Shanghai will open its first free high school this autumn to help students from the city's most impoverished families to continue study, municipal education officials said Wednesday.

The school, temporarily named Jiulong Model High School, occupies an area of 12,000 square meters in the Zhabei District and its 25 classrooms can accommodate 1,120 students. About 500 students will be recruited this autumn.

The school will provide totally free schooling for its students. It charges no tuition besides free books, school uniforms and lunches, and offers scholarships for the most distinguished students.

The school will recruit its teachers from some of the best schools in Shanghai and college graduates.

The idea of a free high school was first suggested by Shanghai Mayor Xu Kuangdi earlier this year and eventually materialized by the Municipal Commission of Education and the Zhabei District government.

The school will be supported by the city education commission, the district government and social donations.

Education officials estimate that about 10 percent of the primary and high school students in Shanghai are from families with economic problems, while two to three percent are from extremely poor families.