ewish educational organisations have expressed disappointment that the government has rejected exemptions for small independent religious schools from plans to charge VAT on fees.
Chinuch UK has warned that the policy could lead some Charedi schools to close because parents were unable to afford the additional costs.
The Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced in Tuesday’s Budget that independent schools would become liable for VAT from January, while their current 80 per cent relief from business rates was due to be removed in April.
Motty Pinter, the director of communal affairs for the Strictly Orthodox charity Interlink Foundadtion and an activist with educational charity Chinuch UK, said, “We are deeply disappointed by the government’s decision to impose VAT on private school fees without a targeted exemption for low-fee schools serving low-income families.”
He added, “The additional burden of VAT on Charedi schools will create severe financial strain for low-income families already facing significant economic challenges. This could likely force many schools to close, leaving thousands of Jewish children without access to education aligned with their faith.”
The Jewish schools’ network, PaJeS, has previously warned that the policy could have disastrous consequences for the independent Jewish sector, in which most Charedi Jewish children are educated.
The organisation had proposed an exemption from VAT for schools which charge fees lower than the amount to educate a child in the state system, which is roughly around £8,000 a year.
