Xenia
Right, I see you enjoy a robust debate so I won't hold back! I think you are talking utter nonsense about the need to bring up kids in/near London in order for them to have opportunities.
It is possible to grow up elsewhere eg somewhere as "out of it" as South Lakeland, get all A's at A level at the local state school, get a first from Cambridge, become at solicitor at what many people regard as the most prestigious law firm in the City etc.
Assuming DD and any future DS are bright enough to pass the entrance exam, they will go to the Lancaster Grammar schools. Now league tables are only one factor, but I'm pretty confident that these are good schools that will stretch them academically - here are A level results from last year:
Lancaster Royal Grammar (Boys) 1139.1
Westminster 1125.3
North London Collegiate 1085.5
Eton 1084.6
Lancaster Girls' Grammar 1064.8
St Paul's Girls 1049.6
St Paul's Boys 1032.2
Winchester 1024.9
Habs Boys 943.8
Habs Girls 932.7
They send lots of children onto Oxbridge who then move down to London or other major cities as they choose when they graduate, depending on what career they choose.
If my DCs aren't bright enough for the grammar schools then they will go to the local comprehensive which I attended myself, graded outstanding on all measures and with an A level score of 917.4 last year. Because we are in the country and it is an ex-grammar school, it has acres of playing fields, cricket ground, indoor sports hall, swimming pool, drama studio and god knows what else. From the playing fields you can see both the mountains of the South Lakes and the Yorkshire Dales. It's a far far cry from the run-down comps of London where the kids are lucky if there is a place to shoot a few hoops.
The difference for my DCs is that they get to grow up in the country when they are little, with lots of space, great communities, and where life is not all about spending money and rushing about. Could my DD enjoy toddling around feeding the pigs and chickens if we were still living in London or Cambridge? Would she be headed a little primary school with 45 kids (most of whom, even though older, she will already know very well already though the village community) with a brilliant inspiring headteacher who teaches them Westmorland Clog dancing, fencing, tennis, French and Spanish, music, swimming and all the rest?
Lots of my lovely friends from Cambridge are still in London and I pity them, tbh. Most of them went to prestigious independents and now killing themselves trying to keep eight balls in the air at the same time. Most of them would love a quieter pace of life but their uber-competitive schooling has made it impossible for them to take a step in that direction without feeling that their self-worth will plummet as a result.
It's a robust statement but my opinion is that London is a crap place to bring up children. Now, I am sure there are pockets where there are decent communities and good state schools. But the general picture is that you either (1) make sure you have a lot of money, can live in Hampstead like my best friend and send your DCs to uber-competitive prep schools at great cost, in order that they can be prepped for Westminster/St Paul's or (2) fret about your DCs going to the state schools with all the yobbery, drink, drugs and violence that that entails. Neither of these polarised choices appeal to me.
Even if I had the money to do what my best friend does, that is not the life I would want for my DC. There is more to life than being successful and having a lot of money.
I've done all that - first from Cambridge, top flight legal career, loads of money, loads of coffees, suits from Hobbs, umpteen taxi rides (£40 on taxis every weekend as a matter of course !), weekends in foreign cities, long-haul vacations and all the bloody rest of it and do you know what, I am FAR happier now, living much more modestly and doing a job which is less prestigious for a smaller firm. I wouldn't go back if you bought me a mansion in Chelsea and gave me all the cash in the world.
If my DC want to enter that world, then fair enough - after all I wanted to when I was younger. But they can do it from up here with a gentler childhood. You just don't need to be at an independent school in London to be successful.
We moved back here when we had DD and lo and behold, lots of my school friends who moved down to London/other cities have done exactly the same thing! We didn't know how good we had it when we were little and took it all totally for granted.
I know I will have offended some Londoners and I apologise. I don't mean to, but at the same time I can't give my true opinion without offending you.