Catholic private school serving working-class families has to close due to Labour’s VAT change  

A small independent Catholic school in one of the most deprived areas of England is closing due to the new Labour government’s plan to remove the tax exemption for private schools and impose VAT on school fees.

St Joseph’s Preparatory School in Stoke-on-Trent in the West Midlands has said that the “incredibly difficult” decision was made due to the “changes coming regarding independent school funding”, while emphasising that its working-class parents could not afford the increase in fees resulting from the government’s new policy, reports the Daily Telegraph.

St Joseph’s has been described as a “flagship” secondary school due to its mission and role in the area it served. It was founded by Edmund Rice and its mission was to provide “a quiet place for spiritual growth in a fast-paced modern world”.

“The parents at St Joseph’s Prep are not the parents at some of the very grand independent schools,” says Roisin Maguire, who helps oversee the school in her capacity as Director of Schools for England with Edmund Rice Network England, a Catholic schools network and part of the Edmund Rice Foundation. “They are people who do without things to provide the very best education for their child.”

Maguire, who also was the school’s headteacher for 12 years, adds: “The school was just about breaking even with a little bit of support from the trustees, but they do not have the finances to keep funding an additional 20 per cent and then having to pay business rates as well.”

On 2 September, the first day of the new school year in England, the school told parents it will close on December 31, one day before the Government’s 20 per cent levy on school fees begins.

The school says that its priority now is to help find places for its 80 pupils, aged between of 3 and 12, in new schools – halfway through the school year – though the school has already had parents notify it that their children won’t be coming back.

St Joseph’s charges up to £3,415 per term, almost 50 percent less than the average private school (£6,021), according to the Independent Schools Council, reports the Telegraph.  

It notes that the VAT levy would have added £2,049 per year to the fees, while raising less than £165,000 annually for the Government.

Ms Maguire also highlights that it is smaller private schools in less affluent areas that will suffer under Labour’s policy.

“This is a school in one of the most deprived areas in the country in Stoke-on-Trent,” she told the Telegraph. “It’s not serving a wealthy affluent population”

She added: “I know what people say, if those parents chose [private education], they should pay everything, but actually those parents already pay their taxes and… some are working class people who have worked really hard.

“And when Keir Starmer says, ‘Oh, well, the trustees of these charities will be able to pick this up and pay it from their reserves’; perhaps that’s the case at some schools where they have huge sums of money, millions of pounds invested, but that’s not the case for this small school.

“More and more of these small independent schools which are serving a real need in their area will literally close.”

A press release from the school’s board of trustees states:

“The Trustees would wish to acknowledge the commitment of parents, governors and staff of St Joseph’s Prep and would wish to thank all those involved who have served and committed their time, in the interests of ensuring the children have received an excellent education.”

It adds: “Our prayers are with everybody at this heartbreaking time.”

During the sudden closure in August of Kilgraston School, Scotland’s only Catholic boarding school, the school said “the possible impact of VAT on school fees” was a factor in the decision to close, due to pupil numbers already being perilously low for the school to be sustainable.

RELATED: Scotland’s only Catholic boarding school closes with immediate effect

The pressure on the UK’s private schools as a result of the VAT change may well be impacting staff too. The Benedictine boarding school Ampleforth College has just announced that it’s head will step down at the end of the Autumn term on medical advice.

At the same time as Ampleforth’s announcement, Moor Park, a leading Catholic prep school in Shropshire, has also announced that James Duffield will take over as headteacher with immediate effect from Brendan Brady.

A letter from Moor Park’s Board of Governors making the announcement did not provide any further information about the sudden departure of the current head.

RELATED: New leadership announced at top Catholic schools: Ampleforth and Moor Park

Photo: Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson speak with children at Perry Hall Primary school in Orpington during the first day of the new school year, London, England, 2 September 2024. (Photo by Richard Pohle – WPA Pool/Getty Images.)

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