The Education Act of 1944 launched an unprecedented experiment in the history of education in the UK. This book is a brief survey of the routes by which compulsory free secondary education was arrived at, as well as an examination of the position in 1949 and suggestions for the future.

Starting with the creation of the early technical schools before the First Wold War and finishing with John Patten's policies as Secretary of State for Education in 1993, Sanderson examines the development of the technical school sector and the factors which weakened it and led to its demise. The book argues that the neglect of technical schools has resulted in poor levels of skill formation and industrial performance in Britain, especially since the Second World War.