Read this an tell me you still agree with VAT on school fees

[Sally20099]

DS is 3 years from finishing private school which includes 2 years in the sixth form. DD was due to start same senior school in Sept. Both went to private prep but due to talk of VAT on fees, and certainty of Labour govt for some time, we actually investigated sending DD to state secondary school. Only one in the entire city is rated outstanding but DD has got a place so we have decided to send her there. It’s very good academically but obviously hasn’t got the facilities of the private option. Currently school fees are £19,300 per year (before VAT) for DS so we have saved a reasonable sum by going to state school with DD. DS will finish at his school and we could afford DD fees (even with VAT) so we will instead put £12k a year extra in savings for DD and then spend the rest of the savings on an extra winter holiday. We would have never looked at state schools without the VAT policy and instead we have taken the place of someone at an outstanding rated school. Im not posting to annoy anyone, I wanted those who unequivocally support this to see some of the consequences. We also know a reasonable number of children in DS year who can’t afford fees with VAT and are taking their children out of private and going into state - and taking more places at the limited good schools. Its probably no surprise that most families in private schools happen to also live in good areas, meaning catchment areas tend to work out quite well when they go state.

@felissamy - what are you going to do if your bright DC chooses a corporate job to make some dosh? Disown them for offending your holier than though leftie principles?

Large houses are wrong in the sense that they, like private schools, are an aspect of an unfair and unequal class society. There is no justification morally, just endorsement of privilege and a reflection of inhuman competition at the core of society. I know my son well and maybe he will make a ton of money, but I also know he would not then grasp to self-justificatory arguments, but recognise it for what it really is: abominable privilege that actively degrades the chances and hopes of the majority.

”I suspect that recently being UK head of tax at a magic circle firm lends him some gravitas - unless you know otherwise?”

For God sake @SabrinaThwaite - how many other ex magic circle “global” partners are professing their opinions on social media? I doubt there are many. It’s probably anti some unwritten code and a bit out there. And in my humble opinion, attention seeking with a probable agenda. I could be totally wrong, of course… and I might or might not know far more. But like I said, why would anyone who actually knows go and reveal stuff on social media.

@Dorisbonson

I'm not talking about me.
I do however believe education should be as equal as possible. All children deserve to be able to choose good schools.

OK, I’ll add ‘out there’ and ‘attention seeking’ to the list.

And, after all, it was only a series of comments on a Telegraph article, which garnered other replies, rather than a full on article.

What about parents who can only chose between a state school and a private school, because there is only one state school for hundreds of square miles? Not everyone lives in London.

Ah gotcha

Even worse

Equality is not a goal. Equity is

If choice is a good thing for education (as multiple Sutton Trust Research has shown) - what we need to do is increase it, not reduce in the name of equality. That is crab in a bucket mentality

Sincere congratulations to your DD.

Out of interest though, if she had struggled you wouldn’t have tutored her? You would have let her fail on principle?

Large houses are wrong?? I have heard it all now

How is closing private schools reducing choice for the majority of the population?

If you've only got a choice between a state school and a private school then you can make that choice if you have the money to do so. For everyone else, there's no choice to make. They just have to send their child to the state school.

What has tutoring got to do with anything. I trust state school teachers. I find the horror of state secondaries really quite hilarious....or is it the smelly pupils and their parents. I do know that my kids, having gone to rough as you like, ethnically diverse, gritty state schools with caring teachers will actually be better people than many of your cossetted and arrogant ones who bought their way into the network.

So you want to abolish private schools as part of your world view that competition is inhuman, large houses are wrong and immoral, cars are selfish.

I would say your views align quite well with Communism though they had cars.

I thought you were against paying for education.

Seems that it’s purely inverse snobbery though.

@newmummycwharf1

Everyone should have more choice. Equality is a goal. Certainly a goal that can't be achieved through private schooling being only available to a small proportion of the population.

I am against paying for education. Didn't say anything different but was countering suggestion that if my DC were struggling, I'd have to buy in a tutor. Money solves everything, eh! No, I trust the teachers to do their job and give what support I can at home. Like the vast majority of people. Inverse snobbery! Why don't you also pull out that other old chestnut 'politics of envy'. You really have nothing, do you?!

Not sure why I need to “have something”?

You are (I think) the only person on the thread to be making comments about “the horror of state secondaries” and “smelly pupils and their parents”.

You also don’t seem to realise how incredibly privileged your daughter has been to have caring teachers that have put efforts in with her. Do you not realise many schools don’t have that?

I would have loved for my kids to stay at state. But it was crap. I wasn’t going to throw my kids under the bus, so we moved to private. There was no other state option available.

@felissamy ”will actually be better people than many of your cossetted and arrogant ones who bought their way into the network.”

That makes you sound very judgmental and unkind. Not the very nice person you are processing to portray, is it?

Both far left and far right principles are toxic and controlling.
Live and let live- people make choices for different reasons, often complex ones. Bit of tolerance in all directions goes a long way.

You hold extreme left wing views, based on what you have said you hold more extreme communist views than the USSR and possibly sit somewhere between Pol Pot and Stalin.

You think competition is inhuman, car drivers are selfish, want to abolish private schools/paying for education and think big houses are wrong.

What else would you like to ban to create more choice for the majority?

Trotsky actually, but I don't expect you to know the differences!

@Dorisbonson

I haven't said it will create more choice for the majority. It will stop some people being able to buy choice when others can't.

Equality is not my goal and shouldn't be the goal of any civilised society. Equity - yes. That is what we strive for

Why not come up with solutions that enable more to access choice? More able to buy choice by growing the economy so many more have the spare funds to do so. More excellent state funded options by growing the economy and increasing productivity so there is more revenue for the government to invest in education etc etc

If you have 7% accessing private schooling - if state schools were better funded - fewer would feel the need to and those that continue to - it would be a nice to have - not a n educational advantage since the experience would be similar or better in state.

Punch up!

No one sane would argue against growing the economy. None of the solutions you have suggested require the abolition of private schools.

Condescending...

My aspiration is for a better state sector for everyone. Thats what I work towards. I believe removing private schools will help.