To ask your household income with 3-4 DC in private school?

[Lemoning]

And are you comfortably living, affording savings and holidays and not worrying about money? Pre tax income, and obviously including the school fees in your outgoings, ie: they're not paid by GP or similar.

I sometimes wonder if we're going to regret starting down the private school road because of money worries later on. Our income pre tax is about £200k.

I have friends on over £300k a year and they haven't put their three children into private primary because they can't afford it. I highly doubt you'll be able to afford to put three or more through on £200k tbh.

Yes you do. £120,000 10 years ago was a risk with another one coming up the rear. We were lucky the money increased faster than the fees - many haven't been so lucky and have remortgaged and remortgaged to keep up the life style and will be retiring to the Isle of Wight.

Wuldric where might I find that info on sixth form intake? I need to formulate an argument for DH as we are not getting on over our differing views on this.

Oh blimey are we talking just one earner not 2? And in law? That's even worse! It means no personal allowance, a 45% marginal tax rate, no funded pension contributions (so those pension contributions should be trebled, at a minimum, possibly quadrupled). OP you were dreaming matey.

Lemoning Did your dh go to Oxbridge in the mid - late 90s by any chance? I recognise those figures but they are now massively out of date. A quick google shows that Oxford is now 57% state and Cambridge (where all the best people go to ) is 63%.

It also doesn't allow for the fact that private sixth forms often have much higher entry requirements than state (I needed 4 A* - Cs at GCSE to get into mine) or the fact that the biggest barrier to increasing Oxvridge access is that a lot of state school pupils who have the ability to go to Oxbridge just don't apply.

I have mixed views on this one. We are definitely going state primary but our catchment secondary is pretty rubbish so will probably go private secondary. But both me and dh are comprehensive -> Oxbridge so it seems a bit strange.

That's about our income and have sent three DC to independent schools but we live in Yorkshire so both our living costs and school fees are much cheaper than in SE. Our mortgage is a few hundred pounds and we live in a reasonable though not palatial house, admittedly with quite a proportion of equity.

One of our DC is very able academically and has two non means tested scholarships gained at 11 and 16 which reduce his fees by about fifty percent so these things do exist.

DH is in London 2-3 days per week for work. It takes him approx two hours by train to the mainline station and then maybe fifteen minutes to the city. It's draining for him and quite tough for me as am on my own with the DC a lot and do work, albeit on a skimpy Northern salary, so am always juggling. Because we live rurally DC commute 15 miles to school so I do a lot of driving. Could you relocate drastically and have DH similarly commute if schools are so important to him?

Also my DH does a consultancy role and is employed by his own limited company. At the risk of stating something very unpopular this does enable him to manage his tax affairs very efficiently. Could this be an option to enhance income?

I have to say I would have sleepless nights at the tiny pension contributions you are making. I hope the £4k mortgage is buying something that will secure your future as only putting 3% of your income into pensions sounds very dangerous.

2 earners, one in law and I own a business. My estimate, for ages 4-23 for 4 DC is £1m total.

slag me off all you like loves but I pay a bucket less load of tax and expenses than y'all do and DH have a work life balance that works

does your DH take August off?
no? oh dear ...sorry?
what about February
ah well
but overseas holidays several times a year (en famille) are a given - oh no, he stays home working while you are at the Vineyard for 12 weeks, silly me

money / time : I know which I prefer

I would start saving now to get them in a prep at 7/8.

I don't worry about our pensions excessively as I have retained the 2 houses I bought before DH and I bought. They are only paying for themselves currently but in 15 years will be a pension fund.

Very happy for you talkinpeace but if everything is so rosy why so chippy?

6th form fees are available by googling and looking at the websites.

The commuting option sounds grand but at 50+ my DH still sorks 12 hour days (loves it though) and it would simply not be feasible for him/us. Also I work and have made London my home and wouldn't be porepared to uproot to the sticks. Although we are at the end of the school business. However still expect to do six years in total at about 18k per annum per child for under grad degrees.

That's something else to be factored in nowadays. That's another 108,000 in total for two children.

