How's the Private School VAT increase impacting you?

[mumsthewordi]

To private fee paying ...are kids/s still in private ? Are you comfortably still able to afford and happy paying it ?

To state, how do you feel? Have you been impacted by more kids in class or would you expect that to play out this year? Or perhaps you weren't supportive ?
Do you think state schools will improve ?

Full disclosure
A struggling fee paying parent of one kid only other is at state and my oh is an amazing secondary school teacher - we are a divided household indeed at time, but we've made choices best for us.

.. 1/10 places.. at least 🤷‍♀️

Greece attempted the same, in 2015. Same sort of misguided ideological reasons.

QE boys/Westminster are both incredibly difficult to get in. The competition is immense at 11 plus level. Now we can argue that not all kids have access to competitive environments and that some kids develop later. But the vast majority of the DCs at these schools are very intelligent, regardless of Oxbridge. They do not need Oxbridge. The argument is more to spread their brains around other unis potentially so that the playing field between the universities gets levelled. However, for Oxbridge themselves it is not good news. Most of these kids are absolutely used to thriving and competiting in an elite pushy academic environment.

For those without access to the article or who have only read the screenshot, that's a POLAR postcode scheme, not a state school scheme. Is that it?

I was just using QE/Westminster as an example to show how Oxbridge measure GSCEs not by private/state but by school stats. Maybe not the best example. Obviously, both schools get a lot into Oxbridge because they're incredibly selective, but it works the same further down the ladder... going to state does not give you an advantage for getting into Oxbridge per se.

It doesn't impact us at all because the nearest primary private school is an hour's drive away. The nearest private secondary school is 45 minutes.

The middle class parents are all very invested in the local schools. They get involved with fundraising, donations etc. Local business leaders sponsor school projects.

All the primary schools in my area are rated good or outstanding. The local secondary school gets excellent results.

We're in quite a unique area where there is a lot of deprivation, but equally, a lot of high incomes due to a specific industry. The high income families don't really have much choice over schooling unless they are willing to travel large distances over rural roads. And the state schools benefit from this.

Our DC are adults now but DH’s cousin has 3 DC with SEN.

They are in a small independent school because they cannot cope with the mainstream system. All are doing well right now. Parents can’t afford the fees now so applied to state schools. Their local authority has no space, so either the authority will have to pay the fees or the DC won’t be educated. Both parents work FT, one is a teacher, and they can’t afford one to stop working.

Cousins are waiting for a response from the authority.

😂 ok

This thread has been OK, but many have been shocking. Here's one very typical thread:

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/education/5093889-request-a-state-school-place-if-you-want-it-or-not

In that thread people were saying that there there's nothing nasty so I answered (on page 8) with the anti-private comments I pulled out from the first 2 pages (it continued in the same vein). Here they are:

page1:
What absolute selfish pricks.

Not the smartest, for all their money, are they?

What utter arseholes. I hope the 20% increase definitely happens.

Entitled selfish pricks

This gives private school parents a bad name. Very selfish indeed.

I can't wait to vote Labour because of all the moaning private school parents.

Money doesn’t buy class, sometimes it just creates entitled arseholes

Utterly selfish and totally self absorbed.

moving onto page 2:
private schools; helping some thick but rich kids succeed

people who’ve never had to deal with any kind of financial adversity are now throwing all their toys out of the pram because they are greedy and want to keep all their wealth for themselves

entitled private schooled idiots

The insults and name calling continued in later pages, including calling us cunts and a poster saying they want to tax 40% instead.

It's been pretty upsetting and horrible for many private school parents (including me) who have always been very engaged in society and big contributors: and now we have this contempt, hatred and othering against us and our children.

It's been incredibly damaging. And the vitriol absolutely hasn't been in both directions.

People saying that they haven't seen nasty comments make it even worse... because it shows they read all those comments and agree.

