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

Touchy.

The OP came on for some views on the feasibility of Private school on their household income so why has it turned into a bunfight including some rants on how Private schools should be banned!

First of all, Private schools will always exist, if they cease to those who can afford it and want a Private education will simply move abroad. I would do so as I would hate to live in an Orwellian society.

If any parent chooses to spend their hard earned money on Private school it is none of anyones business.

There's the 'hard earned' chestnut again!

Harry irrespective of how much money one earns it is always hard earned and how one chooses to spend it, it is their business. Plenty of my peers from school smoke and would have the same argument with no judgement from me even though I could not afford to smoke without making sacrifices.

You are obviously very passionate and or bitter about the life you have been dealt and the injustices of society. Why not use that passion to go into politics and try to create the equal society you so desire, or move to North Korea where you would have your level playing field utopia. Wait a minute didn't Kim Jong-Un go to school in Switzerland? I rest my case!

Well harry money is often hard earned.

DH and I are self made. No family money, no lottery wins.

Every £ I earn comes directly from my talent, my effort, my time.

Within reason I should spend it how I see fit. If the ways in which I can spend it are greatly constrained or most taken from me in tax, there'd be little point bothering over a certain amount.

Going back on track to answer the OP - we have 2 DC and have prioritised independent secondary school fees. We have used our local 'good enough' state primary and have saved fairly consistently from their births. Household income of £150K plus a modest mortgage means we don't have to scrimp too much with one set of school fees at £15k pa. The mortgage will be paid off by the time DC2 starts senior school so we should be able to cope with 2 sets of school fees.

DC1 started school in Trafford where ALL the primaries were pretty good, no doubt fuelled by the grammar school system. A few years ago, we relocated for work to East Anglia. There is a chasm between our experience of state schools in Trafford and those in East Anglia. The state middle school DC1 attended for a few years did have children excluded from other local schools and the level of daily disruption from several children in his class was a giant step away from low level. Violence against teachers and fellow pupils (necessitating stitches!) as well as throwing furniture and kicking down doors. Thankfully, no drugs or knives but there were 2 cases of YR8 pregnancies! This is a semi rural area where there is little choice or alternative, private or otherwise. We have obviously been too used to living in affluent city suburbs where the majority are mc high performing state schools. It's very different in more rural areas. Moving isn't a practical option due to work. DC1 is now attending a selective independent some distance away - I would say that he has certainly learnt resilience but he had an absolutely miserable time there. I'm very much aware that we are paying for the luxury of choice but it's worth it to escape an environment where it was wise to avoid even walking past certain children for your own safety (acknowledged by the teachers). DC2 will hopefully not have the same experience but we will see.....

Bella, I don't believe in commubsum, I just believe in a fairer society than maybe someone like yourself does. It's not a communist view, it's more a humanist one.

That'll be communism, not commubsum.

harry do you work? Pay tax?

Yes.

Your point is?

The only reason I work is to pay school fees.

Because everyone who works knows it's hard earned. Even those of us lucky enough to enjoy our work, have to graft.

No one knocks on our doors and gives us a bag of cash for lying in bed.

Taking exception to money being described as 'hard earned' seems odd for anyone who works hard for you know, hard cash...

Just to say that incomes vary not always due to efforts/talent/time but also market pressures in that some jobs are much better paid than others, more valued by society even though they can entail less efforts and be overall less useful...just in case anyone is taking sole responsibility for their high incomes :) as for the OP's question I would agree that 60k + private school is difficult to manage and would look to move to a better area or review career paths/life choices. School is also one part of a child's education and personally I wouldn't want to be in a situation whereby I struggle to make ends meet to pay said school. My view.

Well, yeah. So why is it brought up all the time? The insinuation would seem to be others don't work hard. And their hard work is what affords them to educate their children privately. When the reality is, it's got little to do with hard work because as you correctly state, everyone works hard for their money. Not just the well healed.

For sure ob.

I've done a lorry load of jobs in my time and some were more physically demanding, some demanded longer hours, some required more concentration, some more specialist skill, some more talent.

But not once did anyone knock on my door and pay me for watching The Walking Dead .

I'd have to be paid to watch the walking dead!! :)

Harry of course it has got everything to do with hard work. If my DH and myself had not worked hard at school, worked part time and every holiday to put ourselves through university, worked our way up in our careers and business there would be no money to pay for school fees simples.

Gosh considering what some parents spend money on - their nails, shoes, cars, smokiing, drink, cocaine and all the rest parents who instead spend money on their child's education, a house by a decent state school, books for the children are surely up there with the morally good, not down and dirty with the wicked.

I agree oblada. It's not a 1:1 correlation of effort:reward. Some people are lucky enough to have rare skills or to be well placed while others work incredibly hard for much less.

Don't agree, bella. At all.

Not saying you haven't worked hard, of course, just saying there are far greater influencing factors which have enabled you to send your children to private school.

If there actually was any sort of correlation between working hard and private education, does that mean only 7% of the population work hard?

What are these influencing factors then Harry? We are completely self made, no family money, inheritance coming our way. I wouldn't mind a piece of that pie!

So the choice is cocaine or a child's education?

You're an embarrassment, user!

I'm happy to disagree, bella. I don't seem to be changing your mind and you certainly won't change mine!

Bloody hell Op I bet you wished you'd never asked.