To think that improving state schools needs people to pay an e.g. a state school tax?

[Theyhadsomehoneyandplentyofmoney]

What with the current hoo ha about VAT on private school and commentary about equality and privilege.. wouldn’t it make sense to vastly improve state schools? And in order to do so obviously the government needs more cash.

Isn’t it reasonable therefore to ask anyone using state schools, to pay a bit of tax for that, in order to improve all said schools from their (often) current dire state?

Probably vehicle tax. All I know is I pay the government to drive my car.

So what’s your answer? How can state schools be improved?

Does that mean that current parents of state school kids aren't able to do this? Why do you think that private parents could achieve something that state parents haven't been able to?

Sending your child to state school does not mean you don't prioritise their future.

You're 'privelaged'. What the fuck are you going to do about it?

Been in this sector for a long time, including as a school governor. Thoughts - a good school doesn't need a fancy building, it needs great teachers, fully supported and able to control what is going on in the classroom and that means school and home should be partners in education of a child and too often a school is picking up issues from outside their building to deal with and that's a drain on resources and staffing. Money is too often top sliced and focus has to be on how and what we pay staff, but also how we ensure those staff are up to the job too. I've friends who privately educated their children in primary provision, then saw them grab places in state grammar schools, even from out of area, so this has to stop, as it tutors them to get in but often not to thrive within the provision and we are paying for this and it hits students who then get left with less than great provision and, to add here, it depends on geography too. We need to spot educational need so much earlier, but also have the provision to help and we don't, with too many of our schools teaching to the lowest in the classroom and that leads to disruption, boredom and failing too many children. There's money in our society, but it seems that prevention is often poorly funded but somehow quack cures get all the money and I am thinking here of providers and quasi-government programmes, like some of the employment support programmes, where they are supposedly meant to pick up the failures of the education system and really can't and don't, but reading reports you'd believe otherwise, unless that is you see what is going on first hand! Maybe the £1.6 billion being spent too late to get individuals into employment, should be spent on improving compulsory education from day one! Tax is not the issue, who pays it, how it is spent is. The UK's current tax level burden is the highest on record, alongside the fact that the UK also faces the highest level of property taxes across the developed world. So we are paying tax, just where is it going?????

You haven’t had six weeks notice.

Means test it then.

It should not be a cost per person. That would mean some skipping meals or not being able to put the heat on (if this is not their situation already), while others would barely notice it. State schools should be funded through general progressive taxation.

Yes (not the nhs bit, but the subject is education).

I would be happy with that. Already make a voluntary contribution

Child benefit is means tested.

As well as paying absolute shed loads of tax myself!

Oh I see. Ok. So how would you propose to improve state schools?

Education for under 18's MUST stay free or as it is funded by the taxpayers.

We already have a 2 tier Education system.... I don't want to see another tier added.
Imagine the sudden increas in home schooling, followed by illiteracy a few years down the line. No thank you.

I don't remember threads about state school closures

https://x.com/andrewoneillHT/status/1795394091532034447

Since there seems to be a lot of talk about schools closing, I fired up the Lighthouse databases to see how many state-funded schools have had to close in the last 14 years. A lot is the answer - 380 in total. 139 primary schools, 99 secondary, 39 special plus a range of others…

And a lot more will be coming down the track with the rapid shrinking of the pupil population.

It does make me smile seeing all the articles about private schools enrolments being down a tiny amount and the claims that it's all the result of the threat of VAT. As if the actual decline in the number of children would have no impact (even if you ignore the cost of living crisis and the rapid increases in the school fees/earnings ratio.)

Completely agree. But how we improve those issues that money can’t solve?

I'm not actually all that against increasing taxes, but I'm not sure having a tax just for those with children at school makes sense. In a low birth year, it will surely impact school funding. Plus throwing cash just at schools is unlikely to change some of the issues schools are facing - particularly around behaviour, SEN provision and teacher retention. Also, the cost of administering this to ensure that only parents of school age children are paying this tax, will probably wipe it out - or you're essentially giving child benefit with one hand and taking it back with the other.

What makes more sense, is increasing taxes (even by a small amount) on everyone (bar those earning below the threshold), and ensure that money is funnelled towards helping to reduce poverty, bringing back sure start centres and a lot more support for children in school in terms of massively improved mental health provision, smaller class sizes, more TAs and better working conditions for teachers.

I think we've somehow come to believe in this country that tax = bad, and increasing taxes = very bad. Which is crazy really seeing as this is how successful countries (at least those who aspire to have a good standard of living for all their citizens) function. No tax or very low tax = the poor get shafted.

Our state school is genuinely very good though. Mixed demographic but most parents value education. Lots of teachers / doctors / lawyers kids.

No it isn't you're not suggesting that we all pay more for education you're suggesting that the parents of the kids in the schools pay more. That's not the same as us all paying more tax to improve education

Vehicle tax is based on emissions. Nothing to do with covering the cost of your road use as some cars are zero rate.

The irony ...

‘What makes more sense, is increasing taxes (even by a small amount) on everyone (bar those earning below the threshold), and ensure that money is funnelled towards helping to reduce poverty, bringing back sure start centres and a lot more support for children in school in terms of massively improved mental health provision, smaller class sizes, more TAs and better working conditions for teachers.’

You are right. That makes more sense. I’d be all for that. Why aren’t Labour proposing this sort of thing rather than proposing vat on education.

This is the issue, not VAT