Impact of VAT and the October 2024 budget
From January 2025, the new legislation from the Government to apply 20% VAT to Independent School fees will come into effect. We have worked hard to mitigate the impact of this change to parents and will be passing on any savings that we can. As a result of our mitigations the impact to parents will be a 13% fee increase.
The government also announced in their budget on 31st October 2024 an increase to employers National Insurance contributions which will also significantly increase our cost base. We are not passing this cost on to parents in the 2024-25 academic year but have had to take it into effect for our budget for the 2025-26 academic year. Fees for the 2025-26 academic year will therefore rise by a further 6%.
Any current or new parents adversely affected by the changes are encouraged to speak to the Bursar as soon as possible.
2025-26
Termly fee from September 2025: £4,730 inclusive of VAT
Deposit
A £900.00 (incl. VAT) returnable deposit is payable on admission. Deposits are returned after a student leaves the school or can be donated towards our bursary fund.
Extras
School bus from Totnes/Dartington or South Brent/Buckfastleigh (subject to availability)
£250.00 per term
School lunches (vegetarian with vegan option)
£250.00 per term
Half a term’s notice is required for the cancellation of bus or lunch.
The annual School Camp is charged at cost and is not covered by the fees. Occasionally, there are additional charges for school trips or special activities.
Payment Options and Terms
Payment Options
Fees are payable on the first day of each term.
Fees can be paid by the term or by Standing Order over 10 months – Sept to June.
A late payment fee of 10% will be raised in the event of non payment or persistent late payment.
Notice to Withdraw
A full term’s notice is required if a student is to be withdrawn.
Terms
Please see here for our: Standard Terms and Conditions.
Gift Aid Donations
The school’s costs have always been managed with careful discipline, in order to keep our fees as affordable as possible. However the additional costs associated with VAT, business rates increases and employer national insurance mean that our finances are now tighter than they have ever been.
We would like to encourage all parents who can afford to, to pledge an additional voluntary contribution towards the funding of the school.
Voluntary donations are an extremely tax-efficient way for parents to support the school. Because VAT is not chargeable on donations, and since we can reclaim money from Gift Aid, every £1 donated to the school is equivalent to £1.50 in fee income. In addition, higher-rate taxpayers can claim back a further 25% of their donation in their tax return.
Regular voluntary donations allow us keep our fees low without compromising on the educational opportunities the school offers, ensuring that as many families as possible are able to access a Sands education if it is right for their children.
Bursaries
The school offers a small number of means-tested bursaries on a first-come, first-served basis. Following means-testing and dependent on budget availability, eligible families are usually offered a bursary fee discount of between 10-33%. More information is available in our Bursary Policy.
Please contact the Finance Administrator, Pamela Gallamoy at bursar@sands-school.co.uk, to discuss your situation or to request an application form.