To wonder if Private School parents think we can’t read?

[Captainmycaptains]

Work/volunteer in Education so following the whole VAT debate.

SM is full of private parent groups ‘organising’ to get the proposed VAT on fees cancelled - fine you would, wouldn’t you esp.if you’re used to getting your own way.

They’re advocating hassling local schools, councils, demanding stats and figures that don’t exist, wiring to MPs - telling people to ‘claim’ their state place to ‘disrupt’ the ‘system’ while also saying ‘ Obvs we won’t be taking Charlotte and Hugo out of school, we’ll find the money’ etc strive harder, getting granny to chip in’ but this might make the council ‘panic’.

Do they think that people in support of the VAT aren’t seeing/hearing/reading all of these plans???

the funniest one yet is the poster who said ‘ well going to claim our state school places then! See how they like that! We’ll going holiday, pay the mortgage down, shop at Waitrose and save £700k in the process, ha!’
I. no you aren’t 2. Okay - go for it! Who on earth would think £700k is worth it?? Behave like a normal person then…

YANBU - yeah, they’re noisy as expected but the rest of us are as think/ concerned as they seem to think. Also - it’s too late for Sept - waiting lists only…

YABU - applying for school places you have no intention of using is daft, and of course everyone can see what they’re trying to do.

No it’s all about a properly funded education system and VAT money, while it will help won’t sort out as much as you hope.

£14b is needed. Not the £1.7b that’s estimated to be raised through vat. This is all going on new teachers. Don’t expect to see a penny for your needs. Sadly.

I am sorry you are going through everything. But the answer is a wealth tax, not pitting private parents against state parents.

Why aren’t billionaires being made to pay more?

Why can they have houses, luxury boats etc all over the world?

When are we going to see true change in taxation of this country?

I am so fed up of the crap leaders of this country. One after another not getting to the nub of the issue. It’s like turkeys voting for Christmas and power corrupts. They don’t want to impose it because it’s their mates and donors. Even Labour.

As a parent currently considering both sectors for my pre-school age child and someone who also works in a related area, I think YABU. You seem to be obsessing over some very specific bizarre comments made by specific people rather than the actual issues and facts of the debate.

I’ve been following the subject closely as it affects me both professionally and personally. For my own child, we are sort of on the border of affordability. We can probably afford private if we prioritise the fees over almost all other expendable costs and if I return to work full-time, which I wouldn’t do if we go with state. If VAT is added this would obviously be even more challenging.

Education is a really important political issue to me. Unfortunately I don’t see any party prioritising state education at the moment. The conditions in education have gotten worse and worse under the Conservative Party, but I hate that Labour is using education to win votes with a plan that won't make an actual difference in schools.

I’m at a loss with what to do really and it all just makes me very sad and frustrated on behalf of every child in the country.

Obviously if you are working all hours on a minimum wage job and are struggling to feed your children and get through the week, you will probably have less time, money, energy and networks to contribute to the school and its community.

But it's such small numbers, about 5% who are privately educated. If the huge numbers that are 95% of parents can't influence change, then is another 5% going to make such a massive difference? That's 1 child per class on average, even if every child in private moved into state. In reality it's projected to be maybe 10-20% of them that may move, so a 1% change in parental cohort in state schools? In my daughters school, this would equate to 1-2 'middle class' parents across the whole school. Not likely to make much impact?

There are not in the manifesto but the IFS has said that Labour will have to increase general taxation. Keir Starmer disagrees with the IFS’s comments on this but repeatedly refers to the IFS’ report on private school VAT and uses it as evidence of how much will be raised as a result of the policy. Interesting isn’t it that he agrees with the IFS only when it suits him?!

But not all state school parents are in this position and there are many wealthy people who choose state schools. You don't see many of them helping!

Totally agree with this. The assumption that private school kids are all a bunch of hooray Henrys is way off. If the parents could afford the extra VAT, they wouldn’t be kicking up a stink, let them crack on, I really hope they overturn it.

Why such spite, hatred and stereotypes against innocent children? There are perfectly nice families in the private and state sectors, just as there are unpleasant families in both. Many of those in the private sector have experienced the state sector.

The issue is that spaces in state aren't in the areas where they are needed. So on paper the figures may work but not in individual LEAs, many are already identifying they have 0 spaces for in year transfers.

Must be hard work carrying that chip on your shoulder in this weather @Captainmycaptains

Is this a joke?

But that is my point - we have a good 50% of parents in the school who are as you described. However, they still manage to support, engage and 'show up'. Typecasting lower paid people as less aspirational for their child is so disrespectful. All those I know who are slogging away, want an easier life for their child than they have and see education as the way to acheive that.

Have you not seen the myriad screenshots of WhatsApp groups that OP refers to? There are tons of entitled private school parents trying to mobilise their privileged pals into 'disrupting' the mainstream system by applying for places they have no intention of using. It is absolutely disgusting behaviour. Getting snarky about reverse snobbery is just like getting annoyed about cafe owners using rude words to describe the football hooligans that are threatening to ruin their business. It's pretty understandable as far as I see it.

The “pretentious stuck up kids that haven't a clue about the real world and have never had to face a real struggle” and “raging narcissist who thinks they are better than everyone” won’t be the pupils squeezed out of private schools. It will be the kids like my neighbours, whose parents are both state school teachers. Their kids went to the local primary and are in private secondary. It will be these families squeezed out, not the aristocratic families at Eton.

I’m honestly surprised to hear you work and volunteer in Education and have faith that this policy will make any appreciable difference for most children. I don’t know anyone else who has faith that this plan will make an actual difference in their school.

Exactly, so it won't have any impact on improving stare schools anyway, probably the reverse. If the LA cannot accommodate, they legally have to provide transport to an area which does,costing more money

the £1.7b that’s estimated to be raised through vat

This was just on report by a single economist, other reports suggest it may cost the state money. The IFS makes several incredulous assumptions which undermine their figures.

When I was in State I tried so hard to help, they didn’t give two fucks. They were happy being lazy and doing the minimum. It’s the opposite in Private Schools, they want to listen. They value your input.

There are almost 600k children in private schools. Most private school parents aren’t doing this (for a start, most of them haven’t got the time).

And the main campaign group vehemently denounces this behaviour. People are anxious, worried so that makes them behaviour a certain way. Labour created this mess, blame them.
If people can't afford the 20% (and there are many of us who can't even though Labour try to pretend that we don't exist) then what do you expect them to do?

FFS I’m so tired of this, it will COST the state money!!!

Do you want them to price you out of catchment of the outstanding schools too?

The tax burden is at the highest it’s been since the war as the conservatives haven’t raised the income tax thresholds and other ways in which they have raised tax. See quote from IFS. This is well reported in the right wing press.

‘The UK government is currently raising more in tax revenue, as a percentage of national income, than at any time since the 1940s (Figure 1). This is, in no small part, due to a raft of tax-raising measures announced over the past few years. Notable examples include the big increase in the main rate of corporation tax from 19% to 25%, the energy profits levy, and freezes to various income tax and National Insurance thresholds. Economic developments mean that some of these measures will now raise considerably more than originally planned or intended. That is particularly true of freezes to income tax allowances (which would otherwise have risen in line with CPI inflation)’

I don’t think anyone sensible in the state sector truly believes this will make a difference. Grammar heads are already warning of the disruption the policy will bring

What an ill informed and unpleasant post.

Apologies if this is parody and I've missed it.