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Independent school 'credit' for poor pupils proposed

Posted on 30th January 2009

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Scottish children from poor backgrounds should be given financial credits to fund education at independent schools, it has been argued.

Thinktank Reform Scotland has suggested that parents should be given finance equal to the cost of educating a child at a local state school.

This could then be used to pay for education at the private school of their choice, with funds ranging from between £3,500 and £8,000 for primary pupils and £5,000 to £10,000 for secondary students, based on recent figures.

According to the thinktank, this move is necessary because local comprehensives are failing children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

"This is all about creating an education system that extends opportunity and promotes social mobility. This is not something that can happen overnight," stated director of Reform Scotland Geoff Mawdsley.

In a bid to meet the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator's public benefit test, a number of independent schools in the country are currently working to improve their bursary programmes.