Number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal was 2 in 2025. ▬ Flat
Latest (2025)
2
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
45th
of 189 countries
All-time high
2
in 1998
All-time low
2
in 1998
Years of data
28
1998–2025
Number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal in United Kingdom, 1998–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
In 2025, number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal in United Kingdom stood at 2. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.
The figure is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal in United Kingdom peaked at 2 in 1998 and was at its lowest, 2, in 1998.
That places United Kingdom 45th out of 189 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
Number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 2 | — |
| 1999 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 2 | +0.0% |
United Kingdom compared with similar countries
- United Kingdom's 2 is above the median for high income countries, which is 1.5, 1.3× the median. (68 countries reporting)
- United Kingdom's 2 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 2, 1.0× the median. (50 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 2000s | 2 | 2 | 2 | 10 |
| 2010s | 2 | 2 | 2 | 10 |
| 2020s | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
- 45 Aruba 2 compare
- 45 United Arab Emirates 2 compare
- 45 Bahamas 2 compare
- 45 Belize 2 compare
- 45 Bolivia 2 compare
- 45 Brazil 2 compare
- 45 Barbados 2 compare
- 45 Switzerland 2 compare
- 45 Chile 2 compare
- 45 Cook Islands 2 compare
- 45 Costa Rica 2 compare
- 45 Cayman Islands 2 compare
- 45 Georgia 2 compare
- 45 Ghana 2 compare
- 45 Greece 2 compare
- 45 Grenada 2 compare
- 45 Iraq 2 compare
- 45 Libya 2 compare
- 45 Maldives 2 compare
- 45 Mexico 2 compare
- 45 Malta 2 compare
- 45 Netherlands 2 compare
- 45 Nauru 2 compare
- 45 New Zealand 2 compare
- 45 Panama 2 compare
- 45 Portugal 2 compare
- 45 Sudan 2 compare
- 45 Sint Maarten (Dutch part) 2 compare
- 45 Turks and Caicos Islands 2 compare
- 45 Uruguay 2 compare
- 45 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 2 compare
More education data for United Kingdom
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 388,714 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 0 (2012)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 830,495 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 790,556 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 6.40 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.86 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.0111 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.071 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal in United Kingdom?
- Number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal in United Kingdom was 2 in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 2 in 1998.
- What is the lowest number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 2 in 1998.
- How does United Kingdom rank for number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal?
- United Kingdom ranks 45th out of 189 countries with data for 2025.
- Is number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal frameworks. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release