Country profile · latest official and international reference years
United Kingdom Education Statistics 2026: Data, Charts & Indicators
This page separates the 2026 page year from the source years used in the data. The latest figures combine UK official statistics, OECD Education at a Glance, OECD PISA 2022, and World Bank / UNESCO UIS indicator coverage where available.
UK Education Data Snapshot
Headline values use the latest reference year available from each source.
PISA 2022 Scores: United Kingdom vs OECD Average
Mean scores for 15-year-old students in mathematics, reading, and science.
The UK scored above the OECD average in all three PISA 2022 domains.
Assessment analysis
- Science was the UK’s highest mean score at 500.
- The UK-OECD score gap was 17 points in mathematics, 18 points in reading, and 15 points in science.
- The assessment year is 2022; it should not be read as a 2026 test result.
Main UK Education Indicators Table
Search and sort the latest available values by indicator, unit, source year, and source family.
| Indicator | Latest value | Unit | Source year | Coverage | Primary source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in maintained schools | 10,046,026 | Pupils | 2024/25 | United Kingdom, maintained schools | DfE UK education and training statistics |
| Maintained schools | 29,532 | Schools | 2024/25 | United Kingdom, maintained schools | DfE UK education and training statistics |
| Full-time equivalent teachers | 565,523 | FTE teachers | 2024/25 | United Kingdom, maintained schools | DfE UK education and training statistics |
| Further education students | 3,110,815 | Students | 2023/24 | United Kingdom FE colleges and HE providers | DfE UK education and training statistics |
| Higher education students | 2,991,100 | Students | 2023/24 | UK HE in FE colleges or HE providers | DfE UK education and training statistics |
| HE students studying first degrees | 64% | Share of HE students | 2023/24 | United Kingdom HE students | DfE UK education and training statistics |
| HE students studying master’s or other postgraduate courses | 25% | Share of HE students | 2023/24 | United Kingdom HE students | DfE UK education and training statistics |
| HE students studying PhD programmes | 4% | Share of HE students | 2023/24 | United Kingdom HE students | DfE UK education and training statistics |
| Adults qualified to NQF level 2 or above | 84% | Share of adults aged 19-64 | Q4 2024 | United Kingdom | Labour Force Survey via DfE |
| Adults qualified to NQF level 3 or above | 68% | Share of adults aged 19-64 | Q4 2024 | United Kingdom | Labour Force Survey via DfE |
| Adults qualified to NQF level 4 or above | 50% | Share of adults aged 19-64 | Q4 2024 | United Kingdom | Labour Force Survey via DfE |
| Young people not in education, employment or training | 12.8% | Share of 16-24-year-olds | Apr-Jun 2025 | United Kingdom | DfE UK education and training statistics |
| Education expenditure as share of GDP | 4.1% | Share of GDP | FY 2024-25 | UK total education services, PESA basis | HM Treasury PESA / ONS via DfE |
| Compulsory education duration | 13 | Years | 2022 | United Kingdom, OECD definition | OECD Education at a Glance |
| Children enrolled one year before primary school | 100% | Enrollment share | 2022 | United Kingdom | OECD Education at a Glance |
| 15-19-year-olds enrolled in education | 82% | Enrollment share | 2022 | United Kingdom | OECD Education at a Glance |
| Internationally mobile tertiary students | 22% | Share of tertiary students | 2022 | United Kingdom | OECD Education at a Glance |
| Primary to secondary expenditure per student | USD 14,262 | PPP-adjusted USD per student | 2021 | United Kingdom, primary to secondary | OECD Education at a Glance |
| PISA mathematics mean score | 489 | PISA score points | 2022 | 15-year-old students | OECD PISA |
| PISA reading mean score | 494 | PISA score points | 2022 | 15-year-old students | OECD PISA |
| PISA science mean score | 500 | PISA score points | 2022 | 15-year-old students | OECD PISA |
| PISA mathematics Level 2 or above | 76% | Share of students | 2022 | 15-year-old students | OECD PISA |
| PISA reading Level 2 or above | 80% | Share of students | 2022 | 15-year-old students | OECD PISA |
| PISA science Level 2 or above | 80% | Share of students | 2022 | 15-year-old students | OECD PISA |
Table analysis
- The latest UK official school year in this table is 2024/25 for maintained schools.
- The PISA rows use 2022, the latest released PISA cycle for mathematics, reading, and science.
- Higher education student counts use 2023/24, while qualification estimates use Q4 2024.
- Spending rows mix UK public expenditure accounting and OECD institution-based measures; they should not be merged as one identical metric.
Pupil-Teacher Ratios by UK Nation
Maintained school pupil-teacher ratios reported in UK official statistics for 2024/25.
Total Maintained School PTR by Nation
Pupils per teacher, lower values indicate fewer pupils per teacher.
