The term public school refers to a group of older, more expensive and exclusive fee-paying private independent schools in the United Kingdom, particularly in England, which cater primarily for children aged between 13 and 18. Traditionally, these were boys' boarding schools, although most now allow day pupils and many have turned either partially or fully co-educational. They emerged from ancient charity schools established to educate poor scholars, the term "public" being used to indicate that access to them was not restricted on the basis of religion, occupation or home location.