To think parents of private education school children will be fine

[Bluewhitered]

I’ve seen lots of threads on this topic recently. It would be great to have it’s own section so those who want to chat about it with fellow parents , can without an argument.

But private school parents and their children!! We will be just fine. There’s so much smugness and bitterness and hate coming from people who think it’s great the VAT will be added and force some out. In fact I don’t disagree - add VAT on ! Great, and then we can take either our state places up … win win we have more money to spend on holidays, deposits for houses for our kids, private tutors, extra cirricular activities etc and we can probably move to better areas with the outstanding state schools or OR we pay it it we can afford to keep our children there.

On some of the independent school committees they are working out how to charge the fees differently so the actual fees we will pay 20% on are low and the rest of the money is on stuff that’s exempt from VAT. They are also looking at changing the nature of the schools so the children get their state education allowance and then pay extras on top- like you would nursery extras.

The chance of labour implementing it is low. There are solicitors looking at it now and whether they can change the law to allow it.

So either way we’re not in a bad position - as most of the threads argue we are the wealthiest in The UK- some can’t afford food bills etc so we are incredibly lucky to have choice and it is true we must have money to
even contemplate spending £25k on each child in school.

The sacrifice would be working years in a job I hate (need to earn £180k gross to make the new £100k VAT bill for 2 kids).

We are looking at grammar schools and that would be a relief really, I could potentially be a SAHM or do a nice job that pays not much, as we’ll be saving £600k on the fees (including VAT).

I think many parents like us hate the thought of school fees, but feel guilt if we can afford private school but choose not to. In case private school will bring some far-from-guaranteed small advantage to our children. This just tips us over that guilt hurdle.

You're paying 100k a year in fees and you are worried about 15?

What would like them to cut out? Their mortgage? their car insurance? their electricity bill?

@MyNameIsFine

I don't think most will have to cut anything other than a bit of spending on non essentials.

Yes, I know the actual VAT is 15%, and the rest is from the school and are to do with teacher pensions. That doesn't make it any more responsible for the government to add another 15%.

Who are you to assume this? Why don’t you offer to pay a bit more towards your own child’s free education rather than expect others to do it for you? If the state education system is in the dire need that it is made out to be, means test all those people on larger salaries using the state system and have them give a termly or yearly contribution! This is what other less regressive countries do rather than expect other parents, already paying towards their children’s education and more then likely already paying higher rate tax, to cough up even more!!

No the £100k is the approximate cost of the new VAT over the course of my children’s education.

The private school parents may be fine (although from my experience working in admissions, many won’t be able to pay an extra 20%).

But what about all the staff employed by private schools? Not just the teachers but the admin staff, gardeners, handymen, coach drivers, dinner ladies, laundry staff, cleaners etc etc. Also the local businesses who supply the school. All of whom depend on the school for their livelihoods and will be the first to be culled if schools have to make severe savings.

So Labour says private schools should make cuts? At the rural boarding school I work at, they are the biggest employer locally. There’s little alternative employment. Many people made unemployed by this Labour policy will end up needing state support.

If Labour go through with this, it will cause real hardship to ordinary working families.

"Why don’t you offer to pay a bit more towards your own child’s free education rather than expect others to do it for you?"

Why do you expect for the state to cut you special tax privileges so that you can buy your child advantages?

"If the state education system is in the dire need that it is made out to be, means test all those people on larger salaries using the state system and have them give a termly or yearly contribution! "

Nah, we'll just tax private school parents instead. They mostly will just pay. Most will be able to afford it. Also, many schools ask for extra contributions and parents pay them.

" This is what other less regressive countries do rather than expect other parents, already paying towards their children’s education and more then likely already paying higher rate tax, to cough up even more!!

Other countries tax their higher earners at a higher rate, they tax wealth and they tax profits at a higher rate. If Labour were trying to do that all of you would be screaming from the rafters about it too.

Ahhhh, you;re one of THOSE.

