Now even Labour voters regret backing party because of cruel private school VAT raid

Even Labour Party voters regret their decision to back the party after it punished the parents of children at private schools, bombshell new polling shows.

Of those with children outside the state system who voted for Sir Keir Starmer at the last election, 53% expressed remorse at doing so due to Chancellor Rachel Reeves's decision to slap VAT on fees.

UK wealth management firm Saltus surveyed 1,293 private school parents as part of a wider study of 2,000 people with investable assets of £250,000 or more and discovered that the introduction of VAT on fees has continued to place significant financial strain on families who were already shouldering the rising costs of private education.

When schools were hit with the 20% VAT charge, Saltus data found that one third of HNW parents were planning to remove their child from their current school. And while half of those said they would continue with private education by either sending them to a less expensive private school or a private school abroad, the remaining half planned to remove them from the system altogether, and either send them to their local state school or home school them instead.

Labour's flagship social change policy saw Chancellor Rachel Reeves announce private schools, including Eton, Harrow, and Ardingly College, along with hundreds of smaller institutions, would no longer be exempt from the 20% VAT rate, claiming the money raised would help "provide the highest quality of support and teaching" in the state sector.

She said the increase levied on schools - before being passed on to parents - would raise £460million extra to spend on state schools, rising to £1.7billion by 2029/30. This is despite 1,400 private schools helping the state sector by removing pupils from a system on which they do not rely.

The changes - denounced as a "tax on ambition" - took effect from January 1.

The new findings - coming after the closure of early payment loopholes which more than a third of parents used to pay fees upfront - suggests the intentions expressed earlier this year are now translating into action, with more disruption to come.

According to the 8th edition of the Saltus Wealth Index Report, one in five HNW parents have removed their children from the private school they had been attending as a direct result of the addition of VAT to school fees.

The report chronicles the sacrifices HNW families are making to cope with the addition of VAT. Seven in ten say they either already have or will have to make specific lifestyle or financial changes to cover the extra cost.

For most, this includes cutting back on things like holidays and other big ticket expenses and everyday spending.

One in six have had to turn to others for financial help, including grandparents, family and friends. One in 10 have had to remortgage, while a similar number have taken out a loan, downsized, or moved to a different area that is more affordable. Others have rearranged their finances, with one in four either reducing pension contributions or dipping into their savings.

One in five have either taken on additional work or got a new job that pays more.

Alex Pugh, Chartered Financial Planner at Saltus, said: "We are now seeing the impact of VAT being added to school fees move from intention to reality, with almost one in five high net worth parents making some form of change to their child's education as a direct result of the change.

"What's particularly striking is that parents are not only switching to less expensive schools, but many are leaving the UK private system altogether, either moving children into state schools, sending them abroad or home schooling. Alongside this, large numbers of families are making significant financial sacrifices - from cutting back on spending to remortgaging homes, reducing pension contributions or even taking on additional work - to cover the higher costs.

"These choices are not limited to those under the most financial strain. Even parents who could, in theory, absorb the increase are reassessing the long-term value of private education and weighing it against other priorities such as retirement planning and supporting wider family needs.

"For families with more than one child, we are seeing parents carefully reconsider whether they can justify private schooling for younger siblings in the new environment. The effect of this policy is proving both immediate and far-reaching."