Scotland reports the lowest total maintained-school PTR among the four UK nations in 2024/25.
| Rank | Nation | Pupil-teacher ratio | Source year | Source note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Scotland | 13.3 | 2024/25 | Lowest PTR among UK nations in this release |
| 2 | Northern Ireland | 17.1 | 2024/25 | PTR decreased from 17.4 in 2023/24 |
| 3 | England | 18.0 | 2024/25 | PTR decreased from 18.1 in 2023/24 |
| 4 | Wales | 18.9 | 2024/25 | PTR increased from 18.6 in 2023/24 |
Ratio analysis
- Scotland has the lowest reported PTR at 13.3.
- Wales has the highest reported PTR at 18.9.
- The top-to-bottom gap is 5.6 pupils per teacher.
- England and Northern Ireland both reported lower PTRs than in 2023/24; Scotland and Wales reported small increases.
England, Scotland and Wales Latest School Census Signals
National census releases use different coverage definitions, so values are shown with their own source scope.
| Area | Pupils | Schools | Teachers | Reference year | Coverage note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England | 8,920,227 | 24,499 | Not in this table | January 2026 | All schools in England, DfE school pupils and characteristics release |
| Scotland | 702,428 | 2,445 | 52,733 | 2024 | Publicly funded schools; teacher count excludes ELC |
| Wales | 460,091 | 1,449 | 23,729 | January 2025 | Local authority maintained schools |
Source-year analysis
- England has the freshest school-pupil census release in this table, with January 2026 figures.
- Scotland reports 702,428 pupils in publicly funded schools in 2024.
- Wales reports 460,091 pupils in local authority maintained schools in January 2025.
- The three rows are not a UK total because the school coverage rules differ.
UK Maintained School Trend Anchors
Selected anchor years from the UK official school series, with latest reported value where available.
Maintained School Pupils: Selected Years
UK maintained school pupil count, selected anchor years.
The series shows long-run growth from 2016/17 to 2024/25, while the latest official release also records a decline between 2022/23 and 2024/25.
| School year | Maintained school pupils | Maintained schools | Source note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016/17 | 9,662,859 | 29,656 | UK official school series |
| 2017/18 | 9,737,120 | 29,642 | UK official school series |
| 2018/19 | 9,831,610 | 29,598 | UK official school series |
| 2019/20 | 9,914,034 | 29,624 | UK official school series |
| 2020/21 | 9,949,877 | 29,644 | UK official school series |
| 2024/25 | 10,046,026 | 29,532 | Latest UK official headline value |
Trend analysis
- Maintained school pupils rose from 9,662,859 in 2016/17 to 10,046,026 in 2024/25.
- The number of maintained schools was lower in 2024/25 than in 2016/17: 29,532 versus 29,656.
- The latest release states that pupil numbers fell by 48,205 between 2022/23 and 2024/25.
- UK-level comparisons with 2023/24 are limited because Northern Ireland data was not complete for every school phase.
Spending and Qualification Indicators
Financial indicators use different accounting bases, so the table keeps OECD and UK public expenditure measures separate.
Adult Qualification Levels in the UK
Share of adults aged 19-64 qualified to selected NQF levels or above, Q4 2024.
Half of UK adults aged 19-64 were qualified to NQF level 4 or above in Q4 2024.
| Metric | UK value | Comparator | Comparator label | Reference year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Primary to secondary expenditure per student | USD 14,262 | USD 12,703 | OECD average | 2021 |
| Primary education expenditure per student | USD 13,797 | Not shown | OECD country note value | 2021 |
| Secondary education expenditure per student | USD 14,664 | Not shown | OECD country note value | 2021 |
| Educational institutions spending, primary to tertiary including R&D | 6.2% | 4.9% | OECD average | 2021 |
| Total education services expenditure | 4.1% | Not shown | UK public expenditure as share of GDP | FY 2024-25 |
Spending analysis
- OECD reports UK primary-to-secondary expenditure per student at USD 14,262, above the OECD average of USD 12,703.
- The OECD institution-based GDP share is 6.2% for primary to tertiary including R&D; the UK public-expenditure-services GDP share is 4.1%.
- The two GDP-share rows use different accounting bases and should be read separately.
Data Reading Notes
Short interpretation notes for the UK profile.
Assessment Performance
The UK scored above the OECD average in all three PISA 2022 domains, with science at 500, reading at 494, and mathematics at 489.
School Capacity
UK maintained school pupil numbers are above the 2016/17 level, but the latest release records a decline between 2022/23 and 2024/25.
Teacher Ratio Pattern
Scotland’s 13.3 PTR is lower than England, Wales, and Northern Ireland in the 2024/25 UK official comparison.
Higher Education Scale
The UK reported 2.99 million higher education students in 2023/24, with first degrees accounting for 64% of HE students.
Source and Methodology
The page uses the latest available official value for each indicator. UK maintained-school indicators come from the DfE UK release; PISA indicators use OECD 2022 assessment data; OECD finance and participation indicators use Education at a Glance 2024 reference years. Page-level comparisons are descriptive only and do not estimate missing values.
United Kingdom education data is partly devolved. England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland publish school statistics with different collection dates and coverage rules, so local census values should not be added unless the source defines a common UK total. PISA scores measure sampled 15-year-old performance in the 2022 cycle and do not rank the whole education system in 2026.