Public sector spending on education in the United Kingdom reached 118.7 billion British pounds in 2024/25, compared with 114.2 billion pounds in the previous year.

The United Kingdom spent approximately ***** billion British pounds on education in 2024/25, **** billion of which was spent on secondary education and *****billion of which was spent on primary and pre-primary education.

Government spending on higher or tertiary education in the United Kingdom amounted to 4.5 billion British pounds in 2024/25, compared with 7.2 billion in the previous financial year.

In 2024/25, the government of the United Kingdom spent approximately 4.1 percent of its gross domestic product on education, compared with 4.2 percent in the previous financial year. During this time period, education spending as a share of GDP was highest in 2009/10 when it was 5.7 percent.

Actual value and historical data chart for United Kingdom Public Spending On Education Total Percent Of GDP

The United Kingdom: Public spending on education, percent of GDP: The latest value from 2022 is 4.96 percent, a decline from 5.9 percent in 2021. In comparison, the world average is 4.15 percent, based on data from 130 countries. Historically, the average for the United Kingdom from 1971 to 2022 is 5 percent. The minimum value, 3.99 percent, was reached in 1999 while the maximum of 6.42 percent was recorded in 1976.

This file contains the actual figures for planned expenditure for the schools budget and for the other education and community budget. Data is shown for individual local authorities and also includes unrounded regional and national totals.

Forecast: Government Budget Allocations for R&D in Education in the UK 2024 - 2028 Discover more data with ReportLinker!

Historical dataset showing U.K. education spending by year from 1995 to 2022.

In 2024/25, education spending in the United Kingdom was ***** British pounds per capita, ranging from ******pounds per capita in Scotland, to ***** pounds per capita in South West England.

Forecast: Civil Government Budget Allocations for R&D for Education and Social Programmes in the UK 2023 - 2027 Discover more data with ReportLinker!

United Kingdom UK: Government Expenditure on Education: Total: % of GDP data was reported at 5.631 % in 2015. This records a decrease from the previous number of 5.693 % for 2014. United Kingdom UK: Government Expenditure on Education: Total: % of GDP data is updated yearly, averaging 4.944 % from Dec 1971 (Median) to 2015, with 40 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 6.424 % in 1976 and a record low of 4.025 % in 1999. United Kingdom UK: Government Expenditure on Education: Total: % of GDP data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United Kingdom – Table UK.World Bank.WDI: Education Statistics. General government expenditure on education (current, capital, and transfers) is expressed as a percentage of GDP. It includes expenditure funded by transfers from international sources to government. General government usually refers to local, regional and central governments.; ; United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Institute for Statistics.; Median;

Dataset moved to: https://data.london.gov.uk/dataset/gla-adult-skills-fund/

Forecast: Household Spending on Tertiary Education in the UK 2024 - 2028 Discover more data with ReportLinker!

This file contains school level information on the number of planned places and the planned expenditure for high needs places.

Government expenditure on education, total (% of government expenditure) in United Kingdom was reported at 10.64 % in 2022, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. United Kingdom - Public spending on education, total (% of government expenditure) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on November of 2025.