School With £8304 Fees Is Charity, College In Deprived Area Is Not

One educates some of the most privileged children in society while the other serves some of the poorest – but it is the further education college in the east end of Glasgow which could lose its charitable status following a ruling yesterday.

Scotland’s charities watchdog has decided Dundee High School will continue to enjoy the benefits of being a charity but has ruled John Wheatley College in Glasgow will not, unless there is a change in the law or ministers exempt them from the new rules.

The Office of the Scottish Charities Regulator (OSCR) said John Wheatley fulfilled the criteria of being a charity in that it had a charitable purpose to provide education to 5000 students in Greater Easterhouse, half of whom pay no fees because of their economic circumstances.

However, the test of being a charity is not met because the college’s constitution – in keeping with all other Scottish colleges – permits Scottish ministers to control its activities in certain circumstances.

The Scottish Executive has already moved to protect colleges by removing some ministerial powers of direction after The Herald first raised the concerns two years ago, but some powers remain – such as the removal of trustees in the event of financial mismanagement.

The decision, which will be delayed for two years to allow ministers to take action if they so wish, will send shockwaves through the further education sector, which benefits from charitable status to the tune of some £50m a year in tax relief.

Meanwhile, OSCR was satisfied that Dundee High School, which educates around 1000 pupils selected by ability at annual fees of up to £8304, was not an unduly restrictive institution because the fees to parents reflected the cost of the education provided.

Other key features included the fact around 13% of pupils got some financial support, and the access the school gave the community to its facilities.

The OSCR report recognised it had been “argued by some” that independent schools had a negative impact on state schools in the same area or were a divisive influence in society but said they could not find “any strong evidence to support these views in respect of whether Dundee High should continue to be a charity”.

Although the decision will be welcomed by the independent school sector, it still leaves a question mark over whether other private schools will be allowed to keep charitable status.

OSCR chief executive Jane Ryder stressed the decision was taken on an individual basis and “it should not be assumed this establishes definitive benchmarks for the independent school sector”.

The cases were some of the first to be assessed by OSCR since legislation was introduced by the Scottish Parliament in 2006 to tighten control of charities following high-profile scandals.

Under the new rules, charities must be able to demonstrate they have a charitable aim and benefit the public while OSCR also checks on what proportion of money a charity uses to pay for administration and other costs.

Last night, the Scottish Council for Independent Schools (SCIS), welcomed the ruling. Judith Sischy, director of SCIS, said: “We are pleased the High School of Dundee has passed the charity test and we remain confident independent schools across the sector will also be able to demonstrate their case to the regulator.”

Mike Duncan, rector of the High School, said: “We are delighted our position as a charity has been confirmed. As a non-profit-making organisation providing education for almost 800 years, we are proud of the contribution we have made to the lives of individual children.”

There was understandably less of a welcome from John Wheatley which, in a short statement, stated only that the college’s board of management would “consider carefully” the decision and “look to the Scottish Executive to seek to identify a solution”.

However, the Association of Scotland’s Colleges (ASC) last night was quick to spell out the importance of charitable status to the sector. Sue Pinder, convener of the ASC’s principals forum and principal of West Lothian College, urged the government to take action: “College students are often some of the most vulnerable people in our society and it is vital the sector is able to continue its work on behalf of students. Without charitable status, we would face the very real possibility services would be compromised.”

However, there is a potential stumbling block to demands for a change in the law, which would effectively give colleges greater autonomy.

Although the further education sector is inspected by HM Inspectorate of Education, accounts are subject to stringent public audit checks and the Scottish Funding Council can act where it feels there is mismanagement, the Educational Institute of Scotland has argued an element of ministerial control provides democratic accountability for the millions of pounds of public money spent in the sector.

John Wheatley College
# The college was established by Strathclyde Regional Council in 1989 and named after the socialist, intellectual and Independent Labour Party MP for Glasgow Shettleston, who was once suspended from the Commons for calling his Conservative opponents murderers for a proposed cut in child-welfare centres.

# It was created as a tangible commitment to the regeneration of greater Easterhouse and the east end of Glasgow and its mission is to provide an “excellent and inclusive lifelong learning environment”.

# The college has three campuses in Shettleston, Easterhouse and Queenslie and the communities it serves are among the most economically and socially disadvantaged in the UK.

# The college is a gateway into further and higher education for many people who failed to achieve at school and welcomes students who have no formal qualifications on to many of its programmes.

# There are approximately 6800 students and 300 teaching staff at the college.

# John Wheatley styles itself as “Glasgow’s friendliest college”.

High School of Dundee
# The only independent school in the city, its origins lie in the 13th century when the Abbot of Lindores was instructed to build a grammar school in the burgh of Dundee.

# It was the earliest Reformed school in Scotland, having adopted the new Protestant religion in 1554.

# The school’s imposing main building with its distinctive Doric pillars is one of the city’s landmarks and was built entirely from public subscription in the 19th century.

# The school boasts of having a “diverse mix of pupils”. It claims it is “committed to preserving this through its bursary scheme”.

# The total roll is 1042. That includes 363 pupils in the junior school and 679 in the senior school. Girls make up 48% of the roll.

# The senior school fees for the academic year 2005/2006 were £8304.

# Famous alumni include Andrew Marr, the BBC broadcaster, Ricky Ross of pop group Deacon Blue, the singer/songwriter KT Tunstall and Hector Boyce, 15th century Scottish philosopher and first Principal of the University of Aberdeen.