Service personnel who send their children to boarding school say they may be forced to quit the armed forces over rises in fees
Serving officers and soldiers from all ranks have warned they may be forced to quit the military because of the government’s “devastating” VAT raid on private schools.
In letters seen by The Times, service personnel have warned that they can not afford the significant rise in boarding school fees the added VAT would lead to, nor would they allow an “alarming” disruption to their children’s education.
Thousands of military children attend boarding schools across Britain because their parents are consistently told to move around the country or overseas as a result of their job.
Military families have said the government’s plan to introduce a 20 per cent tax on the fees in January will mean an increase in some cases by as much as £15,000 a year, something they described as “unsustainable”.
Although the government has indicated that they could help service personnel with the increase in fees, nothing has been announced so far, leaving them facing an “uncertain” future”, which is creating an “unbearable strain” on military families, they say.
Their individual testimonies, provided to James Cartlidge, the shadow defence secretary, are particularly significant because they mark the first time the troops have been able to share their views publicly, given they are not allowed to talk to the media.
More than 4,000 children of military personnel receive the Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA), a form of taxpayer-funded support to help with private education. It is designed to provide stability for children whose parents often work away or have to move frequently.
However, the support is capped at about £27,000 a year, which for many parents is already not enough. The average annual fee for one child at an independent boarding school is about £41,000.
Figures uncovered by Cartlidge, the MP for South Suffolk, found that the average cost to train a regular army recruit at the Army Training Centre Pirbright was approximately £47,900.
Cartlidge warned of an exodus of military personnel from an already understaffed armed forces if Labour goes ahead with the changes, and said it would cost more to replace the troops than it would save the government.
He said: “Experienced service personnel have told me in no uncertain terms that they could quit the armed forces as a result of this tax. This is the last thing the military needs, given the threats we face and when retention is already an issue. The figures show that it would cost more to train new recruits than to protect these families from the fee increase, so there is no excuse for the government to fail to act — they should exempt children of forces families from school VAT.”
Those claiming CEA must pay the full school bill up front and can then claim back up to 90 per cent — families who go to non-state boarding schools must make a minimum 10 per cent parental contribution to the fees.
A family with two children at a school charging the MoD-capped rate of £27,000 per annum will pay £54,000 a year. They can then claim back £48,600, leaving them to find £5,400. If the 20 per cent VAT is levied they will have to pay a new full bill of £64,800 up front.
If the MoD does not increase CEA to include the VAT cost, and continues to give 90 per cent on the basic fees, parents would have to find £16,200 per annum. If the MoD does increase CEA, the allowance will cover VAT on the basic fees, but the parents’ contribution would still be subject to VAT, so they would have to pay a new total of £6,480.
An RAF flight sergeant whose husband is also in the RAF and has two children at boarding schools said that the wider impact of the policy would be an “irreparable decline in military retention and recruitment as the armed forces package decreases further, along with morale”.
In another letter sent to Cartlidge, the wife of an army officer of more than 25 years said they were “deeply concerned” about the decision to levy VAT on private school fees and the “uncertainty is creating an unbearable strain on military families”.
She said: “The long-term consequences could include a decline in military retention and recruitment, as the armed forces package becomes less attractive. The silence from the government on this issue is deeply concerning, and the impact on our children’s education and futures is alarming.”
She said the family had been forced to relocate every two years. Had their two children not attended a boarding school, they would have had to attend as many as ten different state schools by the time they completed their A-levels.
“The continuity provided by their current school environment, with stable relationships with teachers and peers, is essential to their wellbeing and academic success,” she said. The additional £14,500 a year in costs to send their children to boarding school was “not sustainable”, she said, adding: “My husband is now considering leaving the army as a result.”
She added that the “potential consequence of this policy for our children is devastating”, as one of their children is about to begin his GCSEs. “Far from generating additional revenue to recruit more teachers, this policy will force military families like ours to move our children into state schools, increasing the burden on the state system and causing significant disruption to their education,” she said.
The 13-year-old daughter of a staff sergeant wrote her own letter to say how the fees would affect her, saying that she was due to start boarding school in September, having been to four different schools in just over two years because of military postings.
“I have had to face missing a month of school due to moving in later in the year, and then being put in a school which was oversubscribed and bottom sets as they had no space for me.
“I have big plans for my future, which includes studying law at university and becoming a barrister. I am now longing for some stability, as my dad, who is a soldier, is due a posting right before my GCSEs, which I am keen to excel in,” she said.
In her letter she said that boarding schools provided military children with a “stable and supportive environment through the challenges of frequent relocations and family separation”.
In another letter, a major whose partner also serves in the military said they had moved homes more than 20 times in their careers and served on numerous operational tours. Sending their three children to boarding schools enabled their children to have some stability, they said.
One wife said her husband had completed two tours of Afghanistan, had been away from home for months at time, and her children had “already lost enough due to military life”.
She said: “Under normal circumstances our children would not be attending this type of school, yes we are very fortunate … there has to be some rationality here, we are not all super rich, some of us really do struggle to give a continuity of education.”
Collette Musgrave, chief executive of the Army Families Federation, said those who received the CEA were predominantly from the more experienced ranks such as sergeants, warrant officers, majors and lieutenant colonels, who are “doing key jobs for UK defence, particularly overseas, where there are very limited options for their children’s education”.
She said: “The reasons people leave the military are multifaceted, but many families receiving the Continuity of Education Allowance have told us that this could be the tipping point for them.”
Published by The Times.
