Whitehall “braced for private schools collapse”

[ICouldBeVioletSky]

Whitehall ‘braced for private schools collapse’ due to fee rises

Worth reading the whole article, it’s not quite as alarmist as the headline suggests. But as you’d expect, gov sources are talking it all down while the ISC is ringing the alarm bell.

https://www.thetimes.com/article/e6465c9e-d462-48cb-a73e-74480059a1f3?shareToken=05bf599cd4a2376fe3ce83cdce607100

I’d be quite surprised if some of the schools near us don't fold tbh. There will definitely be a contraction in the sector, I just hope those that hold on can remain a viable concern.

However, the other key thing that Labour don’t seem to have thought of is that quite a lot of media London send their kids private (I know quite a few prominent print and TV journalists who are Labour-leaning, but have kids in day independents, and these are not people who come from family wealth, but people who have worked their way up from ordinary families, and are happy to pay a lot in tax, but are not happy to see their kids targeted.)

In practical terms, that isn’t a group of people who you want to piss off - it’s a pretty stupid move to be honest. I personally don’t earn that much or work in that field, but those people are opinion-formers, and they were helping to create a climate of pro-Labour media during the last govt, only to be slammed with an extra tax afterwards. Not very clever on Labour’s behalf!

I agree they’re not getting a second term but surely they aspire to one. It seems the options are:

• piss off the electorate by failing to improve anything
• improve things but piss off the electorate because you had to hike income tax to make the improvements.

Ridiculously simplistic I accept, but they don’t even seem to have a coherent game plan. I can only conclude that they’re just too incompetent to formulate one.

And agreed about fcuking Reform, that is the real legacy that Labour will leave us.

I agree and this eclipses issues like tax on school fees. If Reform gets any political clout, forget the flirting with the notion of leaving the UK for tax position, many people will feel forced to leave the UK because they do not feel safe.

I agree about incompetence. In theory they have had 14 years to formulate something coherent. In practice they have had since the last election when Corbyn was clearly a disaster and the Tories were screwing everything up (even without the unexpected financial disaster that was Covid) and they should have had time to formulate a new manifesto that was coherent and fiscally responsible. It's easier being in Opposition and now their flailing and sheer mouth-dropping fuckups will come home to roost. At what a cost though.

Tbh, I don’t think they will leave the education where it is. I believe that they have been advised (and are likely to) broaden the curriculum and to “decolonise it” with less focus on western texts and science - for review by unions at the moment.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2024/12/29/labour-national-curriculum-diversity-bridget-phillipson/

not sure this will increase overall attainment in maths and English, in science - or solve the issues of pupils starting school still in nappies… but will be interesting to see

There is a lack of quality political candidates. I am not surprised. No one in their right mind would want to be a politician these days. Those who love power at any cost however. Which leaves us with.. well..

There Have been a few decent ones over the years. If they are decent it’s usually the case that people from all sides can agree. So rare. So sad. It’s almost as if democracy itself, is fundamentally flawed.

But I digress. This current Labour lot are despicable, bitter, incompetents. How we as individuals respond to that, is up to us.

It will massively piss off teachers who are sick to death of the curriculum being used as a political football and a way of avoiding making any meaningful improvements to education.

Whilst Reform are unfortunately likely to do better next time, I still have hope that Kemi Badenoch will use this time in opposition to actually come up with a coherent plan and bring the Conservative party together. She seems more rational and capable than most.

I really hope she resists pressure to make any kind of deal with Reform. I thought the article someone linked to yesterday about by-election results was interesting. Despite the headline - which only reflects one of the 3 by-elections they give results for - what I see there is Labour voters swinging to Reform, not Conservative. So there's hope.

It will also play straight into the hands of Reform voters.

I know a number of children who were removed from the state school they attended and put into small private schools because the state schools education and pastoral care for a child with an SEN was poor to non existent

It is these small private schools that might not have brilliant results but produce children who are competent at reading and writing and maybe help them gain confidence and set them on the path to maturity that are at risk of closure. Their margins are very tight and the number of pupils small. So if 4 or 5 children leave then the whole school of 100 pupils will collapse and you have 100 pupils looking for a school not just the 4 or 5 who made the choice to leave.

I think Labour have worked the numbers on the 4 or 5 pupils leaving and not thought what the consequences would be.

I don’t think it has occurred to them that schools will fold and the 20% of the remaining pupils fees won’t be there.

