Education Act 1918
| Act of Parliament | |
| Long title | An Act to make further provision with respect to Education in England and Wales and for purposes connected therewith. |
|---|---|
| Citation | 8 & 9 Geo. 5. c. 39 |
| Territorial extent | England and Wales |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 8 August 1918 |
| Commencement | |
| Other legislation | |
| Amends | |
| Repeals/revokes |
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| Amended by |
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| Relates to | Education (Scotland) Act 1918 |
Status: Partially repealed | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Revised text of statute as amended | |
| Text of the Education Act 1918 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk. | |
| Education (Scotland) Act 1918 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
| Long title | An Act to make further provision with respect to Education in Scotland and for purposes connected therewith. |
| Citation | 8 & 9 Geo. 5. c. 48 |
| Territorial extent | Scotland |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 21 November 1918 |
| Other legislation | |
| Relates to | Education Act 1918 |
The Education Act 1918 (8 & 9 Geo. 5. c. 39), often known as the Fisher Act, is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was drawn up by H. A. L. Fisher. Herbert Lewis, Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Education, also played a key role in drawing up the act. The act applied only to England and Wales; a separate "Education (Scotland) Act 1918" applied for Scotland.
This raised the school leaving age to fourteen and planned to expand government provided education up to eighteen years of age. Other features of the 1918 Education Act included the provision of ancillary services (medical inspection, nursery schools, centres for pupils with special needs, etc.).
Industrialists, landowners, and the Church of England resisted the Act, which raised the school leaving age from 12 to 14, made it much harder to employ children under 12, and put in place scholarships to fee-paying grammar schools. The Act promised compulsory part-time education from 14 to 18, but this was never implemented because of the Geddes Axe (spending cuts) of 1921. Teachers’ pay was also cut at that time and again in the May Committee cuts of 1931.