Independent Schools Council to pursue legal action against government’s VAT plans

The BBC has learned that an organization representing 1,400 private schools intends to proceed with a legal challenge opposing the government’s plan to implement VAT starting in January. During a board meeting held on Thursday, the Independent Schools Council (ISC), which encompasses the majority of independent schools across the UK, cast a vote enabling the initiation of legal proceedings. Lord David Pannick KC, recognized as a prominent barrister in the UK for cases concerning governmental decisions, will spearhead this challenge. The action will be filed on behalf of parents, specifically including those whose children have special educational needs and disabilities (Send). A spokesperson for the Treasury informed the BBC that they refrain from commenting on potential litigation. Chancellor Rachel Reeves previously confirmed in the autumn Budget that private schools would lose their VAT exemption, stating that the funds generated would contribute to “provide the highest quality of support and teaching” within the state sector. The government’s projections indicate that an additional £460m would be raised for state schools next year, with this figure increasing to £1.7bn by 2029/30. The ISC seeks a judicial review of the government’s policy, intending to center its arguments on alleged violations of the European Convention on Human Rights. This legal action will invoke Article 14, which prohibits discrimination, and Article 2 of the First Protocol, which guarantees the right to education. The ISC communicated its intention to pursue legal action to its members via an email sent to private schools on Thursday afternoon. The organization states that its legal claimants will consist of parents asserting an inability to secure alternative education for their children within the state sector, with families of children with special educational needs expected to be among them. Chief Executive Julie Robinson stated that they “will be defending the rights of families who have chosen independent education, but who may no longer be able to do so as a direct result of VAT on their fees”. She added, “We continue to ask the government to work with us to mitigate the risks of this policy on specialist arts education, on low-fee faith schools, on small girls’ schools and on children with Send.” Rebecca Frost, a nurse and mother of three children attending private school in Somerset, expressed satisfaction with the decision to take legal action. All of her children have special educational needs. She is in the process of applying for an education, health and care plan (EHCP) because she anticipates an additional annual cost of £9,000 once the policy takes effect. Mrs Frost commented, “State education was unable to meet their needs despite trying various different options,” adding, “I could not put them back there”. An impact assessment published on Wednesday by the government confirmed that only children possessing a local authority EHCP, which specifically names a private school, will be exempt from the VAT policy. The assessment further stated that “carving all children with Send out of this policy would carry a significant cost, and therefore undermine the government’s ability to improve education for the 94% of school children in the UK that attend state schools”. The government pledged to increase a grant designed to assist with boarding school fees for children from military families, to account for the anticipated fee increases. However, the assessment also concluded that small faith schools would not be exempt, reasoning that they “are likely to be less than proportionately impacted if their income is derived not only from fees but also from other sources, such as voluntary donations from the community, or support from religious organisations”. Aliya Azam, representing the Al Khoei Foundation, which oversees two Muslim faith schools in London with fees ranging from £1,250 to £6,990, stated that parents are being compelled to decide “between their faith and financial survival”. She further added, “We support the legal challenge because faith-based education deserves protection, not a price tag”. According to government projections, these plans are expected to result in an average fee increase of 10% and the transfer of approximately 35,000 students to state schools in the long term, which constitutes about 6% of the current private school population. The revenue generated is anticipated to help finance 6,500 new teachers in England.