I don’t think they have understood that a lot of pupils will have SENs which cost more than the average pupil

Also whilst on paper they might have enough spaces for children in the whole country, I just don’t think that they have realised that having 100 school places in Yorkshire, it is no good to someone who lives in Surrey and can’t find a school with an available space

Democracy is definitely not perfect, but it is by far the least-bad option anyone has come up with!

To cheer you up slightly, have a look at this article which calls out some of the good, which I happened on. Note that it's a few years old - which is why it doesn’t talk about the current government - but still relevant.

https://equalitybylot.com/2021/09/12/it-damages-society-if-we-keep-on-calling-our-politicians-cheats-and-liars/

Yes. I think Labour voters were voting for change. Not for Labour. Not all. Some like Labour for its policies. Interesting times ahead I think.

We must be coming from very different places. That article does anything but cheer me up slightly. It irritates me intensely. Jeremy Hunt DID treat junior doctors terribly. He was despicable in his dealings with them. He made the most of the fact that they were too busy and prioritised saving lives to taking him on. The article totally patronises them in that they were only dupes of the media. Unsurprisingly, they tend to be quite a bit more intelligent than that.

You sound like the people who were interviewed on the news when it was announced that landlords couldn’t put their btl mortgage interest against tax. They were rubbing their hands together with glee that their landlord would have to pay out more.

It hadn’t crossed their minds that they would end up paying it

If you have children in state school they will be affected by this policy and it won’t be a positive effect

Labour are planning to flood schools with children who could well be brighter than your child or have parents who are willing and able to buy closer to the best state schools and pay for extra tuition and your child could well end up missing out on a place in your chosen school because the catchment area becomes minuscule.

Hope your child will be find it funny when they can’t get into the secondary school they were planning to get in to or when they are having to travel further to school on freezing winter mornings

Thanks @strawberrybubblegum . An Interesting read.

It’s always the same be it politicians or not, people remember the bad not the good. Human nature I suppose. ‘George W Bush? The president with the IQ of a chimp’ made me laugh. Poor chimps.

Actually the article gets to the point at which democracy really fails (and yes - alternatives limited, bit like capitalism) - even if we have decent worthy politicians, it relies on an motivated, educated, informed, and intelligent electorate.

(I agree with PP though, ref Jeremy Hunt. His lack of Healthcare experience, and empathy were glaringly apparent).

Oh well... NHS is not a "real productive success" unfortunately 😞

A bit off thread sorry and I know Adam Kay is a bit marmite on here but the letter Adam Kay penned to Hunt at the end of 'This is going to hurt' is very worth reading and an excellent summary of the junior doctor predicament at the time. F**k Jeremy Hunt came from junior doctors' hearts, very capable minds and their own personal experience, not the fricking media.

Nice attitude to people and their children for an NHS employee.

Actually, it has not been dismissed - it has been gleefully enjoyed at here on this very thread as well as (less openly) in real life.

@Yalta Thanks for that. You really are struggling for something relevant to say. I've changed my mind since posting this morning. I now realise that the thread has been taken over by social media agitators who simply want to create disruption with regard to the present government. Just posting in agreement with each other...it's bad..it's getting worse...no chance of a second term...no longer comedy gold just very dull.

I think you’re missing the point entirely. It’s not school fees, it’s the ideology behind why they are doing it, the spin they are placing on it that is then creating division. The nastiness on this, and other threads, towards people fortunate enough to be high earners/send children to private school (and contribute considerably towards the public purse) is frankly shocking and a sad indictment of how our society is changing.

I’m not one of those high earners, never sent my DC to private school. However I can see how damaging this policy could be and that it won’t resolve the issues in state schools or society as a whole.

LOL creating disruption wrt the government on MN... 😂🤦‍♀️ Sounds so dangerous we should call the police I guess.

Seriously? I’m a mum of two whose just spent 45mins trying to work out why the fuse was tripping (outdoor Christmas lights shorting due to damage sustained in the weather, it seems); and now binge watching Dune Prophesy with the DH whilst knocking back bubbly. (Diets/abstinence never begin until after my birthday somewhen in January, so New Year’s Resolutions are not my thing).

But I shall wear the ‘social media agitator’ badge with honour, whilst pissing my tenalady pads.

👏👏👏

I would bet my house they are not a doctor or any HCP practitioner or at least I fucking hope not with that level of bitterness.