The UK private school sector has stayed stable at between 6 and 7% of pupils for literal decades, through endless policy changes. In London, it has become very expensive, but then London attracts a lot of extraordinary wealth, and schools charge what the market will bear. I say this with some knowledge as I had one kid at one expensive North London private school, and other has just switched from a GDST that was a bit cheaper to a different one for sixth form that is eye-watering.
Fees aren’t driven by taxation, they’re driven by the fact that in London, it’s not GPs and solicitors sending their kids to private school, it’s three tiers of ascending wealth:
1. At the bottom, partners in big professional services firms eg PwC or Linklaters, successful business execs in big corporations, etc. They earn 400k+ a year, live in houses worth 1.5 to 5m
2. Next, the finance folks — hedge fundies, i-bankers, and the bottom end of the PE tier. They’re on 1m+ a year, live in houses worth 4 to 10m
3. At the top, the mega wealthy — owners of medium size businesses and upwards, the top of the PE tier, live across multiple homes worth tens of millions, etc.
Obviously, this is a simplification (where do the slebs and artists fit?), but it’s fairly accurate.