Current as at 4 October 2026
Since Labour came to power on 4 July 2024, 251 mainstream independent schools have undergone a major structural change — equivalent to around 15% of all mainstream independent schools open in January 2024.
The Government has repeatedly dismissed concerns about the impact of VAT on school fees. We are keeping track of what is actually happening.
This record documents closures and other major structural changes across the sector. We believe VAT is contributing to some of these decisions. The evidence should not be ignored — and the Government should be held to account for the consequences of its policy.
| Structural Change | Number | Description |
| Complete school closures | 148 | The school has ceased, or has announced that it will cease, operating altogether. |
| Schools closed as part of a merger (counted as a subset of “Complete school closures”) | 12 | The school has ceased to exist as a separate institution because its pupils and provision have been combined with another school. |
| Closed due to conversion to state school (counted as a subset of “Complete school closures”) | 1 | The school has completely closed as an independent school and is now a state school. |
| Partial closures | 14 | Only part of the school has closed — for example, a prep or pre-prep department, nursery or specific year groups — while the remainder continues. |
| Merged with another school but not officially closed | 18 | The school has merged with another but is currently still listed as a separate school on the DfE register |
| Joined a larger group | 51 | The school has become part of a larger education group while continuing to operate as a separate school. |
| Changed to co-educational | 26 | A previously single-sex school has begun, or announced plans, to admit both boys and girls. |
These categories overlap, so the figures should not be added together.
This research covers mainstream independent schools only. Special independent schools are excluded because they are treated differently under the VAT rules, with eligible special schools able to reclaim VAT and therefore not affected by the VAT policy in the same way as mainstream independent schools.
The list below includes schools that have changed since Labour came to power, and how they changed. We make no judgement on whether VAT caused each of these changes; this list simply documents what changes have happened.
Please let us know if we’re missing any other changes (e.g. part-closure, change to co-ed, etc), after confirming that it is not in the list below. You can contact us here.
List of Schools Closing or Experiencing Major Structural Changes
| School Name | Local Authority | Change | |
| 1 | Abbot’s Hill School | Hertfordshire | Changed from girls to co-ed |
| 2 | Abbotsholme School | Derbyshire | Closed |
| 3 | Abercorn School | Westminster | Closed |
| 4 | Abingdon School | Oxfordshire | Changed from boys to co-ed and joined Abingdon schools group |
| 5 | Advance Education | Brent | Closed |
| 6 | Alamiyah School | Barking and Dagenham | Closed |
| 7 | Alderley Edge School for Girls | Cheshire East | Closed |
| 8 | Aldro | Surrey | Joined Radley Schools Group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 9 | Aldwickbury School | Hertfordshire | Changed from boys to co-ed |
| 10 | Alton School | Hampshire | Closed |
| 11 | Ardvreck School | Perthshire | Joined Sedbergh Schools Group |
| 12 | Ashfold School | Buckinghamshire | Charity merged with Stowe School but remains a separate school |
| 13 | Ashton House School | Hounslow | Closed |
| 14 | Assess Education | Liverpool | Closed |
| 15 | Austen House | Lancashire | Closed |
| 16 | Avon House Preparatory School | Redbridge | Closed |
| 17 | Azbuka Russian-English Bilingual School | Hammersmith and Fulham | Closed |
| 18 | Barfield Prep School | Surrey | Joined Radley Schools Group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 19 | Barlborough Hall School | Derbyshire | Closed |
| 20 | Barnet Hill Academy | Barnet | Converted to state school |
| 21 | Bedford School | Bedford | Changed from boys to co-ed |
| 22 | Bedstone College | Shropshire | Closed |
