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Secondary education

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Original poster

Independent school fees and Coronavirus

355 replies

Creamegg11 · 19/03/2020 08:18

Our prep school closed on Tuesday due to the Coronavirus situation and the school has given the children some work and also some online learning via an App to do at home.

A parent on WhatsApp mentioned whether parents will get some refund on school fees especially as we don’t know when the children will return. I suppose no one predicted this was going to happen and it’s not the school’s fault but it had me thinking.

OP posts:
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8
SausageCrush · 06/04/2020 14:13

Hi all.

Been reading this thread with interest.

Our school has offered 20% discount for next term.

Does anyone know if the exam fees will be refunded?

I'm assuming not as the exam boards are still having some input into final grades. The cynic in me is thinking of course they want some involvement so they can justify keeping their fees Confused

Chapellass · 06/04/2020 14:17

How would grades be assessed and certificates awarded without exam board input?

mifreekids · 07/04/2020 09:14

I see many people commenting here that 'government will pay 80% of teacher wages' in private schools. That scheme is only for people who are not working. If schools need staff to teach remotely - setting and marking work maybe for the whole term - they can't use the government scheme. So they need fees to pay the teachers.

mrscampbellblackagain · 07/04/2020 09:54

Arguably you don't need all the teachers though. I would think sports staff could be furloughed and house parents in boarding schools for a start.

And maybe you don't need all the teachers to deliver remote learning?

I am not saying these are the correct things to do but every business is having to make big cuts at the moment and schools shouldn't be the exception.

mifreekids · 07/04/2020 10:17

There's no exception. The cuts are happening. Parents may not be aware of what is happening in their children's schools while everyone is working from home. www.tes.com/news/coronavirus-halt-callous-redundancies-schools-told

elenuntis · 07/04/2020 20:50

Interested to know how PE, Music and Art are going to be taught remotely? That's a third of subjects at our prep.

Chapellass · 08/04/2020 17:43

Is it a third of teaching time though?

At DD2s school (secondary but only yr 7) both art and music are being taught interactively.

PE less so but they are challenges set and they log their efforts and steps etc.

DD1 has DD2 now running over 7-8k x 5 a week (took 2 weeks to build up, no 7 week couch to 5k programme when you are being trained by DD1...).

Onceuponatimethen · 08/04/2020 19:28

Is the new government charity bailout open to private schools?

Sorry for Fail link: www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8201257/Chancellor-Rishi-Sunak-announces-750-million-coronavirus-bailout-struggling-charities.html

scaevola · 09/04/2020 07:38

In his speech, he said that the charities prioritised (for now) would be those such as CAB, hospices, and those providing important services to vulnerable groups.

I don't think charitable schools will meet those criteria (especially as their funding is not as dependent on cancelled fundraising events or public donation, and it is the loss of those funding streams that this initiative is meant to patch).

Private schools catering solely for those with additional needs might qualify because they provide vital services to the vulnerable, and are probably being told to remain open. But as their fees would still be paid, they might well not need it

captainmarble · 09/04/2020 08:44

I would be gutted if our private school failed, but I would think it outrageous if it got a government bailout!

Wordofwarning · 09/04/2020 09:04

Why would it be any mor# outrageous than say bailing out Easyjet? (curious, not antagonistic, as EJ paid a dividend to shareholders even with knowledge of CV and potential lockdown)

captainmarble · 09/04/2020 09:22

Because a school's charitable activities are not the core activity on which the huge majority of its jobs depend. Bailing out Easyjet is intended to protect jobs. I have no problem with the govt contributing towards the furloughing of private school staff, as this is also intended to protect jobs. But however good a school's charitable activities are (and ours are actually really good), I would not see them as a priority to protect compared with the activities of other charities such as a local hospice, for example. There will be a limited amount of money available, and I would like to see that targeted at other charities.

Onceuponatimethen · 09/04/2020 09:24

If private schools fail there will be a lot of extra children in state schools

captainmarble · 09/04/2020 09:46

Yes, but the recent question was specifically about the charity bail out, not the support for eg furloughed workers. I don't think that a private school's core activities should qualify for charitable protection under the bail out. The charitable activities (eg outreach to local state schools, volunteering in the community) are not essential to the school's survival (and probably particularly not a priority for protection at the moment given that the state schools are all shut). I guess you could make a case for a bailout to protect the bursaries of kids currently on roll?

Jules2011 · 09/04/2020 10:36

For those who have children in Prep how has the online learning worked or what have you been told to expect? My eldest son is in senior school and it is much easier to do online learning and it has been great. For Prep we had content sent for them to work through, obviously this was all a bit last minute so I expect it will change, just not sure how?

flourandeggs · 09/04/2020 11:27

Are private schools businesses? (They don't pay business rates?) Or charities? Can you be both?

OverMy · 09/04/2020 12:07

Some are businesses. Some are charities.
They could be a charity for the educating part but also have a separate company that say did lets of facilities to commercial groups that is a business.

flourandeggs · 09/04/2020 12:35

Thanks @OverMy So it sounds like some could potentially claim for business support but others would need to look at the charitable bail out for the outreach/bursary part of their operations? All very confusing!

Devlesko · 09/04/2020 12:43

elununtis

My dd is having music lessons remotely, and my dh is teaching on Skype.
dd even has an accompanist online and practice assistants.
last week she did her performance class to her year and received her usual peer assessment.
She hasn't noticed any change at all, and has at least 4 hour music tuition per week.

Onceuponatimethen · 09/04/2020 14:24

Our prep music lessons have not been on at all.

sunglasses123 · 09/04/2020 17:09

This is exactly the sort of thing that makes the papers. Westminister is one of the top schools in the UK. How they thought this was a good idea is beyond me!

mummy1800 · 09/04/2020 22:13

Our school is giving a 50% discount for children in Reception. They will have three online lessons a day but I think my four year old will be too young to benefit from teaching in that way. It feels like we will be paying over £2000 just to keep his place for when schools re open.

Onceuponatimethen · 09/04/2020 22:31

No discount at all for reception in our prep - 100% fees

mummy1800 · 09/04/2020 22:35

How are they justifying that?

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