VAT private school requirement to give one terms notice to leave

[KHB]

We have four children who are educated in the private sector. When we did our sums prior to the VAT announcement we could just about cover the fees whilst making many sacrifices to enable us to afford it. We hoped the VAT would be introduced in September 2025, as did the schools we attend, giving us time to work out whether we could afford to continue and give notice to leave if required. Now this has been brought forward to January, the additional cost to us due to VAT is £8850 for this school year alone (spring and summer term 2025). We simply cannot afford this.

Our eldest is due to start senior school in a few weeks time at the start of September (year 9). This school is the most expensive of all the fees we pay. We have made the difficult decision to pull him out and move him to our local state school, who have been incredibly helpful in finding us a place last minute and even allowing us to look around the school during the holidays.

However we are left in the situation where the senior school we are leaving (before we have even started) insist that we pay a full terms fees for pulling our child out without giving the required one-terms notice. My view is that the immediate cost of school fees has increased beyond everyone's expectations, and it would be incredibly detrimental to our son's education and his mental health for him to attend for just one term before being forced to move to a different school. I have written to the bursar to ask him if he would exercise his discretion and consider waiving this requirement. However, I have received little sympathy.

I have heard that some schools are waiving the term's notice requirements to allow parents, like us, to move their children with immediate effect if they can no longer afford to continue paying their school fees. I would be interested to know how other parents have been treated? Does anyone know if there is any scope for legal action to fight the terms and conditions? I would be grateful for any positive contributions. Thank you.

I actually agree with this.

You got carried away by the excitement of counting other people's money.
OP is pulling only one child out so won't get all £66,375 of her earned money to spend as she pleased (how dare she, indeed!)

Well, that is not a good idea, the OP will still have to pay, and get court costs on top.

That's shit OP. Our school is waiving the term's notice requirements in your situation.

I teach ina private school and we teachers have already been told that two classes will not be filled next year (25/26) so two teachers will be made redundant. If parents just leave the school in the lurch, how will the school pay the teachers salaries for this year?

@Ubertomusic that doesn't negate my point at all. I explained how I got that figure based on the numbers in the OP but if that was the total across 4 children (not made clear) exactly the same maths applies.

OP commits to paying 3 times X termly fees per child.
OP has signed a contract to say a terms notice must be given so must pay X for autumn term whatever happens.

VAT will only be charged on the 2 times X due in Spring and summer next year so OP would have to pay 3.4 times X or give notice in the next 4 weeks and only pay X.
Saving 2X compared to original plan. So whatever X is it's irrelevant. It's money OP has available and can afford. Putting numbers on X makes it clearer because most people don't like reading lots of text with X in but OP is still a CF for wanting to renege on a reasonable legitimate contract.

(By the way, I'm a school fee paying parent a lot poorer than OP, bursary recipient, we'll be increasing our mortgage debt to get DC through to next reasonable transition point and wouldn't dream of breaking our contract while doing so)

Just don't pay it OP. Let them pursue you for it. In time, they will very likely come to an agreement that you can pay a minimum amount off over a long term.

Ask the new PM.

Well thank goodness for state schools that can pick up the slack when required, eh?

I think you're morally (as well as obviously legally) obliged to pay the notice period. I agree with your decision to move in September not January, but it's still a choice you have freely made - you could leave him in that school for the next term and "get your money's worth" while your notice period expires.

I'd keep on negotiating with them - perhaps they'll take it as credit towards future fees for your younger children (assuming they will continue in private), perhaps they'll meet you half way on say a 50% reduction. I think if you refuse to pay they may well pursue you through small claims court or through whatever debt collection measures they have - you won't be the first parents who default on paying, I'm sure of that, and they will have tried and tested measures in place, as well as having contingency planned for this exact scenario as soon as there was a whiff of news that this is a manifesto promise for labour.

they can’t force you to pay though, can they? Taking you to court would cost them more than the fees. Just tell them you’re not paying.

People seem to be staggeringly naive about the willingness of private schools to pursue debtors.

My friend’s daughter was advised with less than a term to go that the school would be unable to fit her preferred subjects into the timetable so they moved her to a different private school. Still they would not budge in them paying a full term of notice. They fought it hard (dad is a lawyer) but ultimately had to pay. A year or so later they were turned down for car financing because the school had sent the debt to a collection agency.

Why are people saying tell them you can’t afford it? Your child would still be going there if it weren’t for the VAT so you absolutely can afford this one term of fees and state school is free.

Private schools take parents to court for non payment of fees on a regular basis. The CCJ can put a charge on your home to recoup the debt on the sale
of the house.
Private schools have to be consistent about 1 terms notice otherwise their business model would fail, they have already committed to the teaching costs for the autumn term, teacher salaries takes up 70-80% of fees income. You can ask for a payment plan if it helps.

Our daughters school also has a long waiting list, but there is no way they would expect someone coming to the school to transfer with a month's notice during the school holidays by someone who us also likely to need to give 1 terms notice also.

1 terms notice is fair and typical, I agree its being rushed in manifesto inclusion or not.

Move your child and pay for the term. It's unfortunate and the VAT is going to be challenged once legislative so its all going to rattle for a while yet.

This.

I’m not nasty to the people leaving and you don’t need to be either.

@Mummybud nor am I being nasty. If you think I am, report my posts.

(I note also that the post you objected to most wasn’t even in response to OP. But hey ho.)

or there is a challenge and it's ruled it was unfair.

@1apenny2apenny by this, I assume you mean a challenge to the VAT policy? If there were to be a successful challenge down the line, it would make no difference to OP, who would have given (and paid) her term’s notice long before any such outcome.

You will be paying extra from January, so arguing that you can't afford the increase is irrelevant to September.

You have two choices. 1) send your dc to private for September term and get your moneys worth and risk losing his state school place 2) lose the fees you've paid/will be paying for September and send dc straight to state. You'll be losing a term's fees but still getting an education, just in a different place.

You already have the money earmarked for September, so won't be any worse off.

Why do private school families always have to inform everyone else about their 'many sacrifices' in order to afford private school??? If you can afford to send FOUR children to private school then you're hardly living frugally...!!

I'm sure you can afford one term to fulfil your contract with the private school and still move your son to the state school.

They 'can' pay though, can't they?

most Independent schools have staff working during the School holidays, it doesn’t have anything to do with whether the school is undersubscribed.

Fee for the sept term has no VAT

Except OP explicitly said this was the state school to which she is moving

This is one of those situations where you just have to do it and move on. The amount of stress and angst you’ll go through, thinking about it, trying to get out of it, getting frustrated and angry and thinking ‘if only’, only to reach the same outcome which will be that you have to pay it. Just pay and forget about it.