08.11.2024 Senior Bulletin

In summary, there are three direct impacts on our School from the Budget. Firstly, and most publicly, the confirmation of VAT of 20% imposed on school fees from January. Secondly, the removal of business rates relief from April, which will have an impact of over £300k full year on the School. Then thirdly, the increase in employers’ national insurance contributions, which will have a further impact given the majority of our costs are staffing.

As mentioned in the Head’s letters and at our Action Plan launch event, we had already planned and budgeted for the impact of business rates change and we have confirmed that the VAT imposition will mean an increase of school fees from the Spring term of 17.5% rather than 20%. The School remains committed to absorbing or mitigating 2.5% despite the extra cost now imposed on us from national insurance. The Fees and Charges page on our website will be updated next week and an updated sheet will be sent to you all.

To inform our decision making we have been exploring and taking advice on all possible options, and we continue to explore options on your and our behalf. When the draft legislation was first published, for example, there appeared to be an opportunity to split out the day catering charges as an exempt charge. However, this has since been removed as an option by the emerging legislative detail. This is one example of an avenue that has been explored and where the parameters have been changed around us. It is not the only one – transport costs are another example. We continue to clarify whether these or other mitigations may be possible going forward, and if so there may be changes in how we invoice for services accordingly.

We understand that many of you seek further information about what the School is doing to support you in this situation. As stated above, the questions and queries received before the Action Plan launch and in response to our letters have been welcome and useful.

We are keen to provide information and myth bust in equal measure and expect that you may have more or new questions too. I provide a few clarifications below, but as the Head has stated, we are preparing a more in-depth FAQ document that will be shared with parents after approval by the School’s Governance Finance Committee around 22^nd November. This will address points including how and why a School doing all it can is unable to mitigate more than the 2.5% committed to. The document will reflect the questions and clarifications that we have had, or go on to receive, so if there are areas you would wish to be included, please do send them to me or email [email protected].

In advance of that, I hope the points here give some greater clarity about how the School operates. Truro School is a charity and, to keep fees reasonable, generates only a small surplus each year which is then reinvested back into its operations. We have reduced our anticipated surplus this year as part of the mitigation of VAT and other government costs. The vast majority of our income is from fee and bill charges, but we are also working hard to increase income from our enterprise activity, which includes activity camps, lettings, events and more.

We benchmark our costs with other independent schools, the maintained sector, as well as other industries with similar estates to ensure we are providing value. We will continue to manage our costs, whilst delivering the quality of service that you expect, and if we can achieve further cost reductions or savings, we will pass what we can on to you.

A current example of this is that we have been successful in a bid for Growth Hub match funding to install PV panels on the SBA roof. This supports our strategic drive for school sustainability and recommendations from our pupil and staff-led sustainability committee. It will also reduce our electricity costs each year going forward.

A further clarification to make is that VAT is only applied to the fees actually paid. So, VAT would not be payable on any sibling discount for example. This question has been raised by several parents. Likewise, for parents in receipt of a means-tested bursary, we are thankful for the support of the Truro School Foundation which means anyone in receipt of means-tested bursary support will not have to pay additional fees this year. As we have advised previously, if you are concerned about your individual situation, please do get in touch with us at [email protected] and we can discuss this on a one-to-one basis.

We have also been asked about the Truro School Music Project and site development works now underway. These are funded through a loan arrangement from the MIST Head Office and are fully supported through a combination of that loan and group reserves that we can access for this purpose (but could not access to mitigate fee rises). We are continuing to explore the capital goods scheme, and what we may be able to recover in future years once the project is completed, but as with other aspects of the legislation, is not yet fully clear what is possible.

I would also like to reassure you that this site development is about much more than music. It is also about site safety (we have moved the minibus parking away from the areas children use more often already and the project will result in safer walking routes). It will also result in a more hospitable assembly hall for public examinations and all community events, as well as providing us with a facility that we can generate income from. Completion of this project also allows us to look at rationalising other parts of the site for improved wellbeing, SEND and medical access. All pupils, in due course, will gain in some way.

Thank you for your ongoing support and patience whilst we work through all of these changes. Please do send queries and questions to us and we will address them in the wider FAQ document later this month.

In the meantime, I hope you all have a good weekend.

Kind regards,