A DISPUTED projection of how many pupils could leave an independent school due to VAT on fees was made by a councillor, he has confirmed.
Reform UK councillor Stuart Keyte claimed in a council meeting as many as 60 pupils could leave Rougemont School, in Newport, due to the tax that has been applied since January.
The school has said it isn’t seeing such a trend.
He has now confirmed he had calculated the estimate. Cllr Keyte said: “It wasn’t a figure I just pulled out of the air. I made an extrapolation potentially up to 60 could leave based on figures relayed (by the UK Government) to the courts.”
At Torfaen Borough Council’s April meeting, the Trevethin and Penygarn member had asked what preparations the council had made for the potential for pupils joining its schools, from the private sector, due to the VAT change.
He said at the meeting: “Rougemont School is projecting up to 60 pupils will leave and go to state school education and the two that are closest are Croesyeciliog and Fairwater (sic).”
The former Fairwater School is now named Cwmbran High and both it and Croesyceiliog are in Torfaen, with Cllr Keyte highlighting Croesyceiliog is at capacity.
Following the meeting a statement, issued by Rougemont’s governing body to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, stated: “We can confirm that this is not a trend we are currently seeing at Rougemont.”
Cllr Keyte told the Local Democracy Service he’d made the estimation based on figures he’d quoted at the meeting, from papers disclosed by the government in its response to a legal challenge by independent schools to the introduction of VAT on fees.
The councillor said that showed the estimate of pupils who could leave private schools as a result is nine per cent rather than 5.5 per cent the government had initially claimed.
“I based that on there are over 700 children at Rougemont and my projection is nine per cent of 700 is potentially up to 60 pupils over a two-year period,” said Cllr Keyte who has a grandchild who attends the private school.
“I also spoke to a number of parents and I know of at least six parents who have taken their children out already.”
Cllr Keyte said he’d raised the issue as additional pupils could have an impact on schools and Labour had promised the imposition of VAT would lead to extra funds for schools, which Welsh Labour had also said it would honour.
He said: “Whether or not it is 20, 30, 40 or 60 it is an impact on our schools. Those additional pupils will be going to state schools, in the Torfaen area or not, there will not be any additional resources and impacts all children in state schools.”
At the council meeting Cllr Richard Clark, the council’s Labour cabinet member for education, said the authority is “constantly” looking at pupil numbers but said it was unlikely it would have to find places for all pupils who could potentially leave Rougemont as they wouldn’t all be from the Torfaen catchment area.