Private school fees could rise to help poorer pupils

MIDDLE-CLASS parents could face sharply rising private school fees to subsidise places for poorer children under new laws.

The Charity Commission has told independent schools to offer more bursaries and extra classes for working class pupils or face severe financial penalties. Experts warn that some schools will have to increase fees to cover the costs of such measures, while others may be forced to close. Changes in the law mean private schools must prove they operate for the wider "public benefit" or lose their charitable status and associated tax breaks.

The Charity Commission told headteachers this means offering free places, access to lessons and use of sports and arts facilities to children whose parents cannot afford the fees.

Dame Suzi Leather, chairwoman of the watchdog, said school charities charging high fees should find "imaginative" ways to pass the test. "Such charities must ensure they provide sufficient opportunity to benefit for those who cannot afford the fees," she said. In new guidance, the Commission said there are many ways to comply with the new rules, but offering subsidised places is the "obvious and, in many cases, the simplest" solution.

Other schemes could include:

●Allowing state school pupils access to swimming pools, astro-pitches and concert venues.

●Giving state school pupils the chance to join certain lessons.

●A private school sponsoring a state-funded city academy.

●Helping prepare state pupils for Oxbridge entrance interviews. The watchdog was clear that schools may need to increase fees for existing parents to fund these activities. The guidance said:

"Sometimes the fees charged to those able to afford them are relatively high, but this is part of a deliberate pricing strategy aimed at generating revenue to cover the cost of concessions.

"Trustees might decide to increase general fee levels to offer subsidies to those unable to pay the full cost."

But Andrew Grant, head of St Albans School, warned fees must not rise so high that existing parents are priced out. Mr Grant, chairman-elect of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference of leading private schools, said: "What the Charity Commission has got to recognise is that without fee-paying parents there won't be enough money for bursaries anyway.

"Any independent schools, other than those that are fantastically well-endowed, have got to be attractive to fee-paying parents who are willing to stump up quite a lot."

He said some smaller schools would be forced to increase fees to fund bursaries but most - including his own school - already had money set aside for such measures.

Sue Fieldman, from the Good Schools Guide, said the watchdog's tough stance came at "the worst time possible" for many schools.

"There is little room for manoeuvre - and I can see it being the nail in the coffin for some private schools, especially some of the smaller ones that are already coping with diminishing numbers," she said.

"This could be as serious for private schools as the credit crunch. At the end of the day, it is the parents who will suffer."