I teach in an independent school AMA

[CraftyGin]

Just as the title says.

They have one to ones with their form teacher every couple of weeks and they run lots of programmes around mental and emotional health, workshops, being in speakers, workshops, keeping fit, being good citizens, giving back to the community etc and do practice all of that so yes, I think the pastoral care is very good.

Those are all good things but outstanding pastoral care go well beyond that. It should be part of everything we do as teachers and support staff.

What's the difference between public, private, independent and prep school? Are they all the same?

Prep schools traditionally cater for 7-13 boys to prepare for public boarding schools, at 13+.

There is a wide use of prep school as a term though, eg up to 11 girls’ school. Broadly, they are independent junior schools. Infant school would be pre-prep.

A private school is funded by fees and endowments.

An independent school includes private schools but also maintained (ie government funded) academies - they are independent of local authorities. Private and independent were interchangeable until academies came on the scene, so most private schools will still refer to themselves as independent.

A public school originally is an ancient school with charitable foundation to enable members of the public (rather than nobility, clergy etc) to attend. These are schools such as Eton, Harrow, Winchester.

However, schools whose head teachers are members of the HMC are also now sometimes referred to as public schools.

Are there any children of famous/celebrity parents at your school, and are the children treated differently by fellow pupils because of it?

Are there any children of famous/celebrity parents at your school, and are the children treated differently by fellow pupils because of it?

Not famous to the general public but a few “captains of industry”. No one treats them any differently.

Thanks Crafty that's really informative 👍🏻

Can I ask please: For the absolutely right bang on perfect fit, top ten in country, highly academic, amazing results, music programmes, pastoral care etc. what you would recommend as a maximum commute, starting year 7.

We adore the above school and fairly certain he would pass the exam to get in. It's an independent.

20 mins in car, 20 on train, 20 walk. It's a really popular school for many school leavers at his present local prep where he's at now. Most parent don't think too much and the school is worth it. I know of local kids who do this journey and continue to be motivated as they love their school.
I just worry about dark nights, winter, bad weather, tiredness etc.

The alternative is the local comp, ten mins by bus but not a great fit at all.

Thanks in advance.

The think that commute sounds fine. I did similar as did my husband and it didn’t phase us.

20 mins in car, 20 on train, 20 walk. It's a really popular school for many school leavers at his present local prep where he's at now. Most parent don't think too much and the school is worth it.

It sounds OK, but not great.

What you need to think about is the reliability of public transport - train should be reasonably predictable, but is the bus? If he misses the train/bus, how long is the wait till the next one?

Will there be lots of other students on the train?

What would the impact be of staying for prep or clubs?

Do you want to be driving him for 20 minutes all the way to sixth form? Are you really able to commit to this every day

As a working parent, one of my top priorities for senior school is the student being able to travel independently.

Can you pick him up if you get the dreaded call from the school nurse saying that he has been sick and needs to be picked up straightaway?

(These questions are relevant to all school choices).

Yes it would always be by train, never bus. There are loads of kids on the train - the train sets off in London and many get on during the route. We'd just be the last three stations.

The final destination station is like Hogwarts in a morning as there are many extremely good schools there.

I worry about after school clubs and sports etc. Would hate him to get home later, eat, bed, repeat and just feel as though he's on a treadmill .... plenty of time for that in later life!

Thanks for your reply.

That sounds a lot like my DD’s train.

OP this thread is very interesting! Thank you! I'm glad you don't get as much grief in your personal life.
I currently teach at a private school but want to apply for a job at a well-known prep school.

My questions are:

• would you recommend sending your children to the school you work at? we wouldn't be able to afford private secondary and I'm worried that state school might be an awful shock for my son if he spends 6 years at my school first. He's still in nursery now.
• what skills/experience/mindset do you think heads look for when hiring?

-I'm not in it for the money, but I have to live...do you know any way to find out the salary a school pays? And if you are interviewing, is there ever any leeway for negotiation or is it just stated when you are offered the job?

Thank you!

would you recommend sending your children to the school you work at? we wouldn't be able to afford private secondary and I'm worried that state school might be an awful shock for my son if he spends 6 years at my school first. He's still in nursery now.

I have done and it was fine. It is fairly accepted that your DCs will come to your school, and it makes life a lot easier in terms of commuting, matching holidays, and assemblies/plays/sports. We had a rule in our house not to talk about confidential stuff or gossip at home, and to treat DDs the same as everyone else at school.

what skills/experience/mindset do you think heads look for when hiring?

I think they are looking for overall competency to do the day to day job. They will want you to support the ethos of the school. Do some research into the Prep School Baccalaureate and Common Entrance.

I'm not in it for the money, but I have to live...do you know any way to find out the salary a school pays? And if you are interviewing, is there ever any leeway for negotiation or is it just stated when you are offered the job?

A top prep school will pay market value for your experience. If you are mainscale that will be around 40k, I imagine. When I recently worked in a prep school, they offered me 34k, and I said I couldn’t accept that, and they upped it to 38k. This was via an agency.

Good luck!