Academic year 2023/24

Schools, pupils and their characteristics

Data guidance

Published 6 June 2024

Description

This document describes the data included in the ‘Schools, pupils and their characteristics’ National Statistics release’s underlying data files. This data is released under the terms of the Open Government License (opens in a new tab) and is intended to meet at least 3 stars for Open Data (opens in a new tab).

The publication methodology, available on the publication report, should be referenced alongside this data. It provides information on the data sources, their coverage and quality as well as explaining methodology used in producing the data.

Coverage

This release provides information on the number of schools and pupils in:

state-funded primary schools
state-funded secondary schools
state-funded special schools
non-maintained special schools
pupil referral units
independent schools
local authority alternative provision

It includes information on:

pupil numbers, including headcount and fte, gender, ethnicity, language and free school meals eligibility
school numbers, including school type, academy status, denomination, admission policy, urban/rural and gender

The information is based on data collected via the pupil level spring school census, school level annual school census, general hospital schools census and alternative provision census.

File formats and conventions

Rounding

These datasets have not had suppression applied.

Conventions

The following convention is used throughout the underlying data.

‘x’ Not applicable

‘z’ Unknown

Data files

All data files associated with this releases are listed below with guidance on their content. To download any of these files, please visit our data catalogue.

Pupil characteristics - number of pupils by age and sex

Filename: spc_pupils_age_and_sex_.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2015/16 to 2023/24
Content: Pupils in state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools, pupil referral units and independent schools

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
age	Pupil age - Age at start of academic year (31st Aug)
fte	Full time equivalent
full_time	Full time pupils
headcount	Headcount
part_time	Part time pupils
phase_type_grouping	School type - Filter by school type
sex	Pupil sex - Pupil sex (Male/Female)

Footnotes

Prior to 2023/24 schools were required to record pupils' gender, which was coded as male /female and reported in the publication as boys/girls. From 2023/24 the variable has been clarified to reflect the pupil's legal sex and is both recorded and reported as male/female. The figures are reported here as constituting a single time series.

Go to top

Pupil characteristics - number of pupils by national curriculum year group and sex

Filename: spc_pupils_yeargroup_and_sex_.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2015/16 to 2023/24
Content: Pupils in state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools, pupil referral units and independent schools

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
fte	Full time equivalent
full_time	Full time pupils
headcount	Headcount
ncyear	Year group - National curriculum year group
part_time	Part time pupils
phase_type_grouping	School type - Filter by school type
sex	Pupil sex - Pupil sex (Male/Female)

Footnotes

Prior to 2023/24 schools were required to record pupils' gender, which was coded as male /female and reported in the publication as boys/girls. From 2023/24 the variable has been clarified to reflect the pupil's legal sex and is both recorded and reported as male/female. The figures are reported here as constituting a single time series.

Go to top

Pupil characteristics - number of pupils by ethnicity and language

Filename: spc_pupils_ethnicity_and_language_.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2015/16 to 2023/24
Content: Pupils in state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools and pupil referral units by ethnicity and language

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
ethnicity_minor	Ethnicity - Filter by pupil ethnicity
headcount	Headcount
language	First language - Filter by first language
percent_of_pupils	Percent
phase_type_grouping	School type - Filter by school type

Footnotes

Totals include state-funded nursery, primary, secondary, alternative provision (AP) schools and special schools, and non-maintained special schools. Does not include independent schools
Totals include pupils in General Hospital Schools, however Ethnicity and Language data is not available for these pupils. Breakdowns may not sum to totals as a result.
Prior to 2017/18, Ethnicity and Language data was collected for compulsory school age children only.