@Cantgetyou

If many can't afford 20% extra then they would be shocked about the fee rises over the last 10 years.

"But what about all the staff employed by private schools? Not just the teachers but the admin staff, gardeners, handymen, coach drivers, dinner ladies, laundry staff, cleaners etc etc. Also the local businesses who supply the school. All of whom depend on the school for their livelihoods and will be the first to be culled if schools have to make severe savings."

Appeal to emotion fail. Almost all, if not all, of these people will still get paid, it isn't going to be in this type of cost that is cut.

You still haven’t answered my question

"Why don’t you offer to pay a bit more towards your own child’s free education rather than expect others to do it for you?"

""Why don’t you offer to pay a bit more towards your own child’s free education rather than expect others to do it for you?"

And I answered it, many parents already pay contributions directly to their schools

Why do you expect tax privileges for buying your child advantages? Why do you expect to live in a country that has lower than average tax rates on higher earners, on wealth, on virtually everything that advantages the well off whilst the rest of the country crumbles?

But really, I suspect you made this point because you want to make the whole "problem with socialists" point, which actually is a fallacy.

But hey, Labour are going to win, and most people will just pay the tax.

Although I must say, PE parents whining here have really, really misread the public mood and have lost sympathy, rather than built a consensus for their cause.

Well is was exactly those type of jobs that my DC’s private school cut during COVID so you are very, very wrong if you think it’s not going to happen with the VAT increase.

"Well is was exactly those type of jobs that my DC’s private school cut during COVID so you are very, very wrong if you think it’s not going to happen with the VAT increase."

I'm not wrong, you are comparing very different circumstances.

Keep pleading though, fun to watch.

Someone in the 100-125k tax bracket has an effective tax rate of 68%. It’s actually those on lower incomes that are taxed less in this country.

"Someone in the 100-125k tax bracket has an effective tax rate of 68%. It’s actually those on lower incomes that are taxed less in this country."

Oh and the mental gymnastics to make out that you are paying higher taxes than just about everybody else are just great.

Average tax rate and marginal tax rates are higher on the higher paid in other countries.

It's shocking how many of you "higher rate payers" don't get this.

so what? Lower paid people abroad pay more tax than the UK too.

It’s shocking how you lower paid workers don’t understand that you would pay more in other countries.

"so what? Lower paid people abroad pay more tax than the UK too."

I dunno, but where they do they get significantly higher benefits and public services too.

There she goes the private school teacher who doesn’t care about anyone else’s jobs. Of course it’s the same thing, if there’s a need to cut costs, it will be the admin and support staff that go first. They’re not getting rid of the maths and science teachers.

@Dibblydoodahdah

I'm not a lower paid worker, oh and I'm fucking really wealthy toobut then I pay lot of tax.

But the difference before and after taxes in most of those other countries, due to benefits etc, would mean that lower paid workers probably come out somewhere that works out about equal.

Although, even if they were slightly worse off most people would take that for functioning services. The higher paid however, pay a lot more tax.

@Dibblydoodahdah

You're making appeals to emotion now "think about the other people's jobs" as I said, its unlikely schools are going to cut the jobs which mean that the school continues to function, they really won't. There are many ways to cut costs in a school without this, just ask state schools who have been asked to cut more and more for over a decade.

And two wrongs don’t make a right do they? But you are happy for other lower paid staff to suffer. Of course it’s likely that they will cut some roles. I noticed the other day that my DC’s school has a robot lawnmower, that’s one way to cut ground staff. And they’re in the process of closing the uniform shop. There are ways to cut staff and still function. Just ask any private company. The one I work for has got rid of 30% of its staff in the last 18 months and it’s still functioning.

As said, I don't think lower paid staff will lose their jobs, they are essential to the school's operation.

"I noticed the other day that my DC’s school has a robot lawnmower, that’s one way to cut ground staff. "

That's the price of automation, not to do with this.

"There are ways to cut staff and still function"

Not really with those jobs in a school.

But anyway.