ABSTRACT
The day before beginning this chapter I talked to a woman with little sympathy for those who opt out. When I said that I thought a parent opposed to private schools might be justified in sending her kid to one, she scoffed: ‘That won’t help solve the problem, will it?’ I replied that sending him to the local comprehensive probably wouldn’t help much either. The thought that individual sacrifices are futile has been lurking in the background for a while. It’s time to put it under the spotlight. Is it true that the decisions of individual parents make no difference? How does the answer affect the issue of hypocrisy? If it is true, does that justify opting out?
