No rise in private school closures in England since Labour’s VAT proposal, data shows – The Guardian

More than 75 private schools closed every year in England on average over the last decade, official data has shown, with no apparent increase in the trend since Labour announced it was imposing VAT on fees. A number of media reports have highlighted the closure of some private schools as supposedly being caused by the policy, which is intended to raise money for more teachers in state schools. […]

But data from a government register of private schools in England, collated in response to a parliamentary question tabled by the shadow education secretary, Damian Hinds, indicated that a churn in individual institutions is a longstanding trend. Since 1987, when data started to be collected, 2,583 schools have opened and 2,674 have shut. In the years from 2013 to 2023, 847 schools closed – an average of 77 a year. The 2024 data, which goes up to 6 October, shows that 46 schools have closed, slightly below the average trend, with 77 opening.