The British school system is diverse, complicated and has been the subject of much debate in recent decades. In this essay I will try to explain the British system of grammar schools and public schools and also discuss whether or not the system upholds the social differences in today’s Britain. Are the “old Etonians” losing power? Schools in Britain are divided into two groups; state schools and independent schools. Grammar schools are state secondary schools. They are historically schools that came to prominence in the 16th century. The schools were attached to cathedrals and monasteries, teaching Latin to future priests and monks. The modern grammar school concept, however, dates back to the Education Act 1944. Prior to 1944, secondary education after the age of 14 had been fee-paying, but now the Act made it free. It also reorganised secondary education into two basic types; grammar schools and secondary modern schools. This system was called the “tripartite system” because it also provided for a third type of school, the technical school, but few were established and the system was therefore widely regarded as being bipartite. Grammar schools were intended to teach an academic curriculum to the most intellectually able 25 per cent of the school population. Pupils were selected by an examination taken at age 11, called the eleven plus. Secondary modern schools were intended for children who would be going into trades, and which therefore concentrated on basic and vocational skills. The system was controversial, many feared that the secondary modern schools were giving a second-rate education and that pupils would be branded as “failures” at the age of 11. There were two types of grammar schools under the system: There were more than 1200 maintained grammar schools, which were fully state-funded. There were also 179 direct-grant grammar schools, which took between one quarter and one half of their pupils from the state system, and the rest from fee-paying parents. Grammar school pupils received the best opportunities in the state system, and children from grammar and public schools effectively monopolised access to universities. The system grew increasingly unpopular during the 1950s and 60s. Labour supporters and politicians argued that the system reinforced class division and the privileges of the middle classes who dominated the grammar schools. It was expensive, as it required the maintenance of at least two secondary schools in every area. So in 1964 the new Labour government wanted to phase out grammar schools and replacing them and secondary moderns with a comprehensive system for pupils of all abilities. The timescale for implementation, however, was left to local authorities and naturally the quickest shifts were made in Labour-controlled areas whi