and increasing demands from the state. The rigid monitorial system, though economical, came to be viewed by inspectors as limited. NorthchurchStMarysSchool

The

Education Act 1870 The Elementary Education Act 1870, commonly known as Forster's Education Act, set the framework for schooling of all children between the ages of 5 and 12 in England and Wales. It established local education authorities with defined powers, autho ...

provided for the establishment of

board school School boards were public bodies in England and Wales between 1870 and 1902, which established and administered elementary schools. School boards were created in boroughs and parishes under the Elementary Education Act 1870 following campaignin ...

s to supplement those of the societies, and allowed for state funding of 50% of the running costs of voluntary schools, but phased out capital funding. The National Society responded by raising £10 million and almost doubling the number of its schools to 12,000 in 15 years. However the schools found it difficult to meet their maintenance costs, and also suffered from competition with board schools. Many schools were closed or handed over to the school boards. The

Education Act 1902 The Education Act 1902 ( 2 Edw. 7 c. 42), also known as the Balfour Act, was a highly controversial Act of Parliament that set the pattern of elementary education in England and Wales for four decades. It was brought to Parliament by a Conservat ...

provided some relief. Under the Education Act 1944 ("the

Butler A butler is a person who works in a house serving and is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantry. Some a ...

Act") these schools became

voluntary aided A voluntary aided school (VA school) is a state-funded school in England and Wales in which a foundation or trust (usually a religious organisation), contributes to building costs and has a substantial influence in the running of the school. In m ...

voluntary controlled A voluntary controlled school (VC school) is a state-funded school in England and Wales in which a foundation or trust (usually a Christian denomination) has some formal influence in the running of the school. Such schools have less autonomy than ...

primary schools, funded by the state but still able to promote the teachings of the Church of England.

History

References

Further reading