“When you're accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression.”
Eton College, the country’s most elite private school, claims that it is being forced to slash its bursaries budget by more than £1 million because of fears over the impact of VAT on private school fees.
The Labour government has announced that private school fees would be charged VAT at the standard 20% rate from 1 January 2025, removing the VAT exemption that private school fees enjoyed.
The Labour government says that the move can raise in the region of £1.6bn per annum from adding VAT to private school fees, funds which will then be reinvested in state schools.
According to the Mail on Sunday, which has seen internal documents from Eton, more than a third of the college’s free places will be cut by 2027 as aid is cut from £9.7 million to £8.65 million, as it seeks to deal with the financial implications.
The paper reports: “Staff have also been told that ‘there is a need to find savings across the school’. The college has already confirmed it will be imposing the full VAT charge on parents.”
Eton of course isn’t short of funds. The college sits on a £553 million endowment fund and in 2022 it was reported that it received £3.3 million of rental income from its real estate portfolio as well as £5.8 million from selling commercial property.
So much for struggling financially. A quote comes to mind: “When you’re accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression.”
Basit Mahmood is editor of Left Foot Forward
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