To ask how you afford private school fees

[Elephantslovetofly]

We have a young DD, and although it's a while away yet we are thinking about school. The area we live in does not have a good local school, and we are considering an independent school for her

Disclaimer - I went to a private school and for what it's worth had a great education. I enjoyed being there and did well in exams. I believe my parents decided to send me there also because of a lack of a good local state school. I might have done fine at a state school, but will never know I guess

We are probably 45 min drive from the school I went to - further than is ideal. DH doesn't mind driving her there if we decide to send her there though (if she is fortunate enough to get a place)

The issue is whether we can afford it. The fees are about £9k per year for junior and £12k for senior. Assuming we therefore need to find £1k per month for fees

My cheeky question is this - if you have a child at private school, what does your household earn and how difficult is it to find the money each month to pay the fees? Our income is about £60k, and at the moment I don't think we can do it (along with our other current expenses). Wages might go up a bit before we would need to start paying, but if this is always going to be a pipe dream i'd rather get over it now

I know we could move closer to a good state school, but am exploring my options at this stage. Don't really want to move, as we have a good house here and are settled

Thanks for reading

Beau, thanks. Also yes I have not denigrated most state schools. That would be ridiculous. There can be few parts of the country with as many choices for education as where I live in outer London and that includes a massive variety of state schools from religious to grammars - if you travel a bit and reasonable sixth form colleges. In fact a few boys from my sons' school left last summer for various state sixth form colleges - some looked around and then stayed in the private sector and some left and sometimes that was for financial reasons or because they wanted BTECs as they were not bright enough for A levels.

I can't even remember what I said above about my earnings but I do think posters are more interesting whether tehy are surviving on benefits or billionaires if they tell us details about their lives to illustrate points. I think it adds to thing rather than detracts. It is not true I am one dimensional.. First of all if I were all work I'd be like 25% of women, not have children and work alsmost 24/7. Instead I have 5 children I love and spend a lot of time with and am no mumsnet not just ft.com. "Do you have any hobbies or interests? Are you politically active? Do you have a spiritual side? A creative side? A sense of humour? Have you seen the recent thread about the braggy parent at the school gates? Your persona on Mumsnet reminds me so much of her." We would get off topic a bit with all that but yes I frequently write about music, choirs (3 of the childdren have/had music scholarships and I sing in choirs, accompany them at home etc). I've never thought it could be said I was short of hobbies. I feel by earning a lot and having a career I love and a lot of children I have one of the most balanced lovely lives around - the secret for most women of a good life is a high paid career which gives them money, power and choices. I wouldn't mind being Prime Minister but I have not joined a party. I am definitely in favour of personal freedoms and responsibilities, the free market, immigration, human rights, pro EU.
Spiritual side - yes, I write a lot about the importance of spare time, staring at the roses, thinking, quiet, silence, being alone, the importance of a lot of sleep for mental health and feeling content. These are all fascinating and interesting issues to me. Creative - see above - music. I have composed a bit, obviously I write although like most people who do well I have a lot of failures including all those novels I wrote when I was younger which were rejected. I am supposed to be quite funny in real life, people say. They pay hundreds of pounds to hear me speak actually, laughing as I type and you lot get it all here free... and one reason they keep comingb ack is apparently I am funnier and more interesting than lots of other speakers. Anyway enough about me....]
back to work. This welfare state will not keep itself. It only works if people like I am get our heads down and devote half our work to helping others through our excessively high taxation.

I'll admit that our personal situation is probably not the norm, but I think your view is simplistic. Whilst I'm not saying they all have sink schools, there are slightly more affluent areas locally that still only have secondary schools that are a long way from from good, and you hardly need a spreadsheet to figure out that for one or two dc, a good but less prestigious private is still cheaper than moving. And I can think of several areas that feed into Dd's school, where the fees at hers would still be cheaper than moving.

I'm sure you realise user that the poorest in the UK pay a larger percentage in taxes than the richest. We all contribute to society and the welfare state - some of us even manage to do it without resentment.

I'm usually on the opposite side to Bert in these debates (frequent namechanger) but your last post was spot on.

Private school parents don't do themselves any favours by bending over backwards to justify their decisions. Particularly in referencing local schools which seem to be straight out of The Wire.

I choose private because I have a free choice and that's the one I made. It's no one else's business. I couldn't possibly comment on state schools as apart from my primary 35 years ago and my two PGCE placements, I've never set foot inside one....

