Schools and parents cannot easily afford the extra cost of VAT on fees, warns ISC CEO
In an interview with BBC Radio Surrey, ISC chief executive Julie Robinson discussed the impact of the new tax changes on schools and families in Surrey and across the country.
Ms Robinson said: "Typically, independent schools are small; half of them have under 300 pupils. They're not-for-profit schools, they've got really tight margins and they're not in a position to make huge efficiencies.
"[The government] is treating independent schools as if they are all one kind of wealthy foundation school, when actually the schools and the parents cannot easily stretch to afford this extra cost."
Referencing the situation in Surrey specifically, Ms Robinson warned: "There are going to be many families in Surrey having an anxious New Year. They're going to do all they can to get through the rest of this academic year with the government's new 20 per cent tax on their fees, but what will happen then? We need to follow very closely what happens in September and over the next couple of years.
Commenting on the impact the policy will have on children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in Surrey, the ISC CEO continued: "Bridget Phillipson, the education secretary, has said herself that the SEND system is broken, and in Surrey alone there are over 7,500 pupils who don't have EHCPs [education, health and care plans], so they're not protected from VAT - and we know that parents are going to be looking to place children in state schools.
"Surrey has a real issue with giving out EHCPs, and has been unable to deliver them within the 20-week timescale for quite a long time; I think only 17 per cent were delivered on time in 2023. So some parents are still waiting for EHCPs, and that's why we need special provision in the independent sector.
"We've tried really hard to engage ministers on the realities of independent schools and it's got to the stage now where the final attempt is legal action that is being mounted, but that doesn't delay the enactment of this policy.
"We hope that the government will think again. We feel that it's only fair that parents can choose the school that's right for their child and not have to pay an extra tax, which, after all, does not exist across the world on education."