The benefits though: specialist teaching at primary level, responsiveness to concerns, poor behaviour gets dealt with, homogenous environment (double edged sword), higher expectations, in our exp the dc come from v stable environments.

You are some kind of cavewoman Talkinpeace. Living in not just the last century but the one before that. I've just told you that my DH is giving up work entirely. So not just February and August off. The whole flipping year. Forever.

He'd better bring me coffee every morning. And walk the dog.

DH is employed so on getting around the 50% tax unfortunately!

His main argument, and I can't fight these facts, is that 50% of Oxbridge entrants are privately educated. That's vs 7% of children privately educated.

If the quality of your DH's thinking is any indication of the quality of his education, I rather think his parents wasted their money.

Personally, I don't think it's worth it, if you're lucky enough to live near good state schools anyway. We only have one dc and could afford private schooling if we chose, but I genuinely don't think it is worth the investment, and certainly not if you're going to have to sacrifice other stuff to afford it.

DH also works 12 hour days and I need to be in London for work. I do dream about a move to the country though :)

We figured we could buy all the extras as and when we wanted them if that makes sense.

The only thing that a private school offered that the state didn't (and which we couldn't purchase separately) was the smaller class size. Fortunately for us that isn't such a big deal as neither of the boys struggle too much with anything. If they did however I would be looking to smaller classes.

I think that depends on your local schools though Jinsei. Where we live they are wholly inadequate and on't even offer the basics that a true comprehensive should. Much closer to the old and lambasted secondary moderns.

So we have a better picture. No worries about pensions, hopefully. One pin money earner and a main money earner. The main money earner has no personal allowance and is around the top rate of tax (which is 45% now, not 50%). So at least there is the benefit of one personal allowance. As I guessed previously, around £10k a month net income but with substantial housing costs leaving around £6k a month for a family of 6.

Not enough for school fees but potentially enough to be able to save for university fees for the DCs. Why not do that?

not chippy : I know what I'd want to earn to go back to wage slavery - no way
and you misunderstand about months off : we both take the month off = the alarm is swiched off for two months a year
life is good when you give up the corporate salt

less disposable (by a small bit) more controllable hours (by a big bit)

15 years in
never a moment of regret

HEY T.P.... You Now what i was going on about no don't you.

It Unbelieveable i get slagged off for wanting a system that helps 30% of pupils. Some of people slagging me off have kids at "PUBLIC SCHOOLS"

I love this game of top trumps that is being played here "ANY ADVANCE On 500k" DO I HEAR 750k Going Once GOING TWICE GONE TO THE PERSON
On 500k. Even Working Class Northerners lik me i WOZ taught Wages should never be discussed.

I'm amazed.
Our income is £220K and we're putting 3 through private. It's manageable. I feel very rich but sometimes wonder why we don't have more disposable income.
Your mortgage is enormous.
Surely you can downsize, or will it be paid off shortly?

I think you could definitely afford it if you wanted to.

It is not really a question of income but of your whole budget and the level of the school fees.

You are talking in abstract but do you know what schools you have in mind because most Fees and other costs for most schools are displayed on the websites.
there is quite a big difference between schools.

Yes some independent schools will cost well over £20,000 per child per year when you include all extras for year 7 and older
But others will be about £5,000 per child per year cheaper.

In year 5 and 6 there can be a £3,000 difference between schools - all good schools.

It is worth noting:
Not all the extra are compulsory.
Many of the families in independent schools are not extremely wealthy, the second hand uniform shops do a booming business (and the uniforms are good quality so they do last).
In one school I know the annual French trip was actually cancelled this year because so few families were willing to pay for it.
Also music lessons when organised through the school can be ridiculously expensive, such that a good way to save Money is to arrange private music lessons outside of school.
Finally they are running a business, I know that fees can be renegotiated. I have heard many times of parents negotiating a small discount.
Also, as your children get older they may also qualify for scholarship.

The difference between you and the OP, Stomping, is that you are talking 3 children not 4, AND you do not have that enormous debt.

That's another reason why I send dd to private school - right there. Thank you soul