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.

You've said it yourself - you fight for YOUR CHILD. Not other peoples. Your own. We are all the same - our energies are taken up with fighting for stuff that actually impacts our own children. For 90%+ of us who have no children in the private sector, we are not going to be up in arms about this issue and its ridiculous to expect people to be.

Bulllshit.
How do you know what indy parents do/don't care about.
We used state primary + will use state 6th form. That's a well used + 'typical' route.
You are just showing your blind prejudice and ignorance

The school has charged us 12% so fortunately not the full 20%. We are more conscious of getting a better return on the invested money set aside for fees (rather than just leave it in premium bonds) plus I have cancelled a couple of long weekends this year in the UK - not a big loss for us as I find UK holidays way too overpriced in the school holidays and the weather can be hit and miss too. Will also go state sixth form for my youngest so that is a big saving.

As others have said it will be September when we start to see the real impact. Although there was an issue this August in our town after the GCSE results, when there was a bit of a bun fight for state 6th form places, as some of the private school kids wanted to transfer across. I know quite a few didn’t get a place (even though they had applied in time and got the necessary results). That will an even bigger problem this coming September. Now supposedly applications for 6th form are all on a level playing field, but schools can prioritise their own pupils (quite fairly in my opinion), so that only leaves a certain number of places.

Every parent fights for their own child. They aren't fighting for a child at the other end of the country are they?
You have just said it "We are all the same - our energies are taken up with fighting for stuff that actually impacts our own children"

No impact at all in state school my kids are at.

But don't then claim people are 'gleeful' about the impact this is having on other kids. I haven't seen posts on this thread that are gleeful people just don't care.

On other threads posters have certainly been gleeful about negatively impacting our kids

Both DC still in private. Don't think any of their classmates have left because they can't afford the fees.

But why raise it here where people arent being?
Ive seen very little of this idea people are 'gleeful' about it, the vast majority of posts i see on this say something along the lines of 'not seeing any impact/ not bothered about this'.

But that massively riles up the people who do care - because you want us ALL to care.

That why there have been so bloody many threads on this, trying to get people up in arms, trying to show its having a big negative impact, trying to get everyone talking about it.

Because it is shit divisive policy that won't bring in any money yet causes harm to kids caught up in it. Sold on lies, mistruths and a vendetta against indy sector.

I've not seen much impact. Even the majority of the parents making a lot of noise have decided that actually they can still afford it in the end. I think maybe 4 kids are leaving the school. I'm sure the local state schools will be able to absorb them.

No impact I can tell on the state schools my kids are at. I suppose it may become even harder to get in as competition increases for the spaces.

amongst people I know who send their kids private, they seem to have paid years in advance to save on the VAT (back last year). Interestingly, I don’t see that mentioned a lot on MN but maybe I just wasn’t looking for it since it doesn’t affect me directly.

single parent with one DC in private taking GCSEs this year so not moving. He’s happy there, wants to stay and the school produces nice rounded kids so will keep him there for ALevels. It’s a bit of a stretch but not much longer now. The kids that are most affected appear to be those that are on scholarships as the parents have to top up the fees. Two boys in his immediate friendship group will leave at the end of the year because of that situation which is a shame.

I couldn’t afford to do this for both of mine again so would probably take them to a school out of catchment and supplement with tutoring and enrichment.

Our small indie pre prep and prep has announced a merger. This is undoubtedly as a result of the VAT, pupil numbers falling and the ongoing viability of these businesses. Shame on Keir Starmer, to have created so much chaos, for so little spite-induced benefit.

I don’t think I’ve come across anyone I’d describe as “gleeful” though the majority are pro the change so I expect think it’s good. I haven’t heard of any huge influxes of children into our state schools despite being in a small town dominated by a large public school and associated prep.

I also work for an LEA and we’re seeing more demand for EHCPs for children moving into the state sector so that means resources are spread even more thinly. Plus our schools are mainly in deficit - the cash from the VAT increase won’t touch the sides.

Our school have lowered fees this term and are starting claiming some VAT back so it works out we’ll be paying an extra 15%. As the government adding VAT wasn’t in the t&cs of the contracts we’d signed the school gave the option to leave without giving a terms notice, for last term only. So far I only know one child who left at Christmas.