Go to top

Pupil characteristics - number of pupils by fsm eligibility

Filename: spc_pupils_fsm.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2015/16 to 2023/24
Content: Pupils in state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools and pupil referral units by FSM eligibility

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
fsm	Free School Meals - Filter by free school meal status
headcount	Headcount
percent_of_pupils	FSM - Percentage of pupils
phase_type_grouping	School type - Filter by school type

Footnotes

Totals include state-funded nursery, primary, secondary, alternative provision (AP) schools and special schools, and non-maintained special schools. Does not include independent schools

Go to top

Class sizes - state-funded primary and secondary schools

Filename: spc_class_size_.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2015/16 to 2023/24
Content: Number of pupils and classes and average class sizes for state-funded primary and secondary schools, including infant and key stage 2 class sizes

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
average_class_size	Average class size
classtype	Type of class - Type of class (Infant (Reception plus KS1), KS2, Primary or Secondary)
number_of_classes	Number of classes
number_of_pupils	Number of pupils
size	Size of class - Class size (1 to 30, 31 to 35, 36 plus)

Footnotes

Totals include state-funded nursery, primary, secondary, alternative provision (AP) schools and special schools, and non-maintained special schools. Does not include independent schools

Go to top

Alternative provision - local authority funded placements - placement counts

Filename: spc_ap_setting.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2022/23 to 2023/24
Content: Number of pupils in local authority funded alternative provision

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
placements	Number of placements
setting_type	Type of setting

Go to top

Alternative provision - local authority funded placements - setting type and placement reason

Filename: ap_placement_reason_ap_census.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2017/18 to 2023/24
Content: Number of placements in local authority funded alternative provision by placement reason and setting type

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
denominator	Total placements
number_of_placements	Number of placements
perc_placements	Percentage of placements
placement_reason	Reason for AP placement - Reason for pupil being in AP
setting_type	Type of setting - Setting with URN/UKPRN or other type

Go to top

Alternative provision - local authority funded placements - pupil counts

Filename: ap_placements_ap_census.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2017/18 to 2023/24
Content: Number of pupils in local authority funded alternative provision

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
age	Pupil age - Pupil age at 31 Aug at start of academic year
ethnicity_minor	Ethnicity - Ethnicity of pupil
fsm	Free school meals - FSM eligible/not eligible
number_of_pupils	Headcount
sex	Pupil sex - Sex (Male/Female/Unknown)

Go to top

FSM eligibility by ethnicity or national curriculum year group

Filename: spc_pupils_fsm_ethnicity_yrgp.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2015/16 to 2023/24
Content: Pupils in state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools and pupil referral units by free school meal eligibility and ethnicity or year group

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
characteristic	Characteristics - Select required groups
denominator	Total headcount
fsm_eligibility	FSM Eligibility - Select required groups
number_of_pupils	Number of pupils
percent_of_pupils	Percentage
phase_type_grouping	School type - Filter by school type

Footnotes

Totals include state-funded nursery, primary, secondary, alternative provision (AP) schools and special schools, and non-maintained special schools. Does not include independent schools

Go to top

Universal Infant Free School Meals (UIFSM)

Filename: spc_uifsm.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2015/16 to 2023/24
Content: Information on the take up of Universal Infant Free School Meals, including by FSM eligibility.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
characteristic	FSM eligibility - Filter by FSM, Not FSM or Total
denominator	Total number of infant pupils
lunch_taken	Lunch taken - Select required groups
percentage	Percentage of infant pupils taking a meal
phase_type_grouping	School type - Filter by school type
pupils	Number of infant pupils taking a meal

Footnotes

Totals include state-funded nursery, primary, secondary, alternative provision (AP) schools and special schools, and non-maintained special schools. Does not include independent schools

Go to top

Young carers by national curriculum year group

Filename: spc_pupils_young_carers_yrgp.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2022/23 to 2023/24
Content: Pupils in state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools and pupil referral units who have been identified as a young carer

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
characteristic	Characteristics - Select required groups
denominator	Total headcount
number_of_pupils	Number of pupils
percent_of_pupils	Percentage
phase_type_grouping	School type - Filter by school type
young_carer	Known to be a young carer - Select required groups

Footnotes

Totals include state-funded nursery, primary, secondary, alternative provision (AP) schools and special schools, and non-maintained special schools. Does not include independent schools
Data on young carers has been collected in the school census for the first time in 2022/23. The young carer indicator identifies, for those children on roll on spring census day, whether they have been identified as a young carer either by the school (including where the pupil self declares) or by parent or guardian

Go to top

School arranged alternative provision - by characteristics

Filename: spc_school_ap_characteristics.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2022/23 to 2023/24
Content: Number of pupils in school arranged alternative provision, by pupil characteristics

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
pupil_characteristic	Pupil characteristic - Select required groups
pupils	Number of pupils
setting_type	Type of setting

Footnotes

Prior to 2023/24 schools were required to record pupils' gender, which was coded as male /female and reported in the publication as boys/girls. From 2023/24 the variable has been clarified to reflect the pupil's legal sex and is both recorded and reported as male/female. The figures are reported here as constituting a single time series.

