Industry News
Private school charity debate reopens
Posted on 18th October 2007
Next month, the Charity Commission is to publish a list of principles independent schools will have to fulfil to keep their charitable status and it could make "uncomfortable reading", it has been claimed.
The Independent has questioned whether all schools will be able to live up to the "central plank" of the deal which is likely to be that low-income families can access the services provided.
It says many schools believe this means introducing or developing means-tested bursaries.
General secretary of the Independent Schools Bursars' Association Jonathan Cook told the newspaper many schools are being forced to consider swapping academic scholarships for means-tested bursaries to meet the expected guidelines.
Chair of the Charity Commission Dame Suzi Leather recently told the Times that private schools would have to prove they bring public benefit, just as other British charities do. She argued that that meant providing services to those on low incomes.
Independent schools currently receive around £100 million in tax breaks thanks to their status, the Times reports.
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