We live in an area where 29% go to private school and the nearest LAs have said they have no spaces in my DC year groups. One is mid GCSEs so no option to move him anyway. Both went to state primary. Unfortunately, was terrible, one has moderate SEN and the other a medical condition causing physical disability. Both in high birth rate years and state couldn’t cope, they added extra classes with no additional resources for SEN etc. Same problem would have followed them through state secondary. Moved them for private at Y7 as found a school where they could both go together that could properly accommodate their needs. It’s turned their lives around, wish I’d done it sooner.

Most round here seem to just be carrying on as the state option is very poor. I think so far we can manage, we’d sell our house and business assets before taking them out of school. Obviously, depends how much labour trash the economy and the knock on effects of that.

We run construction businesses, we’ve decided not to invest more money in the business anymore and instead are taking higher dividends, increasing prices and not replacing staff when they leave. Better to stay where we are than keep growing and employing more people. You make the same money for tons more stress. So the other thread about high cost of trades is making me smile. A lot of construction trades have kids in private, with that and the increase in NI, prices will only be increasing.

It's a shame that there are children who are having their education disrupted by this policy.
Sometimes disruptions are inevitable, but all children should be supported to have educational continuity so far as possible. The way this policy has been implemented undermines that, and that in my view is unforgivable. The issue isn't families being "priced out" of private education, which is not something I really have an issue with. I do have an issue with children having their education needlessly interrupted for the sake of a populist policy of doubtful fiscal benefit. It is an own goal for all of us. There will be children who would have gone on to get good grades/achieve etc. who will have their life chances substantially undermined by this policy, due to the disruption it will cause, particularly those in exam years. Some may end up taking up substantial additional state resources - not only a state school place, but also additional school resources, SEN provision and, in extreme cases, mental health resources and other support to manage the transition. SEN pupils having to move, who rely on continuity, will be particularly affected.

I have nothing against the policy itself and no particular skin in the game (we may look at private for DC for senior, but we also live in an area with excellent grammar schools and fairly good single sex comprehensives). But it should have been implemented prospectively, at natural break points, to minimise the disruption to children.

Yup. To be honest, for most of us it's as relevant as a local nursery going out of business, or a nearby extracurricular provider having to close. Shame for the few involved, but not a biggie

Our friends in Rugby are having to put up the prices of their Air BnB in Cornwall to cover the extra.

I've mentioned before that if you want an in year place the same rules apply to private as everyone else, you go to the nearest school with places. This won't be the best school and could be far away. Moving to state for 6th form ,priority is given to pupils already in the school or with academy trusts colleges priority is given to school pupils already in the trust schools. This isn't being gleefull, this is the reality of the situation. If you want to fight this go ahead, but don't expect state parents to get all het up about it.

Went to the 6th form open evening for our excellent local high school last month, and there were stacks of kids currently in private school there. Schools obviously have to work on home address for entry into year 7 and I think into 6th form, so I’d expect the issues to arise for entry into year September rather than now, and only into certain years. Few people will move their kids mid-year unless they really need to

My DC will stay in private education but I'm angry about what's essentially a fine for wanting to exercise freedom of choice. As a family paying higher taxes we're already paying more than most.

I'm really annoyed that we have to pay VAT on music lessons just because they take place in school whereas if - in some cases - we used the exact same teacher, just out of school, it would be vat exempt.

We're affected, it's not easy, we are by no means rich and our daughter is only in private due to her SEN. I do worry about the school being able to stay open but I also am a bit frustrated at our school's long, drawn out admissions process. A friend of mine needed a place for her son asap and wanted him to go there but they didn't come back to her. Ridiculous.

I don't begrudge the VAT policy because it's mostly targeting families who have far more resources and opportunities than the disabled people who were shat on repeatedly by the last government.

Nobody likes having money taken away from them but it's much fairer to take it from people who have more choices and more resources.

There are some posters who keep complaining on these threads about how unfair it is who seem to have forgotten that they posted what their vast incomes are on other threads asking how much you earn if your child is at private school. If they think anyone is going to care it's a sign of how they've had everything their own way for too long.