Go to top

School arranged alternative provision - by placement reason

Filename: spc_school_ap_placement.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2022/23 to 2023/24
Content: Number of pupils in school arranged alternative provision, by reason for placement

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
pupil_characteristic	Placement Reason - Select required groups
pupils	Number of pupils
setting_type	Type of setting

Go to top

School characteristics

Filename: spc_school_characteristics_.csv
Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
Time period: 2015/16 to 2023/24
Content: Number of schools in England, by type, phase, denomination, admission policy, sex, urban/rural and academy status including headcounts and full-time equivalent, language, free school meals, age and national curriculum year breakdowns

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
academy_flag	Academy indicator - Academy or otherwise
admissions_policy	School admissions policy - Selective or otherwise
denomination	Denomination - Religious denomination
female_boarders	female boarders
fte_pupils	FTE pupils
full_time_female_aged_0	Full time female aged 0
full_time_female_aged_1	Full time female aged 1
full_time_female_aged_10	Full time female aged 10
full_time_female_aged_11	Full time female aged 11
full_time_female_aged_12	Full time female aged 12
full_time_female_aged_13	Full time female aged 13
full_time_female_aged_14	Full time female aged 14
full_time_female_aged_15	Full time female aged 15
full_time_female_aged_16	Full time female aged 16
full_time_female_aged_17	Full time female aged 17
full_time_female_aged_18	Full time female aged 18
full_time_female_aged_19	Full time female aged 19
full_time_female_aged_2	Full time female aged 2
full_time_female_aged_3	Full time female aged 3 (born April to August)
full_time_female_aged_4	Full time female aged 4 (born September to December)
full_time_female_aged_5	Full time female aged 5
full_time_female_aged_6	Full time female aged 6
full_time_female_aged_7	Full time female aged 7
full_time_female_aged_8	Full time female aged 8
full_time_female_aged_9	Full time female aged 9
full_time_female_early_1	Full time female Early 1
full_time_female_early_2	Full time female Early 2
full_time_female_nursery_1	Full time female Nursery 1
full_time_female_nursery_2	Full time female Nursery 2
full_time_female_reception	Full time female Reception
full_time_female_year_group_1	Full time female Year group 1
full_time_female_year_group_10	Full time female Year group 10
full_time_female_year_group_11	Full time female Year group 11
full_time_female_year_group_12	Full time female Year group 12
full_time_female_year_group_13	Full time female Year group 13
full_time_female_year_group_14	Full time female Year group 14
full_time_female_year_group_2	Full time female Year group 2
full_time_female_year_group_3	Full time female Year group 3
full_time_female_year_group_4	Full time female Year group 4
full_time_female_year_group_5	Full time female Year group 5
full_time_female_year_group_6	Full time female Year group 6
full_time_female_year_group_7	Full time female Year group 7
full_time_female_year_group_8	Full time female Year group 8
full_time_female_year_group_9	Full time female Year group 9
full_time_female_year_group_not_followed	Full time female Year group Not followed
full_time_male_aged_0	Full time male aged 0
full_time_male_aged_1	Full time male aged 1
full_time_male_aged_10	Full time male aged 10
full_time_male_aged_11	Full time male aged 11
full_time_male_aged_12	Full time male aged 12
full_time_male_aged_13	Full time male aged 13
full_time_male_aged_14	Full time male aged 14
full_time_male_aged_15	Full time male aged 15
full_time_male_aged_16	Full time male aged 16
full_time_male_aged_17	Full time male aged 17
full_time_male_aged_18	Full time male aged 18
full_time_male_aged_19	Full time male aged 19
full_time_male_aged_2	Full time male aged 2
full_time_male_aged_3	Full time male aged 3 (born April to August)
