Council spends £8000pa on a taxi due to VAT on private schools

[Iwishicouldflyhigh]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14403627/Labours-VAT-raid-teenage-girl-private-school-council-fund-8-000-taxi-bill.html

So now a place is being taken up in an overscribed school, a 15 year old has had her eduction severely disrupted and the local council has 8k less in the pot.

Well done Labour!!! One of many stories, i'm sure and so predictable.

You wanted ‘sharp-elbowed middle class’ parents in state schools and now you have them (be careful for what you wish…). Why is it a surprise they will do all they can to improve a situation for their own child? I’d be worried if parents didn’t want the best for their child really. That’s nature, not entitled. But anyway, yet again, councils wouldn’t hand out money if there wasn’t a good reason to do it. Budgets are tight,

My nearly 80 year old husband gets DLA. Maybe it's his second childhood.

@Burnoutforever not everyone in receipt of DLA is a child. New DLA claims can only be made for children, but some adults are still on DLA. Not that claiming DLA makes anyone a freeloader.

🤣🤣
If you read back over my posts you’ll see I am certainly not against transport for school.
Quite the reverse
If kids can’t get into a school nearby the council should have to support that family.
I think you’ve got me mixed up with someone.

Sorry I was confused as thought dla is for 16 and under. Why would I think that of any parents of a child getting dla? The assessment process is thorough the same for adults and PIP. In this case it really isn’t clear what has happened as it seems they didn’t go through the official process to get a school place and tried to circumnavigate the system to get a school they wanted and transport paid for rather than the nearest one with the first available space? If anyone can clarify then it would help a lot but not one article is clear on those points?

Sorry I had been told by the DWP that dla is for under 16 and at 16 you have to change to pip ! I hadn’t realised there were some legacy recipients

I wonder if previous posters would be happy with all areas of access to state education becoming means assessed.
Starting with transport, moving on to exercise books and sports equipment and finally access into the classroom.
We could really ensure no one is getting anymore than they absolutely need being provided by the state then.

Honestly, this country is a race to the bottom.

Yes it is
Heres a screen shot from the article

@Burnoutforever that is what happens for children turning 16 now, but some adults still receive DLA.

But she didn’t apply to any of those so it could have been the case one had a vacancy come up sooner than Catmose college

‘At least she’s in the system’ at the only school they wanted 🤦

Thankyou I hadn’t realised so apologies for my error

And for the benefit of @Burnoutforever

But it tells us nothing except :

All the schools were oversubscribed
She only applied for one

Surely you would apply for all ?

She wanted to get her daughter into a school. She applied to the school that had space.

She rang all the other schools who had no space. She did not cherry pick the best school even though it was 25 miles away as you are trying to suggest.

I enjoy your reasoned arguments so I hope I can explain my thinking. I don’t believe I’m banging on about the politics of envy and spite. I’m questioning why a) people couldn’t see the implications of VAT on school fees b) the government didn’t leave sufficient time before implementing the policy for most issues to be ironed out and for parents of those in independent schools to come up with exit strategies c) (linked to b) councils didn’t have plans in place for those needing school places or why they weren’t vocal about the issues so that the policy could be delayed d) some posters are shocked that those who have been made to leave independent schools are going to make full use of their legal rights to gain a state education.

It is just so bloody stupid. Ideological Labour nonsense which is causing unnecessary grief at a time when there are enough non-manufactured problems. By challenging the thinking and highlighting the issues caused by it in sufficient volume, I hope those in government may think more carefully with future policies - naive, I know.

It didn’t have a space. The article posted explains that they advised her it would be a long list ‘but at least she’s in the system’ which would have been the same situation for all the other schools without spaces. She could have and should have applied for all. One may have had a place come up sooner

She did cherry pick!

NONE of the schools had spaces. She decided to only apply to ONE. She likely would have had a high position on any school closest to her home under distance criteria but I imagine they weren’t what she wanted so we get this sob story that ‘only one school invited me to apply’ when in actual fact it was her right to apply to ALL. She seems to know her rights - when it suits her.

You have literally contradicted the content of the article you posted

If she had no intention of sending her daughter there, she wouldn’t have rang to find out if they had spaces.

Why? If you can afford private healthcare should you be compelled to do that? If you can scrape together money for childcare I assume you feel you shouldn’t get free hours? What about PIP?

She should have applied to all. Nobody needs an invitation to apply. I think this is why the LA rejected as they saw through it as she hadn’t gone through the correct process

Erm…

@TENSsion "If she had no intention of sending her daughter there, she wouldn’t have rang to find out if they had spaces."

Yes she would. If there had been a place in a school nearer to her she wouldn't have got the free transport.

They were full! Why waste her time when she wanted her daughter in a school asap?