A business group representing the financial services industry in Guernsey has given its moral support to the island’s private schools ahead of this week’s debate on their future funding.
Education, Sport, and Culture currently gives Blanchelande, Elizabeth, and Ladies’ College around £3million per year.
That is around 3% of the island’s overall budget for education and the three private schools educate around a third of Guernsey’s children, charing their parents and carers fees on top of the grant money received.
ESC now wants to phase out the grant entirely – with it hitting zero within six years.
The colleges have proposed an alternative funding arrangement which would reduce but not phase out entirely their grants.
Five amendments have already been laid against ESC’s proposals before the debate gets underway tomorrow. Among those amendments, Deputy Heidi Soulsby has suggested the grant is maintained with the colleges working more closely with the High Schools in the future to share best practices, while Deputy John Dyke would like the college grants tied to bursaries for academically gifted children from less-well off families.
With the debate due to start tomorrow afternoon, the Guernsey International Business Association (GIBA) has said it “strongly supports the proposition put forward by Blanchelande College, Elizabeth College, and The Ladies’ College to maintain funding at the current level, adjusted annually by RPIX”.
The business group said that the colleges are essential and that reducing or removing the grant “would push more students into the State sector, increasing costs for taxpayers”.
“Conversely, maintaining funding alleviates the pressure on State secondary schools, particularly at a time when the sector is facing challenges in teacher recruitment and retention,” warned GIBA in its statement, published in full HERE.
“In addition to making a critical contribution to our community through educating our local workforce, GIBA also believes a thriving education sector is essential for Guernsey’s ability to attract and retain talent, which directly impacts our competitiveness as a jurisdiction and long-term economic stability.”
Like the IoD, GIBA has also warned that the island’s economic success, which relies heavily on the finance industry, benefits from the provision of private education via the three colleges.
“Many leading economies—including the Nordic countries, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Malta, and the USA—offer some level and form of subsidy for independent education. This is because governments recognise the savings they provide to the state by reducing the burden on government-funded places while acknowledging that money spent on education benefits the long-term economic success of the country.
“At a time of a decline in the working population and ageing demographics, Guernsey must ensure that its education system supports the island’s long-term economic sustainability. Cutting funding for independent colleges would undermine this goal. Instead, maintaining a stable and thriving independent education sector will support the economy and provide long-term benefits for the whole community.”
