11th August 2018 

Education should be based on need, not the ability to pay. But in one aspect our system isn’t just unfair – it’s tilted towards the richest at the expense of the rest of us.

In 2014, the SNP government introduced a fee if an appeal, or an exam ‘review’, is carried out but no change is made to the grade awarded.

The cost of these charges now falls on school budgets – which have been hammered by £400m worth of cuts since the beginning of austerity.

ICYMI: Spending on schools has been cut by £400m since 2010. Labour will make the richest pay their fair share so we can properly invest in our public services. 👇 pic.twitter.com/6J4keZPWA7

— Scottish Labour (@ScottishLabour) August 7, 2018

Since these charges have been introduced there has been a growing gap between state schools and private schools – with private schools being almost three times more likely to appeal a grade.

These appeals could be the difference between a young person getting the grades they need to get on to college or university. Money shouldn’t come into it.

Education should be based on your ability, not the ability to pay. Before 2014 these appeals used to be funded centrally – and we think they should be again.

Agree? Join our movement for the many here.