ISC CEO: 'It seems clear to us that the government has underestimated the effect of VAT on fees'
Independent school fees were 22.6 per cent higher in January compared to a year ago, the ISC has revealed. The average termly fee for a day school in January was £7,382, which includes 20 per cent VAT, while in January 2024 the average was £6,021.
Speaking to BBC News ahead of the publication of the ISC's annual census next week, ISC chief executive Julie Robinson said the sector had been hit by a "triple whammy" of National Insurance changes, an end to charitable business rates relief and "the blow of 20 per cent VAT on fees".
"It seems clear to us that the government has underestimated the effect. We know parents have already left the sector because of the threat of VAT coming in so we do expect the reality of this to lead to further decreases but the full effects will only become apparent over the next few years," she warned.
Ms Robinson was also quoted in The Telegraph on the impact of the VAT on fees policy, saying: "The rise in National Insurance employer contribution rates is one of a triple whammy of financial blows hitting independent schools at the same time, alongside the requirement to add VAT to their fees and the removal of charitable business rates relief.
"Schools will, of course, be looking at all their costs in a bid to keep fee rises as low as possible for parents. But given the small, local nature of many of our schools, any savings they can make have been swallowed up by this unprecedented set of financial challenges."