Year: 2024
VAT and private schools
January 2025 saw the promised 20% VAT on private and international schools across the UK. Dean Associates' comprehensive review of the impact of VAT on independent schools fees has shown that schools have varied their response to the government levy. These can be broadly categorised in three areas: 1 Read more
Academies and Free Schools
One of the most substantial shifts of the last 20 years has been the move of state schools away from direct local authority control - 80% of state secondaries are now academies or free schools - as are 50% of all state primaries and state SEN schools. When you overlay Read more
Vocational education – still messy!
An increasing number of families are interested in the options for vocational education for children moving over the age of 16. The last government introduced T-Levels - a vocational equivalent of the academic A Level - to try and streamline and simplify vocational options. However, parents are still faced with Read more
The rise of home education
There has been a 60% rise in families opting to home educate their children since the Covid pandemic. In nearly all cases the decision to home education is a last resort and indicates failings in school provision, especially for children with SEN requirements. Home education can be a complicated process Read more
National Insurance increases to impact on nursery spaces
The rise in employers National Insurance (NI) contributions and the lowering of the NI threshold announced in the budget is likely to put pressure on nursery provision - forcing some nurseries to close and others to limit the number of free nursery spaces available for working families. This could be Read more
State school residency
Applications for state school places for families relocating from overseas usually depend on showing proof of residency in a particular local authority (council) area. Overall, councils appear to be increasingly stringent when enforcing this but there does seem to be a variety of approaches between councils when reviewing residency. Families Read more
UK government gives the green light to increase in university fees
UK government to announce an increase in university tuition fees to rise with inflation - economists have estimated that this could lead to a 13.5 per cent rise in fees over the next five years, from £9,250 to £10,500. Read more
SEN uplift in UK budget
UK government has announced a £1 billion uplift in funding for SEN provision in schools following a report that the system is crumbling in the face of a 140% increase in children with Education, Health and Care Plans over the past decade. Over the same period there was been a Read more
Northern Ireland to increase age of compulsory education to 18
Northern Ireland announces plans to make it compulsory for children to stay in education or training up to the age of 18 - bringing it in line with the rest of the UK. Currently 7% of children between 16 and 18 in NI are out of education. Read more
Special educational needs funding crisis
Interesting piece in the media today regarding special educational needs funding - https://www.theguardian.com/education/2024/oct/08/special-educational-needs-funding-england-schools-send We are seeing a number of Education Health and Care Plans applications being delayed and rejected, as well as additional support for children in mainstream schools being denied. One family was even pushed by their Read more