when did state schools began in the uk
History of education in England Prior to the nineteenth century, there were few schools. Most of those that existed were run by church authorities and stressed religious education.[11] The Church of England resisted early attempts for the state to provide secular education.[12] In 1811, the Anglican National Society for Promoting the Education of the Poor in the Principles of the Established Church in England and Wales was established. Historically, the schools founded by the National Society were called National Schools (still an integral part of the state school system). The Protestant non-conformist, non-denominational, or "British schools" were founded by Society for Promoting the Lancasterian System for the Education of the Poor, an organisation formed in 1808 by Joseph Fox, William Allen and Samuel Whitbread and supported by several evangelical and non-conformist Christians.[13]