OSCR bares teeth on charity status of independent schools

OSCR, the Scottish charities regulator, on 28 October 2008 ordered four leading fee-paying private schools to increase their spending on bursaries or risk losing their charitable status.
 
The schools concerned are Hutchesons' Grammar in Glasgow, Merchiston Castle in Edinburgh, Lomond School in Helensburgh, and St Leonards in St Andrews.  Each will have to do more to satisfy the “public benefit” test for charitable status under the Charities and Trustees Investment (Scotland) Act 2005.  For example, Hutchesons was criticised for only giving 49 bursary places this year out of a roll of 1,750 pupils.