You’re transparent, it’s getting silly. Oxford demonstrably accepted pupils who failed normal entrance criteria. POLAR postcode means, usually, shit state school. You can try to twist facts but here we are.

From the article:

A don involved in admissions said: “The part about being admitted ‘on the same rigorous basis as all other students’ strongly implies that academic standards are not being compromised by this scheme, which is simply false.
“I have known students admitted under this scheme who could not write essays in grammatical English, something previously unknown in my experience among Oxford undergraduates”…. < >

Admissions tutors are told that candidates must normally be educated at state school from the age of 11 to 18. It says if on “rare occasions” a tutor wants to nominate a privately-educated student they are likely to be questioned by the programme’s lead.

Sad isn’t it. Labour must be loving it, they stoked this fire after all. I hadn’t actually seen that thread, for which I’m grateful!!

But the targets don't just sit there .

The targets give an explicit instruction to admissions tutors to give offers to state students in preference to a private candidate with the same ability.

It's obviously not just about grades required. There are too many students with top grades for that to be the gate. They only give offers to some students, even with the very top grades.

None then. Just the ability to google and, having no actual knowledge, misinterpret.

It’s a shame that they’re resorting to the same kind of divisive populist rhetoric as the Tories. They seem to be employing the same tactics regarding benefit reform. I say this as an erstwhile Labour voter.

‘A don involved in admissions said: “The part about being admitted ‘on the same rigorous basis as all other students’ strongly implies that academic standards are not being compromised by this scheme, which is simply false.

“I have known students admitted under this scheme who could not write essays in grammatical English, something previously unknown in my experience among Oxford undergraduates” ‘

We all knew this but of course, as they state- it is not declared or admitted to. I suppose they had to see sense, when they were faced with the consequences.

Of course grammar school DC don't need contextual offers. Read my post!!!!!!! Do your posts ever deviate from their rhetoric?

This indeed. I was a Labour Party member. A different life time ago. I haven’t voted for them in years. I’ve never voted Tory. Labour lost my vote when they threw women’s rights under a bus. This VAT issue is another symptom of how atrocious they have become. There must be millions of politically homeless people right now.

Why you think that parents like us have our SEND kids in private schools in the first place? Our kids started out in state schools. They often had to move several times to find one of those that worked for their SEND just in their primary years. Out kids aren’t all
academic highfliers who will get great results and these disruptions have already really affected them.

We have all cried and begged for help for our kids in state school. The school staff did their absolute level best to help our kids, before in many cases concluding that our kids’ needs’ just couldn’t be met there?

The resources just weren’t there. And nothing the schools could do to help with the best will in the world was making it possible. For kids with sensory issues the size and noise levels in a class of 31+ don’t allow for that. The attendance targets pit schools against parents of kids with EBSNA. Private school is an absolute last resort for us. The special schools are full with waiting lists going up to years. None of this is our kids fault. So please don’t downplay disruption when you have absolutely no idea what a lot of SEND kids have already been through.

What is my ‘rhetoric’?

Reporting as a personal a as personal attack your disgusting ableist comments

Dear oh dear.

Access to higher quality education based on ability to pay is what’s morally wrong.

There’s no bias against private schools. It’s a redress against a structural bias in favour of private schools.

@durness please don’t ’dear oh dear me’, it’s nasty.

‘Access to higher quality education based on ability to pay is what’s morally wrong’

That is the situation in this country. And so that is the game we’re playing.

A similar argument is made / can be made against grammar schools. Or ‘outstanding’ state schools. Those lucky enough to afford to live in / move to areas where they exist, or are able to pay for tutors to get in, is ‘morally wrong’. All remaining grammar schools should be closed down, to prevent this frankly, unethical practice.

It’s the game we’re playing, too. We’re just not complaining about the cost of our choices.

I’m not a fan of the grammar system either.

Someone who loves Labour should start a thread (and campaign), about the sheer hypocrisy and existence of the few state grammar schools. The leg up these pupils get, is immense.