"Striking, but unsurprising: the private schools which were built to train young Englishmen for empire-building were deeply racist even in the 1980s." Letters in @theguardian.com How fair is this reading of the role of private schools in British history? www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

"The government’s introduction of VAT on private school fees will raise £40 million a year more than expected, the OBR also states." Jabed Ahmed in @tesmagazine.bsky.social Approaching a year on, how much weight does this give to arguments in favour of the policy? www.tes.com/magazine/new...

It "made rich students exhibit more egalitarian preferences, and be substantially more generous towards other students" How much relevance could this have for future reform to British private schools? A PEPF research explainer by Prof. Francis Green 👇 www.pepf.co.uk/research/gen...

"Rather than causing parents to pull children out of private schools midstream [...] the tax may primarily deter would-be new entrants to the sector." @amberdellar.bsky.social in @instituteforgovernment.org.uk How does this change the VAT debate? www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/publication/...

"It is important that [his] education, even at the early years stage, starts to prepare him for this kind of life" @richada.bsky.social in @theguardian.com How much does this reveal how private education is used to provide a 'kind of life', beyond education? www.theguardian.com/education/20...

The @suttontrust.bsky.social "has warned of a "double disadvantage" for children with SEND from poorer families, who are "less able to navigate the system than more affluent parents"." Samantha Booth in @schoolsweek.bsky.social How do we bridge this divide? schoolsweek.co.uk/double-disad...

“Parents who are driving to the private schools are going to be people who can afford to pay” Labour councillor James Taylor labels Oxford's proposed congestion charge 'elitist' as it wouldn't limit private school traffic Is he right? www.thisisoxfordshire.co.uk/news/2533504...

"Those children have been found places within the district" State school places have been found for 88 children following the closure of Wakefield Independent School after the addition of VAT to fees Encouraging news that these places could be found? www.wakefieldexpress.co.uk/education/pl...

Private schools are three times more likely than state ones to have a clear strategy on AI, new @suttontrust.bsky.social research suggests @ruthlucas.bsky.social for @schoolsweek.bsky.social How might this new form of inequality be addressed? schoolsweek.co.uk/new-digital-...

"How does that make any sense at all?" @1jeremyadams.bsky.social questions the blaming of VAT for the closure of a private school in Bromley, pointing to financial losses going back to 2019 Is this tax being used as a scapegoat for failing businesses? uk.news.yahoo.com/row-over-rea...

"Labour promised to recruit “6,500 new expert teachers in key subjects”, but the party has since dropped the commitment for these to be specialists" Poppy Wood in @telegraphnews.bsky.social How should the money raised from VAT be used to help this issue? www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/07...

"The move by Charterhouse reflects a wider trend for UK independent schools to seek out less developed markets for international schooling," reports Irena Barker Does this reveal anything about the priorities of British private schools in 2025? www.schoolmanagementplus.com/internationa...

More questions about the integrity of articles about private school fees in the @telegraphnews.bsky.social raised by @privateeyenews.bsky.social Are some parts of the press making sensible discussion of the issue impossible?

"It's difficult because people have a perception of what Bishop Challoner might be. It's so different from an independent fee-paying school." Cameron Blackshaw in BBC News Should this private school be treated differently, as a third of its pupils have SEN? www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

The @dailymail.co.uk claim that private school pupils being charged a ‘staggering’ £16.50 for tickets to the theatre is ‘feeding into a national class war.’ Is this valid, or just a mean-spirited take on broadening access for state school pupils? www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...

"Yet to visit a single one in nearly a year in office" @thespectator1828.bsky.social's Steerpike criticises @bphillipsonmp.bsky.social for not visiting private schools Should she have done so? Or is it right for her to prioritise state schools? www.spectator.co.uk/article/phil...

"To fit in, people say they start to change. Accent. Clothes. Hobbies. These are [..] survival tactics in environments that reward polish over potential" @alastaircampbell2.bsky.social in @theguardian.com How do we overcome this cultural divide? www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

"Made by Parliament, in primary legislation, after full debate and was a manifesto commitment" The legal challenge to the government's addition of VAT to private school fees has been dismissed by the High Court Should the debate now shift in tone? www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

"Today, because of that choice [adding VAT to private schools], we have announced the largest investment in affordable housing in a generation," proclaimed Keir Starmer. Pieter Snepvangers in @telegraphnews.bsky.social [PAYWALL] Has this story been overblown? www.telegraph.co.uk/money/tax/ke...

💰 Our new research, covered by @theipaper.com, looks at the private schools making millions in tax-free profits from overseas campuses 🌎 Are these schools' charitable statuses justified? Check it out 👉 pepf.co.uk/publications...

A report in @privateeyenews.bsky.social suggests that a @telegraphnews.bsky.social story outlining the woes of a family of wealthy bankers regarding VAT on school fees may not add up. Do the press have a greater responsibility to contribute to the debate in a transparent fashion?

A report in @privateeyenews.bsky.social suggests that a @telegraphnews.bsky.social story outlining the woes of a family of wealthy bankers regarding VAT on school fees may not add up. Do the press have a greater responsibility to contribute to the debate in a transparent fashion?

"By raising fees imprudently in recent years, the independent sector has deprived a tier of parents of financial wriggle room. This could have helped them cope with the imposition of VAT." Jonathan Guthrie in @financialtimes.com [PAYWALL] Do you find this convincing? www.ft.com/content/be7e...

"We’ve heard a lot from the private schools over an extended period, scaremongering about the impact. It’s never come to pass," claimed @bphillipsonmp.bsky.social yesterday morning. Tom Ambrose and Martin Belam in @theguardian.com Is this a fair comment? www.theguardian.com/politics/liv...

