Parents 'support private schooling'

Many parents said they would go private if they could

More than half of parents (53%) would send their children to independent schools if they could afford it, research suggests.

And more than two thirds (64%) believe government money should be used to fund gifted children from low-income families through private schools, the survey for the Independent Schools Council (ISC) found.

Widening access to the excellence of our schools is the most important partnership issue of all

Alistair Cooke, ISC

The poll of nearly 2,000 adults across Britain, carried out by the Mori Social Research Institute, also indicated that 52% thought educational standards in independent schools were higher than in state schools.

Even if standards were the same in both sectors, 68% believed there would still be a role for private schools.

Of the 53% of parents who favoured a private education, 71% cited better educational standards as the main factor, 25% said they felt class sizes would be smaller and 20% said discipline would be better.

The poll also suggested that support for government funds being used to fund places in private schools was nearly as popular among Labour voters - 64%, as Conservative voters - 69%.

Assisted places

In March, the ISC set out its proposals to replace the assisted places scheme - abolished when Labour came to power in 1997 - which offered bursaries for bright pupils from poorer backgrounds to attend a private school.

This is a naked attempt to resurrect the assisted places scheme, albeit in modified form

Nigel de Gruchy, NASUWT

The scheme was criticised for being too easily abused by middle-class parents with good accountants and for being accessible only to the academically gifted.

But general secretary of ISC, Alistair Cooke, said: "The latest Mori figures make it clear that there is widespread public support for the use of public funds to make the education provided by our schools available to a much wider cross section of the population."

"Under this government, policy towards independent schools is firmly based on the principle of partnership.

"For the ISC, widening access to the excellence of our schools is the most important partnership issue of all," he said.

The council was working to refine its proposals on access, he added.

Self-interest

Nigel de Gruchy, general secretary of NASUWT accused the ISC of indulging in an "inane exercise in the promotion of self-interest".

"The survey blithely ignores the fact that average fees for private schooling amount to over £6,000 per child per year," said Mr de Gruchy.

Expenditure on children educated in state schools averaged half that amount, he said.

"This is a naked attempt to resurrect the assisted places scheme, albeit in modified form.

"Under that scheme, the government paid more for the child to be educated privately than it did for a youngster going to normal state school.

"That was scandalous discrimination," Mr de Gruchy said.