Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many unregistered schools are currently operating.

An unregistered school is defined as any setting that is operating as an independent school without registration. It is a criminal offence under section 96 of the Education and Skills Act 2008 for a person to operate an unregistered independent school. The department does not retain data about the number of unregistered schools operating.

The department works closely with Ofsted, the Crown Prosecution Service and the police to identify and close unregistered schools to ensure children are protected from harm. Ofsted has powers under section 97 of the Education and Skills Act 2008 that allows for unannounced inspections of settings believed to be operating in breach of registration requirements. A team of inspectors are employed to identify, investigate and inspect any setting where there is evidence to suggest that an unregistered independent school is operating.