Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the proposed application of VAT to private school fees on state secondary planning areas.

This government is committed to ending the VAT exemption on private schools. While the impact of this policy is being fully considered, research by the Institute for Fiscal Studies indicates that the number of pupils who may switch schools as a result of these changes is likely to represent a very small proportion of overall pupil numbers in the state sector, with any displacement expected to take place over several years. This research can be found here: https://ifs.org.uk/publications/tax-private-school-fees-and-state-school-spending.

Details of the government’s own assessment of the expected impact will be published at the Budget in the usual way, following scrutiny by the Office for Budget Responsibility.

The department cannot be certain of the precise level, if any, of transfer from private to state sectors additional to the movements between schools, and between the private and state sectors, which happen each year in all parts of the country. The department will be monitoring demand and capacity using our normal processes and working with local authorities to meet any pressures.