| 23 | Beechwood Park School | Hertfordshire | Merged with St Albans School but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 24 | Beeston Hall School | Norfolk | Joined Radley Schools Group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 25 | Bickley Park School | Bromley | Joined Sevenoaks School group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 26 | Bishop Challoner School | Bromley | Closed |
| 27 | Bishopstrow College | Wiltshire | Closed |
| 28 | Bow School | Durham | Closed |
| 29 | Box Hill School | Surrey | Taken over by Reigate Grammar and changed name |
| 30 | Brabyns Preparatory School | Stockport | Closed |
| 31 | Braeside School | Essex | Closed |
| 32 | Brighton & Hove Montessori School | Brighton and Hove | Closed |
| 33 | Brighton Girls GDST | Brighton and Hove | Closed 6th form provision |
| 34 | Bristol Waldorf School | Bristol, City of | Closed |
| 35 | Brookes UK | Suffolk | Closed |
| 36 | Burgess Hill Girls | West Sussex | Joined Bede’s Trust |
| 37 | Bryony School | Medway | Closed |
| 38 | Cambridge International School | Cambridgeshire | Closed |
| 39 | Cambridge Tutors College | Croydon | Closed |
| 40 | Canford School | Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole | Merged with Dumpton School to become Canford Schools Group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 41 | Carfax College | Oxfordshire | Closed (de-registered) |
| 42 | Carrdus School | West Northamptonshire | Closed |
| 43 | Cedars School | Inverclyde | Closed |
| 44 | Chafyn Grove School | Wiltshire | Closed due to merger/amalgamation |
| 45 | Chandlings Prep | Oxfordshire | Joined Radley Schools Group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 46 | Charlotte House Preparatory School | Hertfordshire | Joining Berkhamsted Schools Group |
| 47 | Chartfield School | Kent | Closed |
| 48 | Chase Grammar School | Staffordshire | Closed |
| 49 | Chase Grammar School International Study Centre | Staffordshire | Closed |
| 50 | Clayesmore Preparatory School | Dorset | Closed due to merger/amalgamation |
| 51 | Cobham Hall | Kent | Changed from girls to co-ed |
| 52 | Colston Bassett School Ltd | Nottinghamshire | Closed |
| 53 | Conifers School | West Sussex | Closed |
| 54 | Cothill House | Oxfordshire | Joined Radley Schools Group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 55 | Dorset House School | West Sussex | Became part of Lancing College but still operates as separate school |
| 56 | Downham Preparatory School and Montessori Nursery | Norfolk | Closed |
| 57 | Drive Preparatory School | Brighton and Hove | Closed (de-registered) |
| 58 | Drumduan | Forres | Closed |
| 59 | Dudley House School | Lincolnshire | Closed |
| 60 | Dumpton School | Dorset | Merged with Canford School to become Canford Schools Group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 61 | Durham High School | County Durham | Closed |
| 62 | Durston House School | Ealing | Joined St Paul’s School Group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 63 | Edenhurst Preparatory School | Staffordshire | Closed |
| 64 | Edgbaston College | Birmingham | Closed |
| 65 | Ellern Mede Moorgate School | Rotherham | Closed |
| 66 | Exeter Cathedral School | Exeter | Closed |
| 67 | Fairfield PNEU School | North Somerset | Closed |
| 68 | Fairholme Prep | St Asaph | Joining Myddelton College in Denibgh. Fairholme campus closing. |
| 69 | Fairview International School | Bridge of Allan | Closed |
| 70 | Falcons School | Wandsworth | Closed |
| 71 | Feltonfleet | Surrey | Joined Reed’s School group |
| 72 | Fernhill School | Lanarkshire | Closed |
| 73 | Framlingham College | Suffolk | Joined Mill Hill Education Group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 74 | Frobel Independent School | Barking and Dagenham | Closed |
| 75 | Fulham School | Hammersmith and Fulham | Senior school closed and school re-named as The Fulham Prep School Ltd |
| 76 | Fulneck School | Leeds | Closed |
| 77 | Godolphin School | Wiltshire | Closed Prep school Changed from girls to co-ed |
| 78 | Gracefield Preparatory School | Bristol, City of | Closed |
| 79 | Great Walstead School | West Sussex | Charity merged with Ardingly College but remains separate school |
| 80 | Hampton School | Richmond upon Thames | Created/joined Hampton Schools Trust |
| 81 | Harrogate Ladies’ College | North Yorkshire | Changed from girls to co-ed |
