Independent schools in Wales could lose their charitable status from April 2024 under new proposals put forward by the Welsh government.
The move will require fee-paying schools to pay council tax, a change expected to bring in an extra £1.3 million a year. This comes on top of UK-wide plans to impose VAT on private school fees, which will also affect schools in Wales.
The finance secretary for Wales, Mark Drakeford, said the proposed changes would bring Wales in line with Scotland, where independent schools lost aid status in 2022, and would be in line with similar moves planned in England. Currently, 17 out of 83 independent schools in Wales receive aid at non-local endowment levels, which Drakeford believes creates an unfair advantage.
“We believe that private schools with a charitable status in Wales should be treated in the same way as non-charities,” said Drakeford, justifying the proposal as a way to redirect funds to local services.
However, concerns have been raised that these tax changes, including Sir Keir Starmer’s proposed VAT on private school fees, could lead to a significant drop in private school enrolments. A recent Saltus Wealth Index report found that around 23% of parents would withdraw their children from private education, potentially switching 140,000 children to state schools across England and Wales. Critics say this will overwhelm the public education system and result in higher costs for taxpayers.
Tom Giffard, the Welsh Conservative education minister, has slammed the proposals as a misunderstanding. He warned that pushing children into an already troubled public school system would increase class sizes and put more pressure on teachers.
The Welsh Government’s consultation on defunding private schools will run for 12 weeks until December 16.
