The Labour Party’s plans to impose VAT on independent school fees could include a tax on additional school services such as meals, sports tours, music lessons and trips, The Telegraph has reported.

Tax experts warned that currently exempt costs could now be included in the 20% tax raid after a source close to shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves refused to deny that Labour’s plans could include such costs.

David Woodgate, chief executive of the Independent Schools’ Bursars Association, said: “The problem is we don’t know what we don’t know. [The Labour Party] haven’t given us any denomination at all as to how it will work. Sports and all of that kind of thing aren’t charged separately but [parents] will have questions for things that they do pay extra for, like piano lessons for instance, whether VAT will be levied on that.”

The Independent Schools Council’s chief executive Julie Robinson repeated her request for Labour officials to clarify their tax plans and provide a detailed plan for independent schools, adding: “We have serious concerns about the policy as it stands, particularly its potential effects on children receiving SEND support, on military families, and on those choosing schools that align with their faith.”