'Not all private schools are like Eton'
Pupils and teachers at an independent school in Blackburn have accused the government of discriminating against families in the North by introducing VAT on private school fees.
Principal Paul Taylor, who took the helm at the independent school last year, told LancsLive that Westholme has "absorbed" 10 per cent of the VAT burden in order to limit the impact on families. This will remain in place for the summer term but Mr Taylor said the introduction of VAT on private school fees will hurt those "on the cusp" the most.
"Parents will have to make choices," he said. "You might see a reduction in the number of pupils attending from age four to 18, where parents choose to only send their children to secondary here, or save up just for sixth form." Head boy Enrikas Juselis, who has been accepted into Oxford to study law, won a scholarship to Westholme after attending St Bede's in Blackburn.
Back in 2019 Westholme unveiled plans to sell off two of its three sites - Billinge House, which is now the site of the Issa brothers-funded mosque, and Beardwood Bank - to generate revenue to be invested into merging all three schools on the largest site in Meins Road. Breaking news, opinion and top stories are being sent directly to our community and we want you to be part of it. Get the latest news as it breaks from across Lancashire. Users who want to join must have WhatsApp downloaded to their phone.
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