| 82 | Heathfield School | Ascot | Joining larger group but not closing. Changed from girls school to co-ed. |
| 83 | Heathside Preparatory School | Camden | Closed |
| 84 | Hemdean House School | Reading | Closed |
| 85 | Hereford Cathedral Junior School | Herefordshire, County of | Closed due to merger/amalgamation |
| 86 | Hereford Cathedral School | Herefordshire, County of | Joined Three Choirs Schools Group |
| 87 | Highclare School | Sutton Coldfield | Closing one site and merging |
| 88 | Highfield Preparatory School Limited | Windsor and Maidenhead | Closed |
| 89 | Hollygirt School | Nottingham | Closing nursery to Y5 |
| 90 | Horris Hill School | Hampshire | Closed |
| 91 | Hulme Grammar | Oldham | Prep School closed |
| 92 | Immanuel College | Hertfordshire | Prep school closed Senior school closure announced, but rescued |
| 93 | Iona School | Nottingham | Closed |
| 94 | Islamic Shakhsiyah Foundation | Haringey | Closed |
| 95 | Kent College Pembury | Kent | Senior school changed from girls to co-ed |
| 96 | Kew College | Richmond upon Thames | Joined Hampton Schools’ Trust |
| 97 | Kilgraston School | Perthshire | Closed |
| 98 | King Henry VIII | Coventry | Pre-prep closed (known locally as Swallows) |
| 99 | King’s House Moorlands | Luton | Closed |
| 100 | Kings London | Bromley | Closed |
| 101 | Kingscourt School | Hampshire | Closed |
| 102 | Kitebrook Preparatory School | Oxfordshire | Joined Radley Schools Group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 103 | Lawrence House | Tameside | Closed |
| 104 | LIFE Wirral Sports School | Wirral | Closed |
| 105 | Lime House School | Cumberland | Closed |
| 106 | Little Downsend Epsom | Surrey | Closed |
| 107 | Lochinver House School | Hertfordshire | Changed from boys to co-ed |
| 108 | London Scandanavian School | Islington | Closed |
| 109 | Longacre School | Surrey | Closed |
| 110 | Loughborough Amherst School | Leicestershire | Closed |
| 111 | Luqman Academy | Sheffield | Closed |
| 112 | Maidwell Hall | West Northamptonshire | Closed |
| 113 | Magdalen College School | Oxfordshire | Changed from boys to co-ed |
| 114 | Malvern St James | Worcestershire | Closed |
| 115 | Marlborough House School | Kent | Merged with Vinehall to become Marlborough House Vinehall School. Kent location appears on register as closed. |
| 116 | Mary Erskine School | Edinburgh | Merged with Stewart’s Melville College to become Erskine Stewart Melville |
| 117 | Merchant Taylors’ Boys School | Sefton | Boys and girls schools merged to form one co-ed school |
| 118 | Merchant Taylors’ Girls School | Sefton | Boys and girls schools merged to form one co-ed school. Girls school is recorded as closed on the register. |
| 119 | Moorlands School | Leeds | Closed |
| 120 | Moulsford Preparatory School | Oxfordshire | Changed from boys to co-ed |
| 121 | Mount St Mary’s College | Derbyshire | Closed |
| 122 | Mowden Hall School | Northumberland | Joined Radley Schools Group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 123 | Moyles Court School | Hampshire | Closed |
| 124 | Nancy Reuben Primary School | Barnet | Closed |
| 125 | Newcastle School for Boys | Newcastle upon Tyne | Changed from boys to co-ed (now Newcastle School) |
| 126 | Newland House School | Kingston upon Thames | Joined Hampton Schools’ Trust |
| 127 | Nightingale House School | Calderdale | Closed |
| 128 | Norbury Court School | Cheshire East | Closed |
| 129 | North London Rudolf Steiner School | Haringey | Closed |
| 130 | Oak Heights Independent School | Hounslow | Closed |
| 131 | Oakfields Prep | Lambeth | Joined Alleyn’s Schools Group and became Alleyn’s Oakfield |
| 132 | Oakhyrst Grange School | Surrey | Joined Caterham family of schools |
| 133 | Oakleigh House | Swansea | Closed |
| 134 | Old Buckenham Hall School | Suffolk | Joined Rugby School Group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 135 | Old Palace of John Whitgift School | Croydon | Closed |
| 136 | OneSchool Global Uk Nottingham Campus | Derbyshire | Closed due to merger/amalgamation |
| 137 | Orchard House School | Ealing | Closed due to merger/amalgamation |
| 138 | Orwell Park School | Suffolk | Became part of Benenden family of schools but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 139 | Our Lady’s Abingdon | Oxfordshire | Closed |
