ISC CEO: VAT policy 'a bridge too far' for some independent schools
ISC chief executive Julie Robinson has responded to Bridget Phillipson's recent suggestion that independent schools are closing or struggling with their finances because of parental choice.
In an interview with Sky News in which Labour's VAT policy and its potential impact on independent schools was discussed, Ms Phillipson said: “Private schools are businesses that can make choices about how they manage their budgets, the level of fees that they charge, and ultimately, it’s about how attractive they are to families in terms of the numbers of students that are sent there."
Speaking to The Times, Ms Robinson responded: “Independent schools have been under a series of financial pressures for some time and these are bound to take their toll. There are a number of schools [that] otherwise would have been able to weather the current economic climate [that] will find VAT and the loss of business rates relief to be a bridge too far.
“This will be made more acute by the acceleration of the government’s plans to place a tax on education.”