full_time_male_aged_4	Full time male aged 4 (born September to December)
full_time_male_aged_5	Full time male aged 5
full_time_male_aged_6	Full time male aged 6
full_time_male_aged_7	Full time male aged 7
full_time_male_aged_8	Full time male aged 8
full_time_male_aged_9	Full time male aged 9
full_time_male_early_1	Full time male Early 1
full_time_male_early_2	Full time male Early 2
full_time_male_nursery_1	Full time male Nursery 1
full_time_male_nursery_2	Full time male Nursery 2
full_time_male_reception	Full time male Reception
full_time_male_year_group_1	Full time male Year group 1
full_time_male_year_group_10	Full time male Year group 10
full_time_male_year_group_11	Full time male Year group 11
full_time_male_year_group_12	Full time male Year group 12
full_time_male_year_group_13	Full time male Year group 13
full_time_male_year_group_14	Full time male Year group 14
full_time_male_year_group_2	Full time male Year group 2
full_time_male_year_group_3	Full time male Year group 3
full_time_male_year_group_4	Full time male Year group 4
full_time_male_year_group_5	Full time male Year group 5
full_time_male_year_group_6	Full time male Year group 6
full_time_male_year_group_7	Full time male Year group 7
full_time_male_year_group_8	Full time male Year group 8
full_time_male_year_group_9	Full time male Year group 9
full_time_male_year_group_not_followed	Full time male Year group Not followed
full_time_pupils	Full time pupils
headcount_of_pupils	Headcount - Total
headcount_total_female	Headcount - female
headcount_total_male	Headcount - male
infants_taken_a_free_school_meal_on_census_day	Infants taken a free school meal on census day
male_boarders	male boarders
number_of_early_year_pupils_years_e1_and_e2	Number of early year pupils (years E1 and E2)
number_of_fsm_eligible_pupils_taking_a_free_school_meal_on_census_day	Number of FSM eligible pupils taking a free school meal on census day
number_of_key_stage_1_pupils_years_1_and_2	Number of key stage 1 pupils (years 1 and 2)
number_of_key_stage_2_pupils_years_3_to_6	Number of key stage 2 pupils (years 3 to 6)
number_of_key_stage_3_pupils_years_7_to_9	Number of key stage 3 pupils (years 7 to 9)
number_of_key_stage_4_pupils_years_10_and_11	Number of key stage 4 pupils (years 10 and 11)
number_of_key_stage_5_pupils_years_12_to_14	Number of key stage 5 pupils (years 12 to 14)
number_of_nursery_pupils_years_n1_and_n2	Number of nursery pupils (years N1 and N2)
number_of_pupils_known_to_be_eligible_for_free_school_meals	Known to be eligible for free school meals
number_of_pupils_known_to_be_eligible_for_free_school_meals_performance_tables	Known to be eligible for free school meals (using performance tables methodology)
number_of_pupils_not_reception_or_key_stage_1_to_5	Number of pupils not reception or key stage 1 to 5
number_of_pupils_of_compulsory_school_age_and_above	Number of pupils of compulsory school age and above
number_of_pupils_used_for_fsm_calculation_in_performance_tables	Number of pupils used for FSM calculation in Performance Tables
number_of_pupils_whose_first_language_is_known_or_believed_to_be_english	First language is known or believed to be English
number_of_pupils_whose_first_language_is_known_or_believed_to_be_other_than_english	First language is known or believed to be other than English
number_of_pupils_whose_first_language_is_unclassified	First language is unclassified
number_of_reception_pupils_year_r	Number of reception pupils (year R)
number_of_schools	Number of schools
part_time_female_aged_0	Part time female aged 0
part_time_female_aged_1	Part time female aged 1
part_time_female_aged_10	Part time female aged 10
part_time_female_aged_11	Part time female aged 11
part_time_female_aged_12	Part time female aged 12
part_time_female_aged_13	Part time female aged 13
part_time_female_aged_14	Part time female aged 14
part_time_female_aged_15	Part time female aged 15
part_time_female_aged_16	Part time female aged 16
part_time_female_aged_17	Part time female aged 17
part_time_female_aged_18	Part time female aged 18
part_time_female_aged_19	Part time female aged 19
