A coalition of Christian private schools has been granted the right to challenge the government’s introduction of VAT on private school fees, by the Court of Appeal.
From 1st January 2025, a new VAT rate of 20% was applied to private school fees. From April 2025, private schools that are charities also lost their 80% charitable business rates relief.
The challenge is being brought by headteachers and families from independent Christian schools across the UK, including Emmanuel School in Derby, The Branch Christian School in Yorkshire, The King’s School in Hampshire, and Wyclif Independent Christian School in South Wales.
The win comes after the High Court dismissed their claim in June.
Lord Justice Lewis has now granted the group’s appeal on all eight grounds, deeming it to having “compelling public interest”.
Consultant for the Christian Legal Centre, Michael Phillips told Premier Christian News that the “freedom” to send a child to a private faith school should be as integral as the right to worship: “It’s like paying a tax to go to church.”
Phillips said that the families attending Christian private schools are often not as financially well-off as the families who send their children to major, secular independent schools.
“The parents pay less than what it costs the government to send children to a normal state school,” he said. “They have helpers working there voluntarily, sacrificially – either on reduced salaries or for nothing.”
The Branch School charges £3451 per annum, whilst the King’s School charges approximately £6000-9000.
Alongside Christian parents, choosing independent faith schools for their curriculum, are non-Christian parents of neurodivergent children, who prefer smaller class sizes and a more personal education setting: “There’s child after child who goes to these schools, who've been absolutely failed by the state system. They go to these schools and come out a well-rounded person.”
“Very often,” he added, “these [schools] produce great Christians as well.”
The Christian Legal Centre argue that with added VAT, many lower-income parents will be forced to take their children out of private Christian schools and put them into the state system.
CLC claim that this will force smaller independent schools to close, limiting the freedom of choice for religious parents.
“The whole industry is being decimated by this tax,” Phillips said.
A government statement on the issue insists the new tax rate is “to ensure that high quality education is available for every child”.
It said: “The government is taking these steps in order to raise revenue to support the public finances and help deliver the government’s commitments relating to education and young people, including the 94% of school children in the UK that attend state schools.”