Shakespeare's Globe and National Space Academy accused of charging private school pupils more in 'divisive' two-tier pricing

From the Newshound archive · first published 10 October 2026 · last updated 11 October 2026.

Cultural institutions including Shakespeare's Globe, the National Space Academy and the Bank of England stand accused of discriminating against independent school pupils through two-tier pricing on school trips and workshops. The Globe charges state school pupils £12 per student for workshops but invoices independent schools £14, while the National Space Academy levies a £200 premium on private schools over state schools for a four-hour science masterclass. Campaign group Education Not Taxation branded the approach "divisive" and urged institutions to abandon the practice. Parents have connected the disparity to Labour's decision to impose VAT on independent school fees.

The Bank of England goes further, barring private school pupils entirely from its in-house museum presentations, accepting only state school groups.

Tony Perry, chairman of Education Not Taxation, warned the two-tier system can penalise children from low-income families attending independent schools on bursaries while letting wealthier state school families benefit.

The Royal Shakespeare Company faced similar criticism last year for charging private pupils £16.50 against £10 for state school children, with critics accusing it of 'feeding into a national class war'.