Independent schools, VAT and Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs)

Following the government’s decision to add VAT onto independent school fees, now is a good time to consider what will happen for pupils with EHCPs who attend independent schools. There are some key points to be aware of:

• Firstly, if an independent school is named as the sole placement in section I of a child or young person’s EHCP, then there will be no VAT added onto the fees. Local authorities will continue to pay the fees and costs for all educational provision, the latter detailed in section F.

• If there are two schools named in section I, and an independent placement is detailed as the parental preference, then the school fees and VAT will remain the parents’ responsibility to fund. This may happen when a local authority has named another placement as a school suitable for that child or young person’s needs.

• There are also pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) attending private schools without an EHCP in place. Here, parents will need to continue to fund the fees, and VAT, or consider alternative options. Some parents may continue to pay the school fees and have the VAT added on, rather than spend time and money on going through the EHCP process to try and have the school named as the section I placement. The EHCP timeline from assessment should take twenty weeks to complete, but there are three stages when the local authority can disagree, meaning parents then have the option to appeal to the SEND Tribunal. Appeals are currently taking up to approximately fourteen months to reach a hearing. Expert reports are usually, if not always, advised throughout this process which, if independently instructed, come at a cost.

Some children and young people are not educated in schools or colleges at all. These pupils could be electively home educated, where their parents are responsible for arranging teaching and educational provisions, or through education otherwise than at school (‘EOTAS’), where it has been accepted it would be inappropriate for them to be taught in any school or college. EOTAS would be detailed in their EHCP (a requirement) along with the provisions and support that the local authority must deliver. Often, such arrangements happen at the pupil’s home. This should not be affected by the VAT proposal.

The VAT addition is expected to be in force from 1 January 2025, with this also applying to any fees paid from 29 July 2024. The aim of the VAT is to fund public services, including education and  maintained (state) schools.

We recommend getting specialist legal advice if you have any concerns or questions about the implication of VAT on independent school fees. The Boyes Turner Education Team can be contacted on 0118 467 6547 or via senexpertsolicitors@boyesturner.com.