The mother of an autistic girl who moved to a fee-paying school after struggling in a large state primary school is bringing the first legal test case against the Government’s plans to impose a 20% VAT charge on private education. The Sunday Times has more.
Alexis Quinn, 40, enrolled her daughter, Addison, at Rochester Independent College, Kent, after being told by staff at the local state secondary school that there was concern over whether it could meet the child’s needs when she started in Year 7.
Addison, now 12, had previously attended Herne Bay Junior School, a 470-pupil foundation school in Kent, where she was missing “10 to 20% of lessons” in classes of about 30 pupils after “becoming sad and anxious”, her mother said.
Since moving to Rochester College in September last year, she has “a new-found confidence”, her mother said. She does not have to wear school uniform, is in a class of about seven pupils, and one of her paintings has been exhibited at the Royal Academy’s Young Artists’ Summer Show.
Quinn, who works for a charity, said: “Because of the government’s proposed VAT change [which is due to take effect in January] we would have to move Addison from her private school in the middle of an academic year, because we can’t afford up to a 20% fee increase.
“In her primary school I was fearful of attendance fines and so I forced her into school, causing her additional trauma. The school tried its best but could not meet her needs. The state secondary school was three times bigger than the primary school, where already she could not cope.”
Rochester charges £16,800 a year for day pupils in Years 7-9, and Addison’s grandparents — a retired policeman and a former army veteran — are helping out. The fees rose 13% in September and are due to rise by up to 20% in January if VAT is imposed. …
Lawyers acting for Quinn say children with special educational needs (SEN) are being discriminated against by the VAT policy, which could price them out of schools that are meeting their needs, breaching their right to education under the European Convention on Human Rights.
She had applied to Kent county council in 2022 for an education, health and care (EHC) plan, which could have led to the council paying for extra support that Addison might need, but she was unsuccessful. Worried that her daughter’s mental health was worsening, Quinn decided not to embark on a lengthy appeal.
A pre-action letter putting the Government on notice of an intention to issue proceedings in the High Court, unless it withdraws its VAT plans, was sent to the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, on Friday.
Worth reading in full.
The Telegraph also has a story about Alexis Quinn’s legal action, as does the Mail.
You can contribute to Alexis Quinn’s fundraiser here.
Stop Press: Lord Forsyth, the former Secretary of State for Scotland, has written an excellent piece in the Telegraph setting out the case against imposing VAT on independent school fees.
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