Scottish pupils at expensive private schools face “significant disruption” to their exams due to Labour’s VAT policy, parents and education leaders have warned.
Eight private schools in Scotland do not follow the Scottish national curriculum, instead offering English qualifications or the International Baccalaureate (IB). Of the nation’s 90 independent schools, several more offer a blend of Scottish, English and international qualifications.
Parents have claimed that children studying qualifications outside of the Scottish national curriculum will be worst affected if they cannot afford uplifted fees and decide to transfer them into Scottish state schools. This is because they would have to catch up on a new curriculum mid-exam cycle.
It comes after i revealed that some of Scotland’s most prestigious private schools are preparing to make job cuts ahead of Labour’s VAT policy coming into effect.
The Government has insisted it will introduce 20 per cent VAT on private schools from 1 January, despite calls from the private sector and education unions to delay the policy until September 2025.
Graham Hutton, general secretary of the School Leaders Scotland (SLS) union, said some children face an “interruption” to their learning, particularly if they have to change schools halfway through A-levels.
The Scottish equivalent to GCSEs is the Scottish National Qualifications (Nat 4 and Nat 5), and the equivalent to A-levels is the Scottish Higher and Advanced Higher qualifications.
Louisa Gardiner, 59, from the Scottish Borders, told i that she faces either homeschooling her son or moving house to England if she is unable to pay increased school fees from January 2025.
Her son, 16, has just started the GCSE year at Merchiston Castle School, an all-boys independent day and boarding school on the outskirts of Edinburgh. He dropped back a year after the pandemic.
Fees for 2024-2025 cost up to £14,520 per term to board or £10,530 for day pupils – but it is unknown how much the school plans to raise fees by in January 2025 due to VAT. This equates to around £44,000 per year for boarders and £32,000 for day pupils.
The school mainly offers English GCSEs and A-levels although some Scottish qualifications are also available.
“If we can’t afford to pay the increase in the school fees, I can’t move my child anywhere in the state sector because he can’t go into the Scottish system,” she told i.
“He’s in the GCSE year so he’d be in what they call the National 5 year. And it’s a completely different syllabus,” she added.
Ms Gardiner said her options are either to “homeschool the English system” or send her son south to England, meaning the family would have to move house.
But asked whether moving to England is a consideration, she added that it “doesn’t make financial sense” as her son is only in education for another few years.
The Scottish Council of Independent Schools (SCIS) said in its response to the Government’s consultation on the VAT policy, seen by i, that children face “significant disruption” to their subject choices.
The organisation represents 69 private schools in Scotland, including 20 special schools and at least nine that offer English qualifications or the IB. A handful of these also offer a blend of options including Scottish qualifications.
The organisation wrote: “In the event they are required to move there will be significant disruption to the continuity of their education, particularly for those in exam years who have been studying for qualifications which are no longer available to them.”
Students at Lomond School, a private day and boarding school in Helensburgh, on the west coast of Scotland, study Nationals in years 10 and 11 but the IB in sixth form.
Annual senior school fees cost £16,000 for day pupils, nearly £28,000 for weekly boarding or nearly £39,000 for full boarding.
The SCIS said Lomond has a high number of Scottish pupils studying a non-Scottish qualification.
Other schools including Fettes College, near Edinburgh, Loretto School, in East Lothian, and Gordonstoun, a leading boarding school in Moray, offer GCSEs, A Level and IB pathways rather than Scottish qualifications. At these schools, boarding costs between £42,000 and £50,000 per year.
Other private schools including Strathallan, St George’s School, Edinburgh and Glenalmond College offer a blend of English and Scottish qualification options.
SCIS added that pupils at private schools that follow Curriculum for Excellence in Scotland also face “having their education disrupted” because there are fewer years where it is possible to easily transfer to the state sector. 82 of the 90 independent schools in Scotland follow Scotland’s curriculum.
It said: “Unlike in England, Scottish pupils sit external examinations in three consecutive years in the senior phase this puts them at greater risk of having their education disrupted as there are fewer years in which they can transition to the state sector without having their external qualification study disrupted.
“Pupils in S3 -S6 have already embarked on courses for external examinations, and some are being forced to withdraw midway through their two-year courses. While local authorities have processes in place to help pupils switch schools, there is not the continuity of subjects available for SQA exams.”
Mr Hutton, of the SLS union, which represents private and state schools, reassured parents saying that transferring between Nationals and GCSEs should not pose a major issue.
However, he said moving from A Levels to Highers can be more problematic due to differences in the curriculum.
“I do know if there’s a solution there,” Mr Hutton told i. “I think it’s very tricky and it would be really up to the parents and the young person to have a look at the curriculum that state schools offer to see which one would be best suited.
“There may be an interruption in their learning in the subjects offered in that school.”
Mike Corbett, Scotland officer of the NASUWT teaching union, representing private and state members, said he “completely understands” the worry of parents changing their child’s school and curriculum due to the VAT policy.
But he told i the main “challenge” would be for children forced to switch schools mid-way through the academic year, which he said would be down to the Government “rushing” to implement the policy by January 2025.
Mr Corbett said: “If the change is going to go ahead – and we expect it still will – then it makes much more sense for it to go ahead at the beginning of a new academic year, rather than the middle of a year.”
A 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.
“We do not expect this policy to have a significant impact on the number of pupils attending private schools overall. The number of pupils in private schools has remained steady since 2000, despite around a 75% real term increase in private school fees since that time.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The Scottish Government supports the removal of the VAT exemption on independent schools.
“Officials have been engaging with UK Government counterparts to ensure that the distinctive nature of the Scottish education system is understood as this policy is being developed.”
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