UK private schools suffer 10,000 pupil drop for new term ahead of Labour's VAT raid

One school tells The National it has seen a drop of 10% in pupils joining at secondary age

Stafford Grammar School, which has seen a fall in pupils starting in September. Photo: Stafford Grammar School

Independent schools across Britain reported a drop of more than 10,000 pupils starting in September, with the starkest fall at the start of secondary school, ahead of the introduction of the Labour government’s VAT on tuition.

The government has pledged to impose the 20 per cent tax from January, making the UK the only western country, apart from New Zealand, which taxes education.

Boarding schools saw the highest drop overall, at 2.4 per cent on average, according to new figures from the Independent Schools Council (ISC). For day schools, there was a 1.7 per cent fall. But in Year 7, it was as much as 4.6 per cent.

Schools in Wales have been hit the hardest, followed by those in Yorkshire and the South West. Smaller schools, with fewer than 300 pupils, and those charging the lowest fees saw the greatest drop.

But even medium-sized schools have suffered badly, with one telling The National that it experienced a 10 per cent fall in the number of pupils in Year 7, the first year of secondary school. Several parents have already pulled their children out of Stafford Grammar School, in central England, according to the head teacher, with more having given notice for January, and some planning to see the year out before doing so to minimise the disruption for their children. The school has about 380 pupils.

“In some instances, those who made the very immediate response to do that at the beginning of September said that they didn't actually have a school place for their child,” said the school’s head teacher, Nick Pietrek. “For those parents who knew immediately that they wouldn't be able to afford it come January and were already being pushed to the limits, they'd rather pay the fees in lieu and go in the hope they get their child into another school as quickly as possible.

“But none of those schools were open at the time because it was the summer holiday, so up to the beginning of September, they still had no school for their child. They were literally having to go to the schools directly. The local authority wasn't able to help.”

Stafford Grammar School head teacher Nick Pietrek says some parents were left scrambling to find a new school for their child. Photo: Stafford Grammar School

Their decision was motivated by the fact that the school informed parents it faced no choice but to pass on the full 20 per cent rise in January when the policy comes into force. “We had already budgeted and we've always worked on smaller margins in our fees. Nearly all of our revenue, almost 85 per cent, goes on salaries,” said Mr Pietrek.

“The only way it can be absorbed is by school lowering is fees. And unfortunately, being mid-year, we just can't do that,” he said. The school hopes to be able to identify some efficiencies to prevent fees rising in September 2025, and possibly even reduce them, he said.

Mr Pietrek said the policy is a repeat of what took place in Greece in 2015, when it briefly imposed a 23 per cent tax on school fees. It was later forced to roll the policy back by the EU and following the closure of smaller schools, with pressure building up on the state sector. A comment was left on an article shared on his LinkedIn account from a Greek resident, who compared the policy's failure with Labour's push to introduce the charge. "And I think those same words apply here, really, it feels like a mix of incompetence and political obsession," he said.

About 600,000 children – or 6 per cent of UK pupils – are currently educated privately. Almost a fifth receive some form of SEND support, and more than a third receive help with their fees through scholarships or bursaries.

The Independent Schools Council, which represents 1,4000 independent schools across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, is calling on the government to modify its plans and delay the implementation of the policy, in particular looking at the impact it will have on small schools, faith schools, and pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

“This data couldn’t be clearer – parents are already removing their children from independent schools as a result of the government’s plans to charge parents VAT. This is just the tip of the iceberg and the knock-on effect on schools is significant, with many small schools already at risk of closure,” said Julie Robinson, chief executive at ISC.

“We want to work with the government to mitigate some of the biggest challenges of this policy, including looking at delaying the implementation of VAT, and seriously reviewing its impact on young people with special educational needs and disabilities.”