Taxation and No Representation; What is the True Meaning of ‘Independence’ Now?

The Headmaster has written an article which has been published in The Independent Schools Magazine this month. The article highlights the challenges facing independent schools and asks the question about what it really means to be ‘independent’.

Here at The RGS Worcester Family of Schools, we really value our independence and the fact that we can provide the very best education for our pupils, combining academic excellence through expert teaching, with a rich and varied co-curricular programme, supported by exceptional levels of pastoral care. Being a charity also allows us to engage with and support our communities, provide help when it is needed and link with local state and independent schools to develop education for all.

The Headmaster’s article celebrates independence and the fact that schools like RGS can continue to drive education in the UK forward, for example through our engagement with educational technology and AI, and calls for independent schools and their associations to step forward and celebrate their role in education.

Taxation and No Representation; What is the True Meaning of ‘Independence’ Now?

The cry of ‘No taxation without representation’ defined the causes of the American War of Independence as the rebels symbolically tipped a cargo of tea into Boston Harbour in protest at the Tea tax and a perceived lack of representation. When I studied this period at school and then again at university, my perspective shifted from seeing the rebels as being the unruly protagonists, behaving selfishly by refusing to pay their taxes for the support they received from the British Crown, to realising that if taxes are to be levied, the people they are levied against need to be given a voice in how things are run. Otherwise, they become disenfranchised, and eventually, they go to war.

As a Head of an independent school, the parallels have dawned recently that the tax on education levied on our school is not unlike those taxes forced upon the people of the American colonies all those years ago. Quite apart from the fact that taxing education is simply wrong, and the consequences of a tax that benefits no one are plain to see, there is a further concern which is whether being independent has meant that we have lost our representation: have we lost our voice?

The initial strategy of our Associations was to work with the Labour government, understanding that they would have to work alongside the Department for Education for years to come. Only when it became clear that politicians were not prepared to listen did the Associations call in the lawyers and launch a legal challenge under pressure to represent independent schools’ ‘voice’.

We now find ourselves in the unlikely predicament that people are starting to realise that independent schools play a very considerable role in their communities. It is evident that our partnership schemes make real differences; that our Bursaries provide access and our Scholarships give future researchers, sportspeople, musicians, actors and artists a crucial start on the long and difficult path to success in these fields. There has been the SEN story told by parents whose children find a place at an independent school as the right, and possibly only, environment where they can thrive. There are the armed forces parents whose children have enough potential disruption in their lives and whose places at an independent boarding school give them the safe haven they need when their parents give their all for their country.

Then there is the economic story. At a time when Britain plc. has very little to shout about, independent schools abroad are emerging around the globe, driving up standards and, in some cases, rebuilding whole education systems. Closer to home, on the micro level, independent schools are major employers, providing generally secure jobs in local communities, supporting the local economy.

So here is the dichotomy: just as independent schools are most under threat from the impact of the combined financial threats of VAT and rising costs, so people are realising just how much they bring to their communities and the economy. This does not make them any more popular in political circles unfortunately, but it does demonstrate how vital they are if our education system, our culture and our economy are to thrive.

And just as the benefits of independent schools start to become apparent, along comes the next challenge: that the growth of groups of schools weighing in to turn independent schools into ‘not-for-profit’ or ‘for-profit’ businesses is a potential threat to that very independence that sets our schools apart. As the financial implications of VAT start to bite and the market shrinks, so these big organisations look to swallow up the smaller and more bespoke schools in a binge of mergers and acquisitions. While some mergers will result in schools with clear synergies working together, other groups will become controllers from the centre who set price, standards and content for all independent schools in their groups nationwide. One wonders what ‘independence’ will really mean then?

It is possible to see a time not very long into the future when the exception rather than the norm will be the stand-alone independent school setting its own agenda for growth and development, assessment and achievement based upon what its local families want from their school and for their children. Instead, we could have nationwide groups with corporate slogans and marketing gimmicks racing to be able to claim to be ‘the best’. Add in a healthy dose of AI and these businesses could be climbing over one another to be the dominant modern force in independent education. If this goes wrong, the result could be a shallow independent sector without diversification and appeal to the local community. Herd mentality may provide instant financial security; it could also be the beginning of the end for true independence.

Can I suggest instead an opportunity? Is it time for independent schools to throw off the mantle of trepidation and societal judgement? How about we go back to basics and shout about what we are really good at? Is it time for our Associations to be brave and celebrate genuine independence – the ability of our schools to diversify and offer different things for our local communities? Should they not set us requirements for partnership work so that we blend with our own community, rather than be absorbed into national companies? Surely celebrating the differences between our schools, demonstrating the drive our schools provide to improve our education system, are better than bowing to political pressures? After all, I have a feeling that striving for excellence, which has been our schools’ aim for decades, is increasingly seen as necessary now in all sectors including education, if our country is to enjoy future growth and development for everyone.

If we are to do this then we will have to come down from our academic ‘ivory towers’ and engage fully locally to make a difference and prove our relevance. We have to abandon any traditional assumptions regarding curriculum and assessment. If we have not done so already, independent schools have to take on the skills debate and understand the value of apprenticeships and new employment opportunities. There is little point in suggesting we are marked out by studying Latin or by our 30 Oxbridge successes if these students then cannot get a job. Our independence means we do have to lead on technology and AI, recognising its importance while educating about its risks. We have to throw off any ‘stuffiness’ and become fully conversant with what the modern world needs and what our economy requires. It is time to celebrate that our schools are genuine modern charities, up with the times and making a difference for all, rather than be embarrassed by this label.  If we do this, independent schools can help improve outcomes for all schools and all children.

While I am not encouraging ‘going to war’ like the future Americans of the Boston Tea Party, this is a rallying cry for all those who truly believe that taxation without representation is wrong. If we are to be taxed, then listen to our voice. And, if the result of this vicious tax is that your school gets absorbed into a national group, keep hold of your school’s uniqueness, its identity and its ‘voice’. The future does not have to be bleak if we are bold and seize back the initiative. Let’s shout now about the future and what our independent school communities can do to make a difference.

 When we look back on this unsettling and disruptive period, we may regret ever losing our voice in education; and the longer we wait, the harder it will be for a truly independent voice to be heard.