Industry News
Independent schools 'must cut costs'
Posted on 18th September 2007
Independent school fees have now reached the maximum parents can manage and schools must cut costs if they wish to maintain their success, a new report has claimed.
Mtmconsulting has published the report on the private schooling sector and claims it is in danger of pricing itself out of the market, particularly the 14 per cent of "atypical buyers" who are outside the normal market and are most vulnerable to cost increases.
It says: "The most pressing scenario facing the sector is therefore one of cost-cutting - this will be the primary tool for schools in a situation of declining affordability."
The number of children being born to professional and managerial families has risen, despite a 1990s decline in birth-rates, the report notes.
It claims state schools are "unlikely" to become more attractive to parents over the next decade, which is an advantage to the sector.
However, chief executive of the Independent Schools Council Jonathan Shepherd told the Financial Times costs are "an important factor" but not the only driver in choosing an independent school.