Ifop, in partnership with the Comité national d’action laïque (CNAL), presents a survey of parents on the choice between public and private schools. With declining support for private education, increased demand for school supervision and expectations for public school reform, what do the French think of the different forms of education today?
Against a backdrop of declining support for private education, the French reject public funding in the majority of cases
- In 2025, less than two-thirds of French people (63%) support the principle of private education in France, compared to 71% in 1983
The principle of private education in France is not contested, but its standing in public opinion is significantly eroded if we compare the support it enjoys today (63%) with that which it had at the time of the mobilization in defense of free schools (71% in 1983) – the last major moment when its existence was the subject of public debate.
Three quarters of parents (73%) want their children to attend state schools. Only a minority of practicing Catholic parents (48%) would like their child to attend a state school, as would parents who have only attended private schools themselves (30%).
- Only 28% of parents consider it normal for the State to finance private education, a proportion that has fallen sharply since 1983 (-25 points)
While the existence of private schools is not called into question, the principle of public funding is rejected by a large majority of parents: 60% of parents surveyed believe that families should bear the financial burden. Conversely, only one in four (28%) believe that “it is normal for the State to finance private education”, a proportion half that of some forty years ago (53% in 1983). Parents with their children in private schools are more divided: 48% think it’s normal for the State to finance private education, while 42% think that families making this choice should bear the cost.
Almost unanimous demand for tighter controls on private schools
- Eight out of ten parents (79%) support tighter pedagogical and financial controls on private schools
This collapse in support for the principle of public funding of private schools goes hand in hand with a desire for tighter financial control by the State, with a near-consensus emerging around the introduction of sanctions in the event of non-compliance with the terms of the contract signed with the State (81%), or even the abolition of public funding (77%) and, to a lesser extent, modulating it according to criteria of school (69%) or social (65%) mix.
- A majority of French people (60%) are opposed to teachers praying with their pupils during school hours, even in private religious establishments
This desire for greater respect for the conditions that bind private establishments under contract to the State also affects other areas, such as respect for religious neutrality in the classroom: 60% of French people are opposed to prayer during school hours in private religious establishments. The new Secretary General of Catholic education, Guillaume Prévost, who came in for criticism after declarations in favor of prayer in the classroom, is supported by only a small majority of private school parents: 42% oppose the idea of prayer time encroaching on school time.
- Two-thirds of parents consider private school controls on violence against pupils to be inadequate
Similarly, a large majority of parents express the wish for greater control of private schools with regard to physical or psychological violence between pupils (68%), sexual violence towards or between pupils (67%) and violence by teaching staff (64%). Far more parents of students in the public sector consider these controls to be insufficient than those in the private sector (+19, +22 and +14 points respectively).
A majority of parents also consider checks on compliance with sex education programs (53%) or the transmission of the values of the Republic (52%) to be insufficient.
Clear reform priorities and real attractiveness of public schools… but success underestimated
- There is a consensus on the priorities for reforming public schools: 93% of parents consider it urgent to improve safety and discipline
Behind this imperative, most parents also want to improve the quality of teaching (88%) and facilities (84%). What’s more, almost one parent in two (47%) would like to see private schools integrated into the public service, a rate that rises to 52% among parents with children in private schools, a sign of an expectation of alignment with public standards.
- While the quality of teaching is the main criterion for parents when choosing a school for their child (78%), differences emerge: public schools seem more accessible, while private schools seem more focused on success…
The most important factors in choosing a school are the quality of the teaching (78%), followed by the well-being of the pupils (73%), and their safety (71%).
However, there were real differences between parents who wanted to send their children to a public school and those who preferred to send them to a private one. Parents wishing to send their children to private schools paid more attention to the quality of teaching (85% vs. 75% for parents wishing to send their children to public schools), safety (79% vs. 68%), student follow-up (79% vs. 67%) and teacher absences (72% vs. 54%). On the other hand, parents of pupils who wanted to send their child to a state school gave more weight to practical aspects: 57% of them found the school’s proximity to their home (vs. 42%), transport facilities (54% vs. 41%), and the overall cost of schooling (53%, vs. 37%) to be decisive.
- … Despite the official figures for public schools!
63% of parents who wanted to send their child to a private school found the level of the pupils and their exam success rate decisive, despite the fact that, according to official figures from the Ministry of Education, public schools are more successful than private ones. Over two-thirds (70%) of parents claim to be unaware of this fact.
