Equity, economics and educational need: some tensions between consumer and producer interests in the management of secondary school admission procedures in Thanet, UK

Abstract

This paper analyses the process of secondary school admission in the District of Thanet in the contexts of consumerism and the functioning of the educational marketplace. It examines tensions between consumers and producers, and juxtaposes educational need with individual gain, arguing that the Local Education Authority's policies, the plethora of admission procedures and the superordinate political positioning of the market over need combine to reinforce educational exclusion. The paper concludes that consumerism strengthens the social advantages enjoyed by some individuals, but does not efficiently meet educational needs or effect equitable access to school places.

Notes

Correspondence to: Paul Welsh, c/o The Editor, School Leadership and Management.

But not always. Some parents enter their child to find out whether or not s/he would ‘pass’ the 11+ selection but, irrespective of the result, send their child to a non‐selective secondary school as their first preference.