| 140 | Oxford House School | Essex | Closed |
| 141 | Oxford Sixth Form College | Oxfordshire | Closed |
| 142 | Padworth College | West Berkshire | Closed |
| 143 | Palmers Green High School | Enfield | Closed |
| 144 | Park Hill School | Kingston upon Thames | Closed |
| 145 | Pennthorpe School | West Sussex | Joined Hurst family of schools |
| 146 | Phoenix Academy | Enfield | Closed |
| 147 | Pitsford School | West Northamptonshire | Closed |
| 148 | Portland Place School | Westminster | Closed |
| 149 | Prenton Preparatory School | Wirral | Closed |
| 150 | Prestwich Preparatory School | Bury | Closed |
| 151 | Progress Schools – Lilford Centre | Wigan | Closed |
| 152 | Progress Schools Wigan | Wigan | Closed |
| 153 | Prospect House | Lancashire | Closed |
| 154 | Queen Elizabeth Grammar School | Wakefield | Merged with Wakefield Girls High to become Queen Elizabeth’s School |
| 155 | Queen Margaret’s School | North Yorkshire | Closed |
| 156 | Redmaids’ High School | Bristol, City of | Joined GDST group |
| 157 | Reed’s School | Surrey | Changed from boys to co-ed |
| 158 | Rendcomb College | Gloucestershire | Closed |
| 159 | RGS Worcester (Springfield) | Worcester | Prep School closed |
| 160 | Royal Grammar School Guildford | Surrey | Changed from boys to co-ed |
| 161 | Royal High School GDST | Bath and North East Somerset | Prep School closed |
| 162 | Ruckleigh School | Solihull | Closed |
| 163 | Rupert House | Henley | Taking over St Mary’s Prep |
| 164 | Ruthin School | Ruthin | Closed |
| 165 | Rydes Hill Preparatory School | Surrey | Prep school closed. Nursery and pre-prep continue. |
| 166 | Sherborne Boys | Dorset | Merging |
| 167 | Sherborne Girls | Dorset | Merging |
| 168 | Sherborne Prep | Dorset | Merging |
| 169 | Shrewsbury High School GDST | Shropshire | Changed from girls to co-ed and left GDST group |
| 170 | Shrewsbury House Pre Preparatory School | Surrey | Closed |
| 171 | Shrewsbury House School | Kingston upon Thames | Joined St Paul’s School Group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 172 | Sir William Perkins’s School | Surrey | Changed from girls to co-ed |
| 173 | Snaresbrook Prep School | Redbridge | Joined Forest School group |
| 174 | Solefield School | Kent | Became part of Sevenoaks School but still operates as separate school |
| 175 | Sompting Abbotts School | West Sussex | Closed |
| 176 | South England International School | Brighton and Hove | Closed (did not meet criteria for registration) |
| 177 | Southway Independent School | Leeds | Closed |
| 178 | St Albans High School for Girls | Hertfordshire | Merged with Stormont School to form the St Albans Education Group |
| 179 | St Albans School | Hertfordshire | Changed from boys to co-ed. Merged with Beechwood Park School but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 180 | St Andrew’s College | West Northamptonshire | Closed |
| 181 | St Aubyn’s School | Redbridge | Joined Bancroft’s family of schools but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 182 | St Christopher’s Prep | Hove | Closing in September 2027 and merging with Windlesham School to form the new Brighton College Prep Hove. |
| 183 | St Christophers School | Devon | Closed |
| 184 | St Christophers The Hall School | Bromley | Joined St Dunstan’s Education Group |
| 185 | St Clare’s School | Porthcawl | Closed |
| 186 | St Faith’s School | Cambridgeshire | Merging with The Leys School |
| 187 | St George’s Preparatory School & Little Dragons Preschool | Lincolnshire | Closed |
| 188 | St George’s School Ascot | Windsor and Maidenhead | Will join St George’s Windsor to become a single school which is part of St Alban’s Education Group |
| 189 | St George’s School Windsor | Windsor and Maidenhead | Will join St George’s Ascot to become a single school which is part of St Alban’s Education Group |
| 190 | St Gerard’s | Bangor | Closed |
| 191 | St Hilda’s School | Hertfordshire | Closed |
| 192 | St James Senior Boys’ School | Surrey | Changed from boys to co-ed |
| 193 | St John’s Wood Pre-Preparatory School | Westminster | Closed |
| 194 | St Johns Beaumont | Surrey | Changed from boys to co-ed |
