A studio school is a type of specialist secondary school in England that is designed to give students practical skills in workplace environments as well as traditional academic and vocational courses of study. Like traditional schools, studio schools teach the National Curriculum and offer academic and vocational qualifications. However, studio schools also have links to local employers and offer education related to the world of work. Twenty studio schools will have closed by the summer of 2018; the introduction of studio schools has been widely criticised .