Exclusive:Private school parents flood Edinburgh state schools with VAT charge enquiries - here is where
Parents of private school pupils in Edinburgh made 150 enquiries about places in the city’s state schools as Labour’s VAT charge became inevitable this summer.
Newly-released data shows dozens of families contacted council-run schools in Scotland’s capital in the weeks before and after Sir Keir Starmer’s government came to power in July.
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Hide AdThe local authority recently began collating the data in response to concerns that a rise in fees for private school pupils will lead to an influx to state schools, particularly in Edinburgh where about 15 per cent of pupils currently attend independent schools.


Edinburgh City Council has previously denied claims its schools will struggle to cope because they are already “fit to burst”, insisting it has capacity for a further 12,700 pupils.
However, a new report to the authority’s education committee meeting next week has said there are not always enough places to meet demand in some catchment areas, in relation to applications made during the school year.
Amanda Hatton, executive director of children, education and justice services, wrote: “The city has experienced a significant number of new arrivals over the past two years and this, combined with the rising rolls in secondary, has resulted in catchment spaces not always being available.”
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Hide AdShe added: “The city is also experiencing a number of enquiries from parents who are exploring options for moving their children from the independent sector, following the Labour government’s pledge to remove charitable status from Independent Schools and apply VAT.
“Systems are now in place for schools to record and share data on applications from the independent sector, so numbers can be monitored centrally.
“A recent exercise to collate information on enquiries and applications from the independent sector from 1st June until 9th September 2024, showed a total of 150 enquiries made either to schools directly or through the online schools enquiries contact form. It is important to note that some of these enquiries could be from the same parent contacting different schools.”
The Labour government came to power on July 4, and quickly confirmed it would deliver its manifesto pledge to end the VAT exemption on private school fees, with the change to come into force from January.
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The report to councillors shows the largest number of “in year” inquiries for places in Edinburgh’s state secondaries in 2023/24 were for James Gillespie's High School, with 29, followed by 13 for Broughton High School, 12 for Firrhill, 11 for Liberton and Boroughmuir, and ten for Forrester High.


The total number of applications for “outwith catchment” places in Edinburgh has risen for P1 pupils from 734 in 2022, to 767 in 2023, to 790 this year.
For those seeking out of catchment places at S1, the number has increased from 601 to 602 in 2022 and 2023, and then jumped to 661 this year. The number of appeals relating to these requests has also increased.
The report said: “It is estimated that the overall primary school roll will continue to fall while the secondary school roll is projected to peak over the next three years before falling again.
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Hide Ad“The secondary school rising rolls over recent years have been accommodated through strategies, including provision of additional accommodation, improving the efficiencies of school buildings and through creative timetabling.
“A secondary school capacity review has been ongoing since May 2023 with the aim of agreeing a revised planning capacity with every secondary school, based on a consistent methodology in line with other local authorities.
“This revised methodology shows increases in the existing notional capacities for the significant majority of secondary schools; while considering other important factors for each building that may impact on this, such as provision of social space and toilets.
“Where secondary school rolls continue to rise – mainly in those areas where new housing is being delivered – projects are underway to build additional accommodation.”
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