The role of the private sector in education has become a very hot issue internationally and it has tended to lead to generalised and polarised statements rather than nuanced debates. Attempts to debate the role of ‘non-State actors’ in education often exacerbate the problem - as a huge range of different actors, roles and contexts get lumped together. The reality is more complex. This article is an attempt to disaggregate the debate in a concise form and offer some quick reflections on how we might understand and respond from a rights-based perspective in different situations.