Private school rector says Labour VAT plans based on 'London bubble'

The head of a Scottish private school has accused Labour of rushing through plans to charge VAT on fees, while basing the policy on salaries in the "London bubble". 

Daniel Wyatt, rector at Kelvinside Academy in Glasgow, said the new tax should not be introduced in January, in the middle of a school year. 

The Scottish Council of Independent Schools (SCIS) has argued that Labour ministers have not properly considered the impact of the change in Scotland, in part due to lower average earnings than parts of England.

Mr Wyatt, who was appointed rector at 600 pupil Kelvinside Academy in 2019, said: “The UK government is trying to rush through a policy without due and proper consideration to the material impact it will have, not only on schools in the independent and state sector, but also on children. 

Kelvinside Academy rector Daniel Wyatt has criticised the UK government's move to introduce VAT on school fees | Elaine Livingstone

"Glasgow parents are not earning the same salaries as those in the ‘London bubble’, which the government appears to have based this policy on.

"Implementing VAT at 20 per cent on school fees in January will result in thousands, not hundreds, of pupils having to leave the independent sector and seek places in a state school system that does not have the capacity to receive them and particularly in the middle of the school year. 

"Many of these pupils will be in the middle of crucial exam years, or in the early stages of their development. Education is about kindness and fairness, and this policy will not deliver that for children in any part of the Scottish system."

SCIS has estimated 6,000 independent school pupils north of the border will require places in state schools as a result of the higher fees, based on a fall in enrolments of 20 per cent.

The Institute of Fiscal Studies has said the decline is likely to be between 3 and 7 per cent, about 900 to 2,100 pupils in Scotland.

The VAT change has already been blamed for the closure of Kilgraston School in Perth shire and Cedars School in Greenock, although parents have said other factors were at play in the case of Kilgraston.

Mr Wyatt said: "This implementation of this proposed policy is highly complex. 

"As we have seen in comments from Northern Ireland Education Minister Paul Givan this week, the policy’s impact on devolved nations, where education is in the control of devolved governments, is different from England and Wales and should be treated as such.

"How can it be right for VAT collected in Scotland and Northern Ireland to pay for additional teachers in England and Wales as the UK government proposes? 

"The UK government is using a reserved mechanism to tax a devolved area of government, with no clarity on how the money collected will benefit education in Scotland as, put simply, it can’t. We need clear answers on this before anything can move forward."

Labour has said the money raised from the tax will be used to pay for 6,500 teachers in England, with the Scottish Government to get about £150million under the Barnett Formula.

A UK government spokesperson said: “We want to ensure all children have the best chance in life to succeed. Ending tax breaks on private schools will help to raise the revenue needed to fund our education priorities for next year, such as recruiting 6,500 new teachers.”