What Do Parents Really Want from Education?

Choosing a different kind of education

Why Waldorf? A Case Study (2024) explored why parents choose Steiner Waldorf education, drawing on 54 completed questionnaires and four in-depth interviews with parents of children attending UK Waldorf schools.

The findings revealed three particularly important influences on parents' decisions:

• A nurturing environment: Parents valued calm, caring school communities where children feel safe, supported and able to develop at their own pace. • A broad, creative education: Play-based early childhood education, artistic and practical learning, time outdoors and an approach that recognises the whole child were strong attractions. • Qualities for life: Rather than focusing primarily on examination results, parents emphasised curiosity, creativity, independence, confidence and a lasting love of learning.

A different understanding of success

Much of the existing research on school choice assumes that parents, particularly those from middle-class backgrounds, seek schools that will maximise academic achievement and future economic advantage. Bransby's findings offer a different perspective. The parents in this study were less concerned with conventional markers of success and more interested in creating the conditions in which their children could flourish as individuals.

Many also expressed concerns about aspects of standard mainstream education, particularly the early introduction of formal learning, academic pressure and a curriculum they perceived as giving insufficient attention to creativity and practical experience. Importantly, these were not necessarily parents seeking an easier education. Some were prepared to make considerable financial and personal sacrifices to secure the educational experience they believed was right for their children.

Quality still matters

The research also revealed tensions. Although academic results were rarely cited as a primary reason for choosing Waldorf education, concerns about academic progress and educational quality were common. Parents wanted an education that nurtured children's wider development without compromising the quality of their learning.

This highlights the importance of schools being able to demonstrate both the value of their distinctive educational approach and the quality of education they provide.

What does this mean for education policy?

Although small-scale and exploratory, the study raises an important question for policymakers: are we measuring what parents really value in education? School performance is often judged through examination results, attainment data and inspection outcomes. Yet these findings suggest that parents may place equal or greater importance on qualities that are harder to measure: wellbeing, creativity, independence, motivation and the capacity to engage positively with the world.

The research does not establish that Waldorf schools achieve these outcomes more successfully than other schools. Rather, it provides valuable insight into what motivates families to seek a different educational approach.

At a time when the purpose of education, children's wellbeing and the skills needed for an uncertain future are increasingly debated, these findings offer a timely contribution to the wider conversation about what a good education should provide.

About the research: Kath Bransby, Why Waldorf? A Case Study, MA Education Research Project, Sheffield Hallam University, August 2024. Kath is also the Educational Coordinator at Waldorf UK. This qualitative study involved 54 parent questionnaires and four interviews. The findings are exploratory and are not intended to be representative of all Waldorf parents or families more widely.