All in the mix

All in the mix is a careful consideration of how parents choose secondary schools for their children, focusing on how parents talk about social categories - particularly of race, religion and class - in the selection process.

The book explores how parents' racialised and classed positions, as well as their own personal experiences of education, can shape the way they approach school choice. Byrne argues that the ways in which parents talk about their decisions shows how they are choosing the socialsetting of their children's education as much as the pedagogical approach or resources offered by the schools. This is often an emotional arena for parents and therefore school choice opens up a moment to explore the ways in which people imagine themselves, their children and others in social, relational, space.

Based on in-depth interviews with parents from a range of different class and racialised backgrounds from three defined areas in and around Manchester, the book is able to explore how discussions about school selection are shaped by the places in which the choices are made. Understanding this decision making thus involves considering the class and racialised backgrounds of the families as well as the localised context in which those choices are made.