Princess Kate and Prince William have been dealt a hammer blow as the clock ticks on choosing a school for Prince George.
George, despite having turned 11 earlier this summer, will have to wait until he turns 13 to leave his current prep school in Berkshire – as is the norm at Britain’s most exclusive independent establishments.
Kensington Palace has remained tight-lipped on where the prince will end up, but speculation is rife that George could be following in his father and uncle’s footsteps and going to Eton College.
But in the wake of a Government move to crack down on private school fees, the Waleses could be left shelling out more than they had in mind to educate the second-in-line to the throne
Eton told parents on Friday to brace for a 20 per cent fee hike in the wake of the Government’s removal of the VAT exemption on independent schools.
Currently, private schools do not have to charge the tax on their fees – because there is an exemption for the supply of education.
But the exemption is slated to be canned from January 2025.
The prestigious boarding school currently charges some £52,000 per year – but, in a letter to parents ahead of the start of the school year, Eton said parents would “likely” end up shelling out £63,000.
The school said its leadership “regrets” that the Government had “chosen to tax education in this way”.
The letter added that it was “disappointed that the introduction of VAT will take place partway through an academic year – and at short notice”.
The editor-in-chief of Majesty Magazine, Ingrid Seward, told The Sun just weeks ago that the Prince and Princess of Wales had “looked at Eton” for the young prince.
She said one advantage of sending George to the school could be the extension of the Waleses’ security detail from his current prep setup at Lambrook School, where taxpayer-funded agents cover him and his siblings.
But in the wake of its proposed fee hike, the Waleses could well consider another option.
William and Kate were seen touring the latter’s former haunt, Marlborough College, twice in the space of two months.
Marlborough charges a fraction less than Eton – with annual fees coming in at just under £51,000.
GB News has approached Marlborough College for comment – though it currently remains unclear whether the Wiltshire school will be upping its charges in line with the VAT hike.
