VAT on school fees - High Court Challenge.

[EverythingAllatOnceAllTheTime]

Labour’s plan to impose VAT on private school fees in January faces a High Court legal challenge over claims it breaches human rights law.

Lawyers have written to HM Treasury arguing the policy discriminates against special needs children and has threatened court action if it is not dropped.

Showtime…

I've already explained that you can't use DLA in most cases to cover the shortfall, because it's not a jolly extra present the state gives you. It's to cover some - by no means all - of the costs of disability. That's why it isn't means tested.

As I've said, I don't care about the VAT issue except for SEN cases, because I know the trauma lots of kids suffer. And I know that because I offer free peer support to families who can't afford lawyers and expert assessments to get the EHCPs, at that.

We've agreed that DLA could be used as a litmus for VAT. Please, please stop saying money to help cope with some of the significant extra costs almost all SEN parents contend with can be spent elsewhere.

DLA is not available to people to use for anything more than the disability costs, not unless they are loaded. We honestly spend well over double that every month on the children's additional needs, and we aren't rare there. Most parents I know are the same. It's something the LAs all also say - "pay this huge transport cost to a school 20 miles away, that we have agreed is the only one that can meet needs, using DLA." "Respite for kids who never sleep, when one has such high needs there is no school and you have to deliver care 24/7? DLA." It's not a thing. The money is not there. It's allocated several times over.

The ONLY people who can use DLA for extras are the sort of people who really don't need the money anyway and could fund private school fees with ease. The David Camerons of this world. Statistically, there aren't many of them!

I honestly wish the passion people are pouring into the VAT issue could go into the SEN crisis. I'd love, love, love to see people this concerned about the vulnerable, and protecting the right of all to education, showing this much concern about the most vulnerable kids of all.

Then why did you send yours to private school?

@itsaShame2 - why would you not support your daughter in claiming personal independence payments when this is often a gateway to other support in the future or are you pretending that you are not applying because you have wealth and it is for the greater good of society?

I couldn’t see a thread on this and posted on one of the general VAT in schools threads about it. I am so relieved to see this test case.

My DC is in private school after the local state secondary school said it couldn’t meet their SEND needs so this directly affects me. DD doesn’t have an EHCP yet we are still at the assessment stage and so it’s possible she may not get one. From Jan we are going to have to pay the extra 20 per cent VAT as things stand, on top of seeking contributions from family to afford the fees at all.

There are no links in the OP but I assume you are talking about the Alex Quinn case which is up on Crowdfunder currently seeking donations?

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13824931/amp/Single-mother-autistic-child-launches-High-Court-challenge-Labours-private-schools-VAT-raid-claiming-violates-daughters-right-education.html

If you’re on here, Alex Quinn, thank you, I can appreciate as a fellow SEND mum how much time and stress this case will be costing you.

Yes, it looks like it from the threads like this. Some people seem to regard disabled people as worthless. They won't admit it of course but it's pretty much clear.

The privileged really will go to extremes to stay on top, won't they?!!

Where's the general fight for better state education and school funding?

Yeah, there is none because poor people can't afford lawyers.

This is good and it needs to be challenged.

We Britain actually have a lot of laws to protect disabled children and people compared to other countries. We are currently doing incredibly well in the Paralympics, just as an example. However, school funding for disabled children has been abysmal because the agenda of inclusion at all costs has been promoted based on false academic research and ideology for years.

What people need to understand fundamentally is that the “Private School Question” is a LABOUR PARTY OWN ISSUE THAT HAS BEEN FESTERING FOR YEARS!
Think of it like the Brexit question for the Tories. That cost our nation a huge amount.
We absolutely must challenge this all the way.
Let’s hope they lose once and for all and the anti private school/anti faith/grammar/one size fits all fucks off for good never to be seen again.

This is probably why Starmer agreed to table it in the first place. Like Cameron he hopes it to be defeated once and for all.

Did you miss the bit about the crowd funding campaign?

Why don't you ask the very wealthy using state schools for free where the fight for funding is?

If state schools and provision were excellent for everyone then I agree that there would be no need for private schools. But they sadly aren't and this is not the way to achieve it - in economic terms it just won't have the desired outcome

Sorry I cannot discuss anything with a person who suggests paying for PS out of DLA as they are clearly not living in the UK.

Those of you who support this VAT policy, why don’t you go crowd fund yourselves so we the tax payer do not have to fork out for your mad ideologies! Go on, you are perfectly free to cover the Government’s legal costs yourselves.

Because I could afford to. If I couldn’t they wouldn’t have been there.

Did he? I missed the news that Starmer is going to table VAT.
I'm not hopeful about this being defeated in parliament given Labour majority

So you're a hypocrite.

who apparently didn't want her DC mixing with the riffraff.

I meant “tabled” loosely - as in put it in the manifesto. It is what Cameron did as well with Brexit.
The point is he is a specialist HR and knew the risk and the commitment to the OBR. He must have expected challenges. He is not stupid.

Spot on.

I refer you to the comments above from the dad at my DD's school!

I recall one poster on MN being elated about the VAT because it meant that there would be less academic competition for her children to get into the school!

HQ please could you remove the crowd justice link to Alex Quinn’s case if that is what is illegal here- even though it includes a lot of useful relevant information about the context of her legal challenge? And allow my post to be visible?

My concern with this challenge is the legal challenge case child in qu did not attend a state school which could not the. meet their needs. We shouldn’t have to prove our SEND kids HAVE indeed ‘failed’ in mainstream and had unsuitable state schools reject them, to get their needs met.

But yet there’s posts on here saying Alex Quinn CHOSE to pay for private school because she didn’t try out a completely unsuitable secondary placement and have that break down before ‘choosing’ to pay for a more suitable private education for her child.

Many people are ignorant enough to not take seriously the experts’ reports saying what child’s needs are, they want to see the disabled child really suffer and be traumatised about school before they will concede that maybe mainstream state is not going to work for them. If a judge takes that view that would be awful. So I hope that Alex Quinn’s case is joined by other claimants with a variety of experiences just to make sure it can be discounted due to ableism in court.

Delphigirl · Today 11:45

I believe that the richest 1% arent taxed enough despite being one of the richest 1%.

Excellent stealth boast!
Also, if you think you aren’t being taxed enough, you know it’s possible to pay more tax voluntarily? You can even decide where it goes.

That should read So I hope that Alex Quinn’s case is joined by other claimants with a variety of experiences just to make sure it CAN’T be discounted due to ableism in court

I have very little trust left that there won’t be ableism in official proceedings these days.

If anyone is interested, @DanNeidle has an interesting thread on Twitter/X about this.

Oh it definitely makes a difference.

Nobody 'wants the government to come (specifically) after SEN kids in private (school)' though.

Scope’s latest research suggests to have the same standard of living households with at least one disabled person need an extra £975 compared non-disabled households. This is on top of disability benefits like DLA/PIP. It is unreasonable to expect DLA to be used to fund independent school fees on top of the existing costs.