Elementary Education Act 1870 further acts in 1876 ("the Sandon Act", which gave parents a legal obligation to ensure that their children were educated) and 1880 ("the Mundella Act") made attendance compulsory for children until they were 10 years old, with various exemptions. Many factory owners feared the removal of children as a source of cheap labour. However, with the simple mathematics and English they were acquiring, factory owners now had workers who could read and make measurements. Following continued campaigning by the National Education League, following the Elementary Education Act 1880, attendance to age 10 became compulsory everywhere in England and Wales. In
Raising of school leaving age The school leaving age in Germany is essentially set at 18. However, it does differ depending on the school type. For example, those attending a Gymnasium study for their Abitur and so leave at a later age of 18 than those for example attending a Berufsschule (16) or a Hauptschule (also 16). Although the national schools provided free primary education in Ireland from the 1830s, the Powis Commission of 1868-70 recognised a problem of low school attendance. The Education (Ireland) Act 1892 made attendance compulsory from ages 6 to 14 in urban districts, extended to rural districts by the Local