I read the Times article and thought what a load of narrow minded baloney and from someone in the private school sector too.
If middle class parents couldn't get what they wanted in the state sector more of them would go private and hey presto the private sector benefits from increased demand. Any vested interest here I wonder at a time when school fees have risen astonishingly in excess of actual rates of inflation causing those who might have gone private to try and get what they need out of the state system.
Firstly, the middle classes do not get free education, they pay for it through taxes, at the same time being "taxed" for a donation to cover the schooling of children who have parents who do not pay any tax. People who do not have children also pay tax at the same rate as those who do not, because our taxes pay to educate the nation as a whole but no-one should be under the misguided impression that education is free, except that it is "free at the point of delivery" just as basic healthcare is in the UK too.
The middle classes pay tax for the education of their children in a state school which they then do not use if they choose to pay again, for whatever reason, to have their child educated in a non-state school.
Don't forget the higher taxes paying middle class parent is also paying the additional taxes to cover the costs of educating the children of parents who have much lower income therefore insufficient total tax deductions to cover the actual cost of educating their own children.
If we want to bring down the standard of education overall we should subscribe to the lottery method of allocating school places. Utopia, I don't think so ! But it costs nothing so I can see it being adopted almost nationwide as a cure-all approach just as comprehensives were hailed as being the solution to the "unfair" method of selection by accademic ability using the 11+ exams
If we want to free up the places in "good" schools for the children of of non-middle class parents then perhaps we could consider issuing vouchers to all parents and giving them choice of state (voucher covers all the usual costs) or private where they would have to make up the difference in "price" but would effectively be subsidised for their choice of a private school. Either that or we try and bring all schools up to a decent level of education by having a zero tolerance policy on poor behaviour, perhaps "secure" schools for those with a history of truanting (to ensure that they remain in the education system) and grammar schools with the alternative being the old fashioned secondary moderns with a state of the art facilities for proving practical training to give school leavers additional skills to render them desirable employees in whatever sector they choose to train in.
This second option for trying to raise the quality and suitability of education for the UK as a whole is much more expensive and could benefit all children but lets not forget who would be disproportionately taxed more heavily to fund such a scheme, yep that's right those wicked middle class free "good school" place grabbers.
Doh ! Forget sending your kids private if the writer of the article is an example of the quality of educational thought processes they would be exposed to - utter waste of money.