| 195 | St Joseph’s College | Reading | Closed |
| 196 | St Joseph’s Park Hill School | Lancashire | Closed |
| 197 | St Joseph’s Preparatory School | Stoke-on-Trent | Closed |
| 198 | St Lawrence College | Kent | Closed |
| 199 | St Lawrence College Junior School | Kent | Closed |
| 200 | St Mary’s Prep | Henley | Merging with Rupert House school |
| 201 | St Michael Abbey School | Worcestershire | Closed |
| 202 | St Nicholas’ School | Hampshire | Joined Mill Hill Education Group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 203 | St Wilfrid’s School | Devon | Closed |
| 204 | Stewart’s Melville College | Edinburgh | Merged with Mary Erskine School to become Erskine Stewart Melville |
| 205 | Stoke College | Suffolk | Closed |
| 206 | Stormont School | Hertfordshire | Merged with St Albans High School to form the St Albans Education Group |
| 207 | Talbot House School | Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole | Closed |
| 208 | Tashbar Boys Nursery | Gateshead | Closed |
| 209 | Terrington Hall School | North Yorkshire | Joined Sedbergh Schools Group |
| 210 | The Belvedere Preparatory School | Liverpool | Closing |
| 211 | The Cedars School | Croydon | Closed due to merger/amalgamation |
| 212 | The GFC School | Medway | Closed |
| 213 | The Hawthorns School | Surrey | Joined Caterham family of schools |
| 214 | The King Alfred School | Dudley | Closed |
| 215 | The Kingsley School | Warwickshire | Changed from girls to co-ed |
| 216 | The King’s School, Gloucester | Gloucestershire | Joined Three Choirs Schools Group |
| 217 | The King’s School | Worcester | Joined Three Choirs Schools Group |
| 218 | The Leys School | Cambridgeshire | Merging with St Faith’s School |
| 219 | The London Acorn School | Merton | Closed |
| 220 | The Manor Preparatory School | Oxfordshire | Joined Abingdon Schools Group |
| 221 | The Meadows Montessori School | Suffolk | Closed |
| 222 | The Old Hall School | Telford and Wrekin | Closed due to merger/amalgamation |
| 223 | The Pilgrim’s School | Hampshire | Became part of Winchester College but still operates as separate school |
| 224 | The Prepatoria School | Shropshire | Closed |
| 225 | The Royal School | Surrey | Closed |
| 226 | The Study Preparatory School | Merton | Joined GDST group |
| 227 | The Study School | Kingston upon Thames | Closed |
| 228 | The Ursuline Prep School Ilford | Redbridge | Closed |
| 229 | The Village School | Camden | Closed |
| 230 | Thetford Grammar School | Norfolk | Closed |
| 231 | Tonbridge School | Kent | Changed sixth form from boys to co-ed |
| 232 | Trinity Christian School | Reading | Closed |
| 233 | Trinity School | Croydon | Changed from boys to co-ed |
| 234 | Twycross House Pre-preparatory School | Leicestershire | Closed due to merger/amalgamation |
| 235 | Ursuline Preparatory School | Merton | Closed |
| 236 | Vinehall School | East Sussex | Merged with Marlborough House School to become Marlborough House Vinehall School |
| 237 | Wakefield Girls’ High School | Wakefield | Merged with QEGS to become Queen Elizabeth’s School |
| 238 | Wakefield Grammar Pre-Preparatory School | Wakefield | Closed due to merger/amalgamation |
| 239 | Wakefield Independent sch | Wakefield | Closed |
| 240 | Walthamstow Hall | Kent | Pre-prep closed |
| 241 | Walthamstow Montessori School | Waltham Forest | Closed |
| 242 | Want2Achieve The Academy | Stoke-on-Trent | Closed |
| 243 | West Hill Park School | Hampshire | Joined Radley Schools Group but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 244 | West Lodge School | Bexley | Joined St Dunstan’s Education Group but will contionue to operate as a separate school |
| 245 | Westfield School | Newcastle upon Tyne | Joined RGS group of schools and junior school changed to co-ed but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 246 | Westminster Under School | Westminster | Changed from boys to co-ed |
| 247 | Wimbledon Common Preparatory School | Merton | Changed from boys to co-ed |
| 248 | Windermere School | Cumbria | Closed one site |
| 249 | Woodcote House School | Surrey | Closed |
| 250 | Woodford Green Preparatory School | Redbridge | Joined Bancroft’s family of schools but will continue to operate as a separate school |
| 251 | Woodlands School | Essex | Closed |
