Stop Discriminatory Pricing and Exclusion Based on State or Independent School Labels
In partnership with:
Education-first family finance platform.
Stop Discriminatory Pricing and Exclusion Based on State or Independent School Labels
No child should be charged more or excluded from educational arts and cultural opportunities because of the school they attend.
But this happens more often than many people realise.
These policies are driven by simplistic assumptions attached to school-type labels.
Here’s the problem
School trips, workshops, outreach initiatives and educational programmes in arts and cultural institutions are meant to broaden horizons and inspire young people.
But in some cases, the price a school group is charged (and therefore what families are asked to pay) or whether children can access a programme at all, depends on the type of school they attend.
The Association for Families of Independent Schooling (AFIS) has identified numerous instances in which theatres, museums, and other organisations:
- Charge independent school groups significantly higher prices than state-funded school groups for the same tickets and educational experiences, in some cases exceeding a 50% difference
- Apply higher fees for educational workshops and activities
- Restrict access to programmes and opportunities based on whether a child attends a state or independent school
Recent cases have seen children who have attended independent schools excluded from applying for specific educational programmes, including the foundation year course at the Royal College of Music and an educational programme at the Victoria and Albert Museum.
These examples are not isolated; they reflect a wider and growing pattern.
These policies are often introduced with the aim of widening participation. However, using school type as a proxy for disadvantage is an imprecise and unreliable approach.
(Soon, we will turn our attention to discriminatory policies within the NHS, including cases where children who attend independent schools have been denied access to treatment and excluded from work experience opportunities).
School labels are a blunt and unfair tool.
It's time we reconsidered how they are used.
School type is increasingly used as a shorthand for socio-economic background across policy, public institutions and media coverage. While often well-intentioned, this risks oversimplifying a complex reality.
Here’s the problem
School trips, workshops, outreach initiatives and educational programmes in arts and cultural institutions are meant to broaden horizons and inspire young people.
But in some cases, the price a school group is charged (and therefore what families are asked to pay) or whether children can access a programme at all, depends on the type of school they attend.
The Association for Families of Independent Schooling (AFIS) has identified numerous instances in which theatres, museums, and other organisations:
- Charge independent school groups significantly higher prices than state-funded school groups for the same tickets and educational experiences, in some cases exceeding a 50% difference
- Apply higher fees for educational workshops and activities
- Restrict access to programmes and opportunities based on whether a child attends a state or independent school
Recent cases have seen children who have attended independent schools excluded from applying for specific educational programmes, including the foundation year course at the Royal College of Music and an educational programme at the Victoria and Albert Museum.
These examples are not isolated; they reflect a wider and growing pattern.
These policies are often introduced with the aim of widening participation. However, using school type as a proxy for disadvantage is an imprecise and unreliable approach.
Evidence and Examples
For example:
- At the Royal Shakespeare Company, school ticket pricing has been published at £10 per pupil for state schools and £16.50 for independent schools
- At National Museums Scotland, workshop pricing has been published at £100 for local authority schools and £150 for independent or non-local authority schools
- At the Royal Academy of Music, eligibility criteria for a new foundation programme have restricted applications to students from state-funded schools, excluding those who have attended independent schools
(Further detail, including additional organisations and published pricing policies, is available on request.)
Why this is a problem
These policies are often introduced with the aim of widening participation. That goal is important.
However, using state and independent school labels as proxies for advantage or disadvantage is a highly imprecise and unreliable approach.
In some cases, excluding private school children may reflect funding conditions or external requirements of the organisation involved. However, regardless of origin, the effect is the same: children are treated differently based on the type of school they attend.
Family circumstances vary widely across all school types. Many pupils in independent schools come from modest backgrounds; some are supported by means-tested fee assistance, and in some cases extended family contribute to fees. Families make significant financial sacrifices to afford school fees.
At the same time, there are many higher-income families within the state sector. AFIS’s research and analysis indicates that there are 4 times more children from the highest-income households in state schools than in independent schools; in fact the number of these children in the state sector exceeds the entire independent school pupil population.
School labels are therefore not a reliable way to identify a child’s circumstances or needs.
The Impact
Using school labels in this way relies on simplistic, binary assumptions.
It reinforces stereotypes and creates stigma in both directions:
- That all children in state schools are disadvantaged
- That all children in independent schools are wealthy and privileged
Neither reflects reality.
Children do not choose the schools they attend, yet they are increasingly being labelled and treated differently in divisive ways that are detrimental, not only to them, but to wider social cohesion.
These approaches can also lead to inconsistent and unfair outcomes.
For example:
- A family on a lower income may be asked to pay more because their child attends an independent school
- A higher-income family may pay less because their child attends a state school
These outcomes do not reflect the real diversity of families across school types.
A Wider Issue
This issue also reflects a broader challenge in how state and independent school labels are used as a proxy for a child’s socio-economic background.
Similar approaches are increasingly visible in other areas, including:
- Work experience opportunities that exclude children from independent schools
- Recruitment processes that require applicants to declare school background
While often well-intentioned, these approaches risk oversimplifying complex realities and can lead to unfair and divisive outcomes.
What needs to change
If the aim is to improve access and support social mobility, it must be based on accurate identification of need.
That means focusing on individual family circumstances, not broad assumptions based on the type of school a child attends.
We are calling on Arts and Culturual Organisations to:
- Review pricing and access policies for school groups and educational programmes
- End the use of state or independent school labels as a basis for differential pricing or exclusion
- Adopt fairer, more accurate approaches that reflect genuine need
Because access to arts, culture and education should expand opportunity, not divide children.
In partnership with:
Education-first family finance platform.
What we will do with this petition
AFIS will share the findings of this campaign, including petition signatures and supporting evidence, with arts and cultural organisations, Arts Council England, and relevant government departments.
We will also use this evidence to support constructive dialogue on how access to educational programmes can be improved in a way that is fair, consistent, and based on genuine need.
Join us in calling for fair, accurate and evidence-based approaches to access and opportunity for all children.
Your support is essential in driving positive change.
AFIS is a non-profit organisation dedicated to championing parental choice, securing fairer representation for independent-schooling families, supporting members with benefits and resources, and widening access to independent education.
AFIS and Association for Families of Independent Schooling are registered trademarks of AFIS UK LTD.
The Association for Families of Independent Schooling (AFIS) C.I.C. is a community interest company, incorporated in England and Wales, company number 16817786.