AFIS™ is the UK’s only membership organisation that brings together individual supporters of independent education — including parents, relatives, school staff, and alumni — from all walks of life. It provides a collaborative platform that amplifies their voices in the national education conversation, helping to shape both public opinion and policy debate.

Our collaborative community champions the rights of families who choose private schooling, whatever their background or reasons for doing so.

We commission and fund independent academic research to build a fuller, evidence-based picture of the families who access private education — helping to address gaps in data and contribute to a more informed, constructive public debate.

With the collective input of our member families, we aim to bring greater balance, insight, and positivity to the national conversation — and support the independent education sector in preparing for future challenges.

We also make independent education more accessible, by raising funds to help schools expand means-tested fee assistance and providing our members with a range of money-saving offers on everything from school uniform and equipment to holidays and insurance.

By shopping through the AFIS website, our members enjoy savings and exclusive perks — while also generating donations for schools and helping to fund independent, robust research into the families who choose private education: their demographics, motivations, and wider contributions to society and the economy.

(*AFIS earns a small commission on member purchases made through our retail partners, helping to fund our work. We donate a portion of that commission to our partner schools and allocate another portion to support the academic research).

The Need For AFIS

AFIS was founded by a group of independent school parents concerned about increasingly negative and unrepresentative media coverage about families who choose private education. We wanted to address the need for better research and help schools and families impacted by the growing political, social, and economic pressures.

The divisive and often polarised debate around VAT on school fees highlighted the urgent need for a professional, national platform to unite and advocate for those who choose independent education.

We know that the blanket assumption that all private school families are wealthy and privileged is both inaccurate and unfair. In reality, most families who choose independent education are not super-rich; they do so for a wide range of personal, practical, and educational reasons — with their children’s best interests at heart. Many also rely on financial support from relatives and benefit from schools’ fee assistance and bursary programmes to make this choice possible.

While the largest and most well-known private schools often dominate public debate, the truth is that the majority are small — with 71% enrolling fewer than 300 pupils. These schools play a vital role in the education system by offering highly tailored environments that respond to the specific needs of their pupils and reflect the values and priorities of the families they serve.

The growing challenges facing families and schools — combined with frustration over biased reporting, misleading data, and persistent stereotypes about private school families — have driven us to pursue better research and develop new ways to support both families and schools.

The big questions were, how can we reach all these families and how can this organisation be funded? The solution is AFIS, the Association for Families of Independent Schooling.

AFIS is not aligned to a political party, nor do we fund any party or think-tank. While we would like to see VAT removed from school fees, we are not a campaign or lobby group, or a single-issue organisation.

The Independent Education Landscape Is Changing

· The public debate around private schools has become increasingly divisive and polarised.
· Families who choose independent education face growing stigmatisation, driven by stereotypes and outdated assumptions about wealth and privilege.
· Rising costs mean fewer families are able to access private education.
· Financial pressures are forcing many schools to reduce the level of means-tested fee assistance they can offer.
· An increasing number of independent schools are closing due to mounting financial challenges — including the impact of VAT on school fees.

Our partner schools and member families are uniting to build a collaborative, solutions-focused community — one that will make a meaningful difference.

To register your interest as a family, school, or retail partner ahead of our launch in September 2025, please get in touch at hello@afis.org.uk.

Association for Families of Independent Schooling and AFIS are trading names of AFIS (U.K.) Ltd, incorporated in England and Wales, company number 12635667