Senior solicitor Jennifer Scott, in our Charities & Education team, looks at the legal action being taken by The Independent Schools Council (ISC) following the Budget on 30 October 2024.
Following the Autumn Budget announcement it has been confirmed that the government is introducing a 20% VAT charge on education and boarding services provided by independent schools from 1 January 2025.
The Independent Schools Council (ISC), which represents over 1,400 independent schools in the UK and overseas, have stated in a press release issued on 1 November, that the Council will be pursuing legal action against the government’s decision to charge VAT. The legal proceedings will be based on breaches of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and the Human Rights Act 1998.
The ISC had previously called on the government to delay VAT charges until at least September 2025 to allow for an equality impact assessment to be carried out to consider the impact the policy decision will have on faith schools. There are also concerns on how the charges will affect small single-gender schools and the impact on children with special educational needs.
The government have stated that, implementing the VAT charges and removing business rates charitable relief from independent schools in England is estimated to raise £1.8 billion per year by 2029-30. However, independent schools that mainly, or only, provide full time education to children with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHC plan) will remain eligible for business rates charitable relief. EHC plans are official documents that set out the support that children and young people with special educational needs need at school.
The government have committed to a core schools’ budget of 2.3 billion and £1 billion is to be spent on supporting the special educational needs and disabilities system. The government intends to secure the recruitment of 6,500 new teachers in England, expand government funded childcare and transform the Apprenticeship Levy into a Growth and Skills Levy through £40 million investment.
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