Open up facilities or lose tax breaks, private schools told

Independent schools risk losing their charitable status unless they open sports pitches and swimming pools to local communities under the biggest shake-up of charity regulations proposed for 400 years.

Private schools will have to meet "public benefit" criteria to keep tax breaks worth more than £80m a year, a review by the Cabinet Office's strategy unit concluded yesterday.

Schools that charge "high fees" will have to make "significant provision" for the wider community such as allowing gifted state school pupils to attend specialist lessons.

The Charity Commission will be given new powers to monitor independent schools' activities to ensure their community involvement is in line with their wealth. "To maintain their charitable status, independent schools which charge high fees have to make significant provision for those who cannot pay full fees and the majority probably do so already," the report, Private Action, Public Benefit, concluded.

Where schools are judged not to be contributing enough to the community they will be given time to improve "rather than immediately losing charitable status".

Alistair Cooke, general secretary of the Independent Schools Council, said members of his organisation contributed more to society than they gained through charitable status. "For every £1 gained by schools from having charitable status, the council estimates that they contribute £2.30 of educational benefit back to society," he said.

"There is no doubt that ISC schools will want to maintain and, where possible, develop their tradition of providing public benefit as part of enjoying charitable status." The council said that many schools could not afford lavish access programmes. Dick Davison of the council said: "The report contains no definition of 'high fees' so we do not know how many of our member schools would be affected.

"The council will remain alert to the dangers of political interference in this process."

About 1,200 independent schools in England and Wales have independent status. Schools with charitable status have to ensure they have a "public character" but there is no monitoring mechanism.

The new public benefit criteria will apply to all charitable organisations, including some private hospitals.

Eton College and Winchester College will be forced to apply for charitable status for the first time under the recommendations. They are the only two independent schools not required to register with the Charity Commission.