Closing all private schools would benefit state schools

I don’t want teachers from private school teaching my children, the ones I know who teach in private are the ones who couldn’t hack it in state school.

Would also reduce opportunities for money laundering. Also increase the chance of business people keeping money in the business rather than taking it out for school fees and could mean government, local government, NHS, universities, BBC and charities could reduce salaries as would not be expected to be enough to cover school fees at the highest levels. So benefits more than just education.

Maybe we do need to balot places and not have catchment schools. Now that would level it out nicely. You can be placed anywhere within 2 miles so no need for LA travel funding.

However I live in posh green belt so my schools within 2 miles are all mostly very good. But how well would this go down? Would everyone be happy I wonder?

Maybe we should only be building new schools in deprived areas? So well educated parents are forced to send their kids to bring the standards up?

Schools in poorer areas should receive more support

Sure. But it has to start early. What we’re seeing happening in our primaries and into our secondaries now are children who are products of this Tory Government. Removal of Sure Start centres from the same time they were born so no early intervention and sod all support when it comes to the basics like how to potty train or professionals around who can see a child needs a SALT referral or mum just isn’t coping or a child is showing signs of autism or ADHD or something else. A couple of years where even church led playgroups didn’t happen so lots of isolated parenting by people who really needed help with it. Benefit cuts to those who have more than 2 children and increased pressure on those who are single parenting or who have caring pressures to get out and work means more and more children losing early years nurturing and a parental presence in the home after school when in the crucial formative teenage years.

An absolute crisis in behaviour and parental attitudes in schools is what we see today - adding to the already considerable pressures schools are facing regardless of funding issues, Brexit, lockdowns and everything else. Where we are today is a situation that has been made - probably not deliberately - by the current Government. A Government who seems to believe that only the rich and powerful matter and that the rest of us are just lazy and getting everything we deserve. That a society can only function if we value everyone’s contribution and recognise that if we can’t all be rocket scientists, the rocket scientists amongst us need a coffee in the morning, someone to drive their train to work, a trained person in their children’s nursery, a swift diagnosis and treatment when unwell and a clean and tidy work environment so they can get on. Society is a jigsaw we all fit into, one way or another. We might not all be paid the same but we fit into the bigger picture to keep things going. Somehow, this has got left behind.

Fixing it needs money and a shift in thinking.

I can only speak from my own experience. I trained as a teacher in a state school, taught in state schools for some years and then moved to the independent sector.

I'm now back in a state school (for reasons to do with my own child's education) but this is an unusual thing to do. Of course there is movement from state to private schools but that direction, not the other, in my experience (I don't know if anyone collects figures on this - would be interesting).

In London at least, it's more likely the private school workforce would go overseas or tutor than go wholesale into UK state.

We're got a very youthful teaching workforce by international standards.

Whatever, I would always support there being alternatives to government run schools.

I mean, just look at the government!

This is impossible. There will always be better schools. Of course people will pay more to live beside them. How would you ever prevent this?

@MyDarlingClementine you know what I meant. This is social media, I'm not going to write a 2000 word carefully nuanced essay on demographics.

One can really see how envy fuels these threads all riled up by guardian article I imagine.

My second dc really needs a private school but we can't afford it. There is no way I would want to deny another child like her however from accessing one if they can afford it!!
And yes I've had to pay to get my dc tutors because they can't cope with educating her in her primary school.

All children should be given the resources they need at their 'local' state school.

Imagine if everyone had no choice but to send their kids to the local school. There would be so much outcry that school funding would have to increase and standards would have to increase.

It staggering that there is not more outrage at what a poor education some schools offer.

Fair and equal education would have a huge impact on society.

Unfortunately when it comes to kids everyone is going to do what is best for their own kids (I include myself in this!) and politicians are even more self serving than a lot of people so want grammars etc for their 'own'

No it wouldn't!

@KaihahUmoniiv each school is different. That statement is fundamentally untrue that private school teachers got a good CoL increase. We didn't. We also didn't strike because our T&C's are different. For me, whilst my pay is the same as state, my workload is much more manageable so I don't face the same pressures as my state colleagues. I have every sympathy with their situation.

£9k It's a big stretch for me but the only way I can carry on doing my job.

OP thinks we all have trust funds though.

@BibbleandSqwauk

I've done some school runs in my pj's.
I'm not your steriotyoe I can assure you and I highly value education...

Holy fuck OP those rose tinted glasses are strong

The wealthy buy houses in catchment, force the house prices up and the non-wealthy unable to afford them.

Wealthy parents (generally) are the ones who donate most to fundraising events, get involved as governors and lobby schools/work the head to provide better facilities.

So you end up with schools with better facilities, more involved parents and kids who are also probably receiving additional tutoring or support so those schools end up with better results.

Those schools then become more attractive and more wealthy parents start buying more houses in catchment, driving prices up further.

As for your argument about a bigger pool of teachers, first off state schools do not pay the same wages as private - do you not think that some private school teachers would just say "sod that" and find alternative jobs instead ??

As above, successful schools attract the top teaching talent, meaning they become even MORE successful.

Meanwhile, the schools in the less affluent areas struggle to lobby parents for support, struggle to attract teachers and have a constant stream of supply teachers and fall further and further behind making them even LESS attractive.

So basically.

You want to take away a choice for some people because you think it would benefit the masses (it wouldn't for SO MANY reasons).

Anything else you don't want people to be able choose/work towards?

Luxury cars? Nope, all have to buy the state approved Lada.

@FrodisCapering yes that's true, but they are not just let loose in a classroom..they are mentored and attend cpd sessions and are observed and undertake a teaching qualification at the same time. Private schools cannot afford to piss off their fee paying parents so any new entrant is, out if necessity, kept a very close eye on so saying they're unqualified and therefore sub-standard is a bit of a red herring

@MintJulia.. How much do you actually pay then per year

Also the staff at private schools aren't striking at the moment, because they got a reasonable cost-of-living pay increase (passed onto the parents with a fee hike of course)

I agree with you OP.

My DC go private because I’m afraid not to and we are lucky that we can afford it. But I feel bad for the students who are left in classes with a high concentration of difficult or unmotivated pupils. I would prefer to see an even mixture across the board - no one advantaged or disadvantaged.

@Snugglemonkey

I've got some aunts and uncles who see themselves as staunchly left and sent dc to private schools and couldn't get one out of the local comp fast enough!

The removal of charitable status will take years and years if it could ever happen at all.

We need more schools and not less. I might go for it if each existing private school remained but catered for people without the fee. Obviously they would add to Central government budget.

Expanding existing schools stock in that way would be helpful.

Rather than trying to force more pupils into those hideous 70s buildings.

I don't think left wing people would choose to send their children to really shit state schools when they can afford private. We lean left and went private as moving was not an option and our local school is terrible. We live rurally, we had one option, so we bought ourselves a second option.

In an ideal world education would be valued by pupils,parents, politicians and society as a whole. We would attend our local school.as all schools would be fit for purpose with motivated staff and pupils. Poor behaviour would be eradicated ,resources would be available for pupils,or staff struggling and the atmosphere would be nurturing. Wishful thinking . Teacher here about to try to.plan lessons for y11.