We have a similar income to the OP. I don't work as anything I earn would disappear in childcare. Due to other circumstances, until recently it was really important that I was at home and I am grateful for it. I haven't skills to earn much.

DS, in Yr 4 at a good primary school, is very bright indeed. According to his teacher he is incredibly bright.

The nearest secondary as the crow flies has had a permanent police presence for a while. Another one, not so much further is better but has a reputation of throwing all but the best kids to the wolves. DS would probably be okay, but while he may be showing in the top 5% now he may change as he gets older.

If we go for the nearest private school I would need to learn to drive and we would need a little runabout for me to use for school runs.

We have @ a year to decide what to do for the best.

No idea what to do.

btw we don't take foreign holidays, we don't have a new car and we don't have expensive hobbies. We have no savings due to recent events.

If he's that bright could you try for a bursary Lisa?

I believe in progressive taxation, and I am insensced by the off shore tax evasion scandal, but I don't think this statement is factually true: I'm sure you realise user that the poorest in the UK pay a larger percentage in taxes than the richest.

Are you for real, User?

why wouldn't she be?

No I don't believe it either 80K.

iris it's unlikely lisa would qualify on the means testing for any form of significant bursary, if any. Not saying it isn't worth asking, but don't want her to get the impression it's a probable solution.

I'm not talking about her earnings. Just the rest of that post above!

Reads like a parody.

It is true. When everything is taken into account, the poor as a whole do pay a greater % than the rich. Can't remember where I read it, but was from more than one decent source.

Sorry I wasn't clear - as a proportion of income and taking ALL taxes into account the poorest 10% pay around 8% more of their income in taxes than the richest 10%. Not more in monetary terms obviously but a larger PERCENTAGE of what is earned is paid back to the state across all the various taxes. I was objecting to user's inference that only the rich support the welfare state and everyone else is on the take.

VAT is a regressive tax that hits the poor hardest. VAT will be a higher percentage of a poor person's budget than a rich person's. At be that's what you ate thinking of?

But the poor don't provide a larger percentage of the tax take to our society.

Sorry, typing on phone. Meant to say "maybe" not "at be."

Lisa what are the fees at this private school?

No-one is saying that, 80k

Lisa - my son's school had a double stabbing in school last year.

It also turns out a good number of kids with 10A*s at GCSE.

Don't go on hearsay. Go visit the schools. Look at the DFE information - it details average grades for high achievers.

OP, my guess is that you would fall on between being "poor enough" for a bursury and actually "rich enough" to afford the fees. As posters many pages ago have suggested, putting away an extra £1000/month now would give you a realistic idea of whether it's pheasible, while at the same time helping you to build up s little war chest.

I personally don't have a moral problem with you desiring a private education. It's a free country. We are allowed to spend our money as we please and educate our children to our own values.

"The nearest secondary as the crow flies has had a permanent police presence for a while. Another one, not so much further is better but has a reputation of throwing all but the best kids to the wolves" Don't listen to rumour. Visit. Read. Decide for yourself. The second description sounds very unlikely indeed.

You don't pay VAT on rent and most food which is presumably most of what the poorest spend money on though, isn't it? And there is a lower value of VAT (8%?) on fuel.

It's true about indirect taxation, however it's also true that a relatively small number of people in the UK are net tax givers overall.

The low paid may pay a higher % of their income in VAT, but will still be net takers overall.

You can't keep asking that same small number of people to fund more and more and more through direct taxation.

I already have no personal allowance. I pay top rate tax on a a large proportion of my income. I am self employed so pay NI too.

I am fine with this. Well, obviously, I don't whoop and cheer when that time comes around, but I pay what's calculated. I don't off shore, or have any 'schemes'.

But I feel very strongly that I should pay no more. I feel that I should always be allowed to keep at least half of every pound I earn. The state shouldn't get to take more than half.

" or because they wanted BTECs as they were not bright enough for A levels"

BTECS aren't an easier version of A-levels for thick people. They're for kids who want to do a vocational training.

80K the school I am looking at only considers a bursary when you earn a fair bit less than me unfortunately

Fees at nearest private school are £12k at the moment. According to their website there are no bursaries for academic excellence.

minifingers some pupils do very well at the school with the police presence but ds is likely to come second in a fight every time and I suspect he would be easy meat. I would also need to get a car for that as while the distance isn't great, it would not be safe for him to walk and the buses are ridiculously complicated.