Harriett Baldwin speaks in Parliament about her recent visit to Our Place—an independent provider—which provides specialist education, mainly for children with autism, and asks if this school would be impacted should a tax on independent schools be introduced.
Harriett Baldwin (West Worcestershire) (Con)
Worcestershire County Council has some welcome plans to set up a new autism free school in Malvern. Recently, I visited Our Place—an independent provider— in West Worcestershire, which provides specialist education, mainly for children with autism. Is it the Secretary of State’s understanding that such independent provision would be affected by taxation should the Opposition bring in a tax on independent schools across this country?
The Secretary of State for Education (Gillian Keegan)
My hon. Friend makes a very good point: there are 2,408 independent schools across our country, many of which provide special educational needs support and excellent education in particular specialties. If those schools were subject to increased taxation, that would make provision more difficult. We will have to assess what that would mean.