In an open letter to The Treasury, the leaders of the Independent Schools Council (ISC) and the Boarding Schools’ Association (BSA) have called for the Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA) to be increased once VAT is added to school fees in January. CEO of the ISC Julie Robinson and director of the BSA  David Walker have warned that Labour's VAT policy could make it harder to recruit parents to serve in the Armed Forces, “risking the security of our nation”. The letter states: "Currently, over 4,000 children who have at least one parent serving in the armed forces receive Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA) through the Ministry of Defence... The majority of these children attend independent schools by necessity; there is not capacity in the nation’s state boarding schools to accommodate them. The choice of a boarding school allows children stability". The article also quotes Christian San José, headmaster of Wycliffe College, who warns: "Many of our families are not officers, so they have to carefully budget... any increase in fees will hit those families hard. I have been speaking to families in absolute crisis, not knowing if fees will rise in January and if they will have to withdraw their children. Some may have to leave the military." By Sian Griffiths, The Sunday Times. The open letter can be read in full here.

The Telegraph reports that the British Army is consulting military families amid concerns over school fees rising in January as a result of VAT. Families have been asked to share their views by 23 September in the poll drawn up by the Army’s policy team and shared on its official social media channels. The article looks in detail at the CEA, explaining that it is designed to provide stability for children whose parents frequently work away, and can cover up to 90 per cent of boarding school fees. The paper states that ministers have so far held off from granting a VAT exemption for those in receipt of CEA and said it will “closely monitor” the impact of its tax plans on those children. By entering their postcode into an interactive tool at the end of the article, readers can see whether state schools in the area are likely to be overwhelmed by pupils leaving independent schools. By Poppy Wood. The Telegraph View considers the implications of Labour's VAT policy, stating that "the impact is being felt especially acutely by the Armed Forces". It adds: "This is a hammer blow to morale at a time when the Army, the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force are facing serious challenges in recruitment and retention. Ensuring stability for families, especially with children of school age, is one of the few ways in which the strains of life in uniform can be mitigated."

Robert Jenrick has said he would lift the ban on opening new grammar schools and reverse Labour’s decision to impose VAT on independent school fees if he becomes leader of the Conservative Party and wins the next general election. The former immigration minister is reported to be the front-runner to succeed Rishi Sunak. By Ben Riley-Smith and Jack Maidment, The Telegraph.

Speaking to Steve Harris on BBC Radio Solent, headteacher of Dumpton School Christian Saenger said fees at his school will not be rising as a result of the VAT changes. Seeking to reassure parents who are anxious about the tax policy, Mr Saenger explained: "There are lots of individual families and individual stories and we wanted to do all we could to support our school community through this." Listen from 52:40.

In the latest episode of The Telegraph's Daily T, Camilla Tominey and Tim Stanley discuss some of the myths surrounding independent schools in the UK. They talk to parents and consider the impact of the VAT rise with some schools already forced to close. 

It has been a busy start to the week for the ISC team attending the Liberal Democrat Party Conference in Brighton. Chief executive of the ISC Julie Robinson and colleagues have been meeting with senior party figures, new MPs, and union leaders to discuss the VAT on fees policy on your behalf. We will continue to update DNS readers on events from this year's party conferences via this video diary. 

The cost of supporting schoolchildren with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) has jumped by more than two-thirds since lockdown amid rising numbers of pupils with autism. Local authority spending on children with SEND has risen by 70 per cent since 2018-19, from £6.9 billion to £12 billion, The Telegraph's analysis of Department for Education planned spending has shown. The sharp rise in costs also comes amid an increase in the number of children with autism who are entitled to support. By Szu Ping Chan, Ben Butcher and Tim Wallace.

Ministers have raised fines for parents of children who miss school without permission in an effort to reduce absence across England, sparking concern among parents of children with SEND, who fear penalties if their child struggles to attend. Speaking to Sky News, one headteacher says the new rules mean deciding when to fine parents would not be simple. By Anjum Peerbacos.

State schools in England should set up debating clubs and train teachers to encourage classroom discussions in order to improve children’s oracy and help them develop speaking skills for life, director of teaching and learning at Eton College Jonathan Noakes has suggested. Mr Noakes' remarks have been published in a recent Sutton Trust report, which found that 96 per cent of teachers think life skills are as important as, or more important than, formal academic qualifications in determining how well young people do in adulthood. By Sally Weale, The Guardian.

Thenuk Rodrigo and Simba Shi, both pupils at Eton College, have described the “overwhelming” feeling of seeing their climate technology invention used around the world. The pair co-founded environmental start-up ReefSound last summer, aiming to use AI analysis of sound recordings to transform coral reef protection methods. Since its creation, the start-up has attracted the interest of Nasa officials and is being drafted in by conservation organisations for use in seven countries. By Alex Croft, The Independent. 

The Sunday Times visits Heritage School, a co-educational independent school for children aged 4-16 where screens are not used and smartphones are banned until pupils are “at least 14”. Headteacher Jason Fletcher explains: "We have never used interactive white boards, tablets or laptops — and there has never been any felt need." The article looks at the school's teaching methods, which include poetry recitals, nature walks and the use of text books. The only exception to the screen ban is that they are used for GCSE computer science. By Sian Griffiths. 

School leaders from St Albans talk to The Times about how they plan to take action to reduce screen use among pupils. By Georgia Lambert.

The Independent Schools Council (ISC) monitors the national and educational press in order to keep independent schools up-to-date with relevant education news. The DNS is a service primarily for schools in membership of ISC associations, although other interested parties can choose to sign-up. We endeavour to include relevant news and commentary and, wherever possible, notable public letters. Where capacity allows, we may include links to ISC blogs, press statements and information about school or association events. News stories are selected based on their relevance to the independent sector as a whole. Editorial control of the DNS remains solely with the ISC.

Sign-up to the email service is available on our website.

Members can contact the ISC if they know in advance of news, letters or opinions that are likely to feature in the media, or are aware of existing coverage which they would like to see featured in the DNS.

Headlines and first-line summaries are written by the ISC with the link directing to the source material. You should read and comply with the terms and conditions of the websites to which we link.