How Leweston private school parents are fighting back after shock closure

Detailed summary

Families describe the turmoil left in its wake and their efforts, alongside teachers, to pick up the pieces

Instead of the 135-year-old grounds being alive with laughing students, bustling staff and the warm glow of well-lit rooms, the buildings lie empty. There is a small but growing pile of post at the door while vans, branded with the school crest, have fallen leaves building up at the wheels.

But instead of this week seeing the return of the day students and start of GCSE and A-level mocks, on Tuesday 27 October everyone was suddenly informed that the school was shutting with immediate effect. This left 577 pupils and nursery kids without places, approximately 200 staff without jobs (or their pay packet for October) and hundreds of shocked, sad, and angry parents.

Leweston is just one of the 117 private schools that have ceased operating since the introduction of VAT to school fees in 2025, according to the Independent School Council, but it has the dubious honour of experiencing the most…

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