Education in the Falkland Islands

Education in the Falkland Islands is free and compulsory up to the end of the academic year when a child reaches 16 years of age. The Falklands follows the English education system.

Elementary and Secondary

There are two schools in Stanley, the capital and only substantial settlement. The Infant and Junior School teaches ages 4 to 11 and the Falkland Islands Community School caters for ages 11 to 16. Other rural pupils are taught by travelling teachers. Older children can board in a hostel in Stanley so they can attend school there.

All teachers are trained in the UK or other English-speaking countries. There is also a primary school at RAF Mount Pleasant that mainly serves the children of members of the British armed forces. Some primary aged children who live in "camp" (the local term for the countryside) are educated remotely.

The Falkland Islands Government pays for qualified 16- to 18-year-olds to go to England to take A-level courses at Peter Symonds College, Winchester or to attend Chichester College to acquire National Diplomas or NVQs. The government also funds higher and further education courses for over-18s, also usually in the UK, for suitably qualified students.

Post Secondary

There are no post-secondary institutions on the Falklands, post-secondary studies would require travel to the UK or beyond.

External links

• Falkland Islands Government education page
• Falkland Islands Infant and Junior School
• Mount Pleasant School on the RAF base
• Peter Symonds College, the UK sixth-form college for Falkland Students