In a written question in the House of Lords, Lord Black of Brentwood, honorary president of the Boarding Schools' Association (BSA) and a Conservative peer, asked whether ministers plan to review the tax information and impact note entitled Private School Fees – VAT Measure, published on 15 November 2024, "given that pupil losses in the independent school sector have already exceeded the level forecast for the 2029/30 school year". Responding, Labour peer Lord Pitt-Watson, reiterated ministers' claims that the VAT on fees policy "will raise £1.7 billion a year by 2029/30". The fall in independent school pupil numbers since the policy took effect is "in line with expectations", he said, adding that wider demographic changes, including falling birth rates, are also a factor. Hansard. 

Fewer than one in 10 young people believes the education system is preparing them for a world with artificial intelligence (AI), Britain's Greatest Education Opportunity Ever report has found. A number of news outlets cover the report, co-authored by Sir Anthony Seldon and Tim Bunting, which warns that, if AI adaptation is treated as optional, the education system will lose "authority and legitimacy". Tes. Also covered by Hayley Clarke, BBC News. 

In an interview with Tes, Sarah Al Amiri, minister of education for the United Arab Emirates (UAE), talks about why the nation is rolling out an AI literacy curriculum and reducing screen usage. Central to this approach is a clear distinction between using technology and relying on it. Ms Al Amiri explains: "We are a country that is for technology, and pupils need to learn how to use it - but also when to use it at the appropriate time, not a replacement for thinking, not a replacement for foundational knowledge that is required."

The government should focus on removing structural and reputational barriers holding back existing vocational qualifications instead of overhauling them, interim findings from a major report by Cambridge OCR suggest. Due to be issued later this autumn, the report will reveal that teachers, students and parents valued existing vocational qualifications for 14–16-year-olds, but that issues such as low awareness, staff capacity and lack of resources are holding these qualifications back. Speaking to Schools Week, former education secretary Charles Clarke, who chaired the review, said existing vocational qualifications such as technical awards could be assisting more young people, without the need for "disrupting overhauls". By Esmé Kenney.

In an article for Tes, Dr Simon Hyde, CEO of HMC (The Heads' Conference), reflects on his recent visit to schools across Australia and New Zealand, where government funding and a strong culture of parental choice have created a very different independent sector. On the issue of tax, he contrasts the UK's decision to charge VAT on fees with the approach taken elsewhere. "That doesn't mean, of course, that schools in Australia aren't vulnerable to the constant search for increased tax revenue", he says, pointing to the payroll tax introduced for independent schools in Victoria two years ago. Concluding his piece, Dr Hyde urges the UK sector to be more vocal and says: "In the UK, the sector tends to be more apologetic and certainly more reticent - perhaps this could, and should, change?"

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