12:17pm UK, Monday May 26, 2008

There have been calls for a fundamental review of boarding school grants that are paid to some Government employees.

Grants could be used for Eton

A Sky News investigation reveals the grants have allowed many of the 5,500 Government staff who are eligible for the pay-outs to send their kids to some of the UK's most expensive schools.

The figures, obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, show the foreign, defence and international development departments spend a combined total of £118m a year on boarding school fees.

The grants are paid to those employees whose job might entail a foreign posting and are designed to ensure continuity of education for their children.

But former Education Secretary David Blunkett believes it is time for a rethink.

He told Sky News: "It is appropriate in terms of tightening the belt of Government expenditure to ask robust questions now about the extent of the allowances."

He added: "This is not a scheme for allowing civil servants to opt out of the state system.

"This is a scheme to help continuity for families and for children who are constantly on the move."

The Government department which spends the most on boarding school fees is the Ministry of Defence.

Last year it allocated almost £104m to just over 5,000 armed forces personnel and other MoD staff. The maximum grant is £7,700 a term.

Staff only have to find around a £1,000 a term themselves to send their children to the likes of Eton or Marlborough - and many do.

Mark Wallace, of the Taxpayers Alliance, said: "What we are asking for here is for them to pursue perfectly good standards that the rest of industry might follow.

"Yes, it's fine, give someone 90% of a company car but don't say we'll give you 90% of a Lamborghini."

Sky News visited one of Britain's top schools, Giggleswick in Yorkshire. It offers a quality of education any parent would crave but few could afford.

The annual boarding school fee at Giggleswick is around £23,000 - out of the question for all but the highest earners.

However, 18 children whose parents have received the Government's boarding school grant are enrolled at the exclusive school.

The headmaster at Giggleswick, Geoffrey Boult, is also chairman of the Boarding Schools Association.

He said continuity of education grants were "vital to ensure the children of Government employees did not suffer if their parents were posted overseas".

The Taxpayers Alliance and other critics of the grants say the system encourages abuse, because the level of payouts is too high.

They say it is hardly surprising that, with only a few thousand pounds of their own money to find, many of the eligible Government employees opt for the top level of grant in order to send their children to the most expensive schools.

They believe the answer could lie with the provision of more state boarding schools.

They would ensure continuity of education but at just £2,600 a term they are more than two-thirds less expensive than the country's top private schools.