Private vs Public vs Independent Schools in UK? - Confused

Posted by deleted_by_reddit@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 2 comments

Hi everyone.

I have a question. I am from the "mainland" of Europe, thus we have mostly public schools (funded by government) and private schools (run by private organizations and very expensive).

Could you please tell me what is the difference between Public, Independent, Private schools in the UK.

I find is somewhat confusing. Especially the difference between private, independent and public schools in the UK and the meaning of these.

Are independent schools private or state school or they can be both?

Are private schools the same as independent schools? (Two words but same meaning - synonyms)

Are public schools state run schools or they can also be private? I have read somewhere that public schools only mean that everyone can attend, but that they can be in private ownership.

Thank you in advance :)

PS I apologize for the errors, English is not my first language :)

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deleted_by_reddit@reddit (OP)

Public = State = funded by the government and is free Private = independent = not funded at all by the government and is paid for. So basically state and public are the same thing, but they are usually called state schools as in America I think public schools are different, so officially it’s state school not public school, then there is independent schools which are the same as private schools, (when I say same I mean that they are synonyms, and are interchangeable terms, not that they are similar)

lialemonadee@reddit

state and public aren’t the same in the uk, a public school is a private school and isn’t free