part_time_female_aged_2	Part time female aged 2
part_time_female_aged_3	Part time female aged 3 (born April to August)
part_time_female_aged_4	Part time female aged 4 (born September to December)
part_time_female_aged_5	Part time female aged 5
part_time_female_aged_6	Part time female aged 6
part_time_female_aged_7	Part time female aged 7
part_time_female_aged_8	Part time female aged 8
part_time_female_aged_9	Part time female aged 9
part_time_female_early_1	Part time female Early 1
part_time_female_early_2	Part time female Early 2
part_time_female_nursery_1	Part time female Nursery 1
part_time_female_nursery_2	Part time female Nursery 2
part_time_female_reception	Part time female Reception
part_time_female_year_group_1	Part time female Year group 1
part_time_female_year_group_10	Part time female Year group 10
part_time_female_year_group_11	Part time female Year group 11
part_time_female_year_group_12	Part time female Year group 12
part_time_female_year_group_13	Part time female Year group 13
part_time_female_year_group_14	Part time female Year group 14
part_time_female_year_group_2	Part time female Year group 2
part_time_female_year_group_3	Part time female Year group 3
part_time_female_year_group_4	Part time female Year group 4
part_time_female_year_group_5	Part time female Year group 5
part_time_female_year_group_6	Part time female Year group 6
part_time_female_year_group_7	Part time female Year group 7
part_time_female_year_group_8	Part time female Year group 8
part_time_female_year_group_9	Part time female Year group 9
part_time_female_year_group_not_followed	Part time female Year group Not followed
part_time_male_aged_0	part time male aged 0
part_time_male_aged_1	part time male aged 1
part_time_male_aged_10	Part time male aged 10
part_time_male_aged_11	Part time male aged 11
part_time_male_aged_12	Part time male aged 12
part_time_male_aged_13	Part time male aged 13
part_time_male_aged_14	Part time male aged 14
part_time_male_aged_15	Part time male aged 15
part_time_male_aged_16	Part time male aged 16
part_time_male_aged_17	Part time male aged 17
part_time_male_aged_18	Part time male aged 18
part_time_male_aged_19	Part time male aged 19
part_time_male_aged_2	part time male aged 2
part_time_male_aged_3	Part time male aged 3 (born April to August)
part_time_male_aged_4	Part time male aged 4 (born September to December)
part_time_male_aged_5	Part time male aged 5
part_time_male_aged_6	Part time male aged 6
part_time_male_aged_7	Part time male aged 7
part_time_male_aged_8	Part time male aged 8
part_time_male_aged_9	Part time male aged 9
part_time_male_early_1	Part time male Early 1
part_time_male_early_2	Part time male Early 2
part_time_male_nursery_1	Part time male Nursery 1
part_time_male_nursery_2	Part time male Nursery 2
part_time_male_reception	Part time male Reception
part_time_male_year_group_1	Part time male Year group 1
part_time_male_year_group_10	Part time male Year group 10
part_time_male_year_group_11	Part time male Year group 11
part_time_male_year_group_12	Part time male Year group 12
part_time_male_year_group_13	Part time male Year group 13
part_time_male_year_group_14	Part time male Year group 14
part_time_male_year_group_2	Part time male Year group 2
part_time_male_year_group_3	Part time male Year group 3
part_time_male_year_group_4	Part time male Year group 4
part_time_male_year_group_5	Part time male Year group 5
part_time_male_year_group_6	Part time male Year group 6
part_time_male_year_group_7	Part time male Year group 7
part_time_male_year_group_8	Part time male Year group 8
part_time_male_year_group_9	Part time male Year group 9
part_time_male_year_group_not_followed	Part time male Year group Not followed
part_time_pupils	Part time pupils
phase_type_grouping	School type - Filter by school type
sex_of_school_description	Sex of school description - Mixed, boys, girls
total_boarders	Total boarders
type_of_establishment	School type (detailed) - Filter by school type (further detail)
urban_rural	Urban or rural indicator - Urban or rural indicator

Go to top