A SCHOOL in Malvern says a case against them for unpaid council tax is "an error". 

Abbey College is being taken to court by Malvern Hills District Council over alleged non-payment of council tax and costs worth £3,162.40.

Originally the case was meant to be heard by magistrates in Worcester on November 19, but this has been postponed with the case set to be heard next week.

Despite this, the school maintains the case has been brought forward in error and that there has been no wrongdoing on their part.

College principal Daniel Booker said the school is hoping to clear up the situation when the case is heard later this week.

He said: "The Abbey College was not taken to Court on November 19 as this was postponed.

"The hearing is not until next week, when we will be presenting the facts that the Council have simply ignored.

"The fact is that as a school we are entitled to an exemption during the Covid period. They have simply made an error."

The case will now be heard on December 3 at Worcester Magistrates Court.

The majority of England's private schools enjoy at least 80 per cent tax relief.

This is due to their status as registered charities.

During the Covid pandemic, Abbey College offered free places to the children of NHS staff to make up for their education being affected.

Up to 30 free places were offered, worth £500,000 in fees, in its day school to NHS staff working locally so their children could catch up on the education they had missed.

In addition, in 2020, the Department for Education published figures that showed that out of 4,470 schools offering A levels, Abbey College was ranked number one in the country where students had made the greatest progress and achieved top value-added scores.