"If corporation tax had been paid on the profits – at the 19% rate used at the time – it would have amounted to enough to pay for 12 million free school meals" New PEPF research reported by @conniedimsdale.bsky.social in @theipaper.com What do you make of it? inews.co.uk/news/educati...

This article points to a drop in private school numbers and cites VAT, but also points out that last year was the second consecutive fall in numbers, which ‘peaked in 2023’ Is VAT the only reason? amp.scmp.com/news/hong-ko...

Do these figures suggest the impact of the addition of VAT to private school fees is being overstated?

"Education experts said rising costs had forced some parents to sacrifice early private education so they could afford school fees later on" Amy Borrett and Laura Hughes in @financialtimes.com Why do parents value secondary education ahead of primary education? www.ft.com/content/be9a...

This article in @privateeyenews.bsky.social points to issues for choir schools and cathedrals related to VAT on fees. Is this an example of where exceptions could be made?

A @thetimes.com article links an ‘exodus’ from private schools to VAT. @bphillipsonmp.bsky.social accused them of crying wolf - ‘They have whacked up their fees, year on year, and priced themselves out of the reach even of many middle-class families’. Is she right? www.thetimes.com/uk/education...

Private school fees have risen by 22.6% in the past year following the addition of VAT, pushing the average annual cost to over £22k, according to @isc-schools.bsky.social data Report: @eleanorbusby.bsky.social A bigger increase than the government expected? www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

‘The blanket application of VAT fails to consider the unique role of small independent schools in Wales’ Fair point, or signs of special pleading or a flawed business model? @walesonline.bsky.social www.walesonline.co.uk/news/educati...

"We have all kinds of inequalities in British society that keep people apart and reduce life chances for many, but most neither start nor stop with private schools." Mona Siddiqui for @newstatesman.com What do you think of this view? www.newstatesman.com/diary/2025/0...

Families with a household income of £100,000 will take home less than the minimum wage if they send two children to private school, a new report suggests @nicolawoolcock.bsky.social for @thetimes.com [PAYWALL] What do you make of this framing? www.thetimes.com/uk/education...

‘Harrow New York will add to the school’s growing portfolio of campuses…with 12 Harrow-branded schools…’ - the @theguardian.com The school is owned by Amity Education Group - ‘a distinct entity from the UK school’ Cynical marketing ploy or valid expansion? www.theguardian.com/education/20...

"A lot of these MPs were privately educated, and they feel it very personally" @bphillipsonmp.bsky.social allies have hit back at criticism around her private school VAT policy Jane Merrick & @chloechaplain.bsky.social for @theipaper.com Is she getting unfair stick? inews.co.uk/news/politic...

"Wouldn’t it be healthier to look all middle/higher earners in the eye, and tell them to contribute more?" A parent from the Education Not Taxation campaign argues that other taxes would be more effective and fairer than VAT on private school fees Do you agree? pepf.co.uk/opinion/vat-...

"This research shows that these private schools channel very little of their income into providing an education for those who cannot afford their fees, now £16,000/yr on average" PEPF research covered by @richada.bsky.social in @theguardian.com Thoughts? www.theguardian.com/education/20...

The TES reports that Lomond School in Scotland will be accepting fees in Bitcoin from this August. Good business sense, or a risky response to pressures on private schools? www.tes.com/magazine/new...

"Parents who send their children to private school must pay ‘their fair share’ to raise standards for the 94% of children who attend state schools," the High Court has heard. ISM reporting on the VAT court case today. Is this a fair argument? independentschoolmanagement.co.uk/news/parents...

"I’m really pleased with the school she is now at" @theipaper.com hears from a mother who switched her neurodivergent daughter to a comprehensive due to VAT - and has been pleasantly surprised [PAYWALL] Might others have a similar experience? inews.co.uk/inews-lifest...

The Law Society Gazette outlines the arguments made on both sides as VAT is challenged in the High Court. Are arguments about human rights in relation to this matter fair or reasonable? www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/discrim...

In an article for @dailymail.co.uk @borisjohnsonreal.bsky.social appears to claim that VAT on school fees is a bigger problem for teenagers than social media influencers [paywall] Does any part of this argument hold up? www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/artic...

VAT was added to private school fees in January despite warnings of disruption in order to maximise revenue, reports @nicolawoolcock.bsky.social for @thetimes.com Can this be justified by the fact that the policy's stated aim is to raise money for state schools? www.thetimes.com/uk/education...

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Two very different perspectives on the story of the closure of a school in Clitheroe from @dailymail.co.uk and BBC News. VAT, falling pupil numbers and rising costs are all cited, but are the head’s travels to Dubai relevant?

Privately educated barristers will defend the addition of VAT to private school fees, reports @pietersnepvangers.bsky.social for @telegraphnews.bsky.social [PAYWALL] Is this 'hypocrisy'? Or does it show why change is needed? www.telegraph.co.uk/money/tax/pr...

"The Government might well lose this case" George Trefgarne for @telegraphnews.bsky.social on the upcoming legal case against the government's addition of VAT to private school fees [PAYWALL] Does this tax represent a contravention of human rights? www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/03...

Some perspective on Alexander Armstrong’s claims of poverty from @privateeyenews.bsky.social with numbers from @telegraphnews.bsky.social suggesting that ‘extremely poor’ may be overstating the case. Are such interventions helpful to the debate on this issue?

“The concentration of the arts in private schools and wealthy areas is unjust – not simply because, along with science and maths, they can be a route to good jobs but because participation in arts and culture is life-enhancing” @theguardian.com Do you agree? www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...