To use equity from the house to pay for private education

[Windsweptly]

Just what the title says really! Is it mad or unreasonable to consider using some equity from the house to pay for private education? Is this something people do or am I just being naive / ignorant? Any big downfalls to doing this? Thanks in advance!

Outdoor space is for boys playing football and girls sitting in groups, chatting

Some fine everyday sexism at work

I would absolutely do it.

I went to Private School and the size of my year (approx 60 students over 3 forms) was the same size as DH's form. That blows my mind.

There was a girl from my school who's Dad came into a lot of money when she was young and had not long started there (around 4/5). They paid the school fees up front and saved something daft like 20% in comparison to those of us who paid each term.

If the Private School is a full school (ie Infants, Junior, Senior and Sixth Form) then I don't see a downside really.

Absolutely not for primary school education, yes I would have considered it for secondary but as you have great Grammar schools then definitely not. Crazy to spend that on Primary Education (and you are suggesting that its not even for that reason!!!!)

What exactly do you think the benefits of private primary will be that are worth remortgaging for?? I think you have perhaps a romantisied idea of what it is actually like. I myself went to a prep school before going on to the attached grammar- by GCSE and A level it made no difference having been at the prep for myself and the other 26 children who went on up the school.
My own daughters benefitted from perhaps being in a class room with little distraction to learning, lots of nice parties and for parents good networking opportunities if you are into that kind of thing, but certainly not better teachers.

It's interesting. If I was going to privately educate a child I would definitely go for primary. The opportunities that a school having loads of money gives at that age means that they can try out stuff and find out what they like and what sort of person they are. It's much harder to replicate that at home. For example, my children's privately educated friends had a much wider range of musical instruments and sports to have a go at. And I think outside space is really important at this age-often private schools have more of that and more freedom to use it.

This entirely depends on where you live and the type of provision available.

Do not buy a house near an outstanding school or think you can add on with tutors. Outstanding schools often haven’t been inspected for years and the reports can be dubious to begin with. It’s all very well saying you can do the extras with tutors and clubs but this is naive. Your child still has to go to school and will be tired like any other kid. They may not have the energy to do the ‘extra’ and if their school friends aren’t then you may have a battle on your hands getting them to do it.

If it’s prep to grammar then there are masses and masses of prep schools offering this. You could also consider state until 8 and transfer your child to private in year 3. Lots of parents do this but you are going to have to put the sport/academic/ socials legwork in at the beginning. In all fairness Cubs just ain’t gonna cut it.

I think it’s a good idea based on my own experiences. The behaviour in my local ‘outstanding’ state was extraordinarily bad, my kids were miserable. You don’t get this time back.

Can you put it in your pensions instead?

I've been mostly privately educated. I was in a prep school for Reception, state primary for years 1-4, then private from year 5. Granted it was rural so I had outdoor space at all schools. I would say that the difference in primary is dependent on the child. I was more outgoing than my sister (private R-3, state yrs 4 &5, back to private from yr 6). I got along great at my state primary. I was independent and fairly self motivated. I'm not disadvantaged by learning difficulties. Which, IMO, would be the only real reason to bother with private prep, where extra learning support would be beneficial and not easily provided in the state system due to funding. I would say the most important factor in my primary education was my parents supportive attitude. I only moved from state in year 5 because my parents wanted me at the same school as my sister and the year 5/6 teacher at the state primary was awful. My sister was bullied at the state primary and so my parents wanted to put her back in private for a fresh start and more support to get her confidence back. It worked. I loved my secondary education at my private school. I wouldn't trade it for anything. I got good exam results easily and I think that's down to the focused and effective teaching. But I had a life outside of the curriculum. I did all kinds of sports and art clubs through the school. I got encouraged to go as far as I wanted and they helped me qualify for National training programs and compete internationally. I had the closest friends I could ever imagine and I was taught that life isn't just about results, whilst still gaining 11 GCSE's mostly A/A, and AAA at A Level. I would say my schools best attribute was the learning support. A girl who was told she'd never pass a GCSE (very severe learning difficulties) was supported enough she got A levels and a 1st from a top university and now has an enjoyable career.
From my experience, I would say only bother with private towards the end of primary into secondary. I would not pay fees in advanced if you cannot recoup them if you leave early. Not every school is everyone's cup-of-tea. They have their own styles and personalities. It is important to choose a school your child enjoys for the £££ you'll be paying! Take advantage of taster-days.

I've just done exactly this, my kids had been at state primary for years but one was coasting massively and not being challenged at all, and one has special needs. We sold the house to release equity and bought a cheaper one. Both boys now at private school and the difference in them is amazing, not just the academic side but the sporting and co curricular side is so so much better. One is probably going to get into one of the top private secondary schools as a result and have an amazing education. They will be in private school for the foreseeable future and in my opinion I have released some equity and living in a much bigger house now with a much bigger garden - but it was half the price of my old London house so we have the money to do private.

If you can make it work financially then do it, it's up to you what you do with your money. When you get to the private school and get to know the parents, I bet you'll find that roughly half have made similar sacrifices to give their children the education that they would like them to have. Good luck!

I would do it. DS has finished prep this year and starting private secondary in September. I do have financial worries and fully understand that for the next 7 years it is going to be tough. But if I have to dip into equity, so be it. State secondaries are not very good around where we live and I would like my son to have a solid all round education with outside facilities. Also, ds wanted to do 5 days boarding himself for the reasons mentioned in previous posts, so he has structure and time to attend all the outside activities. Boarding was not considered before but after careful consideration and taking into the account opinion of ds, decision was made. Which of course added to financial burden, but I do consider education as an investment.

Private prep schools are excellent at getting children into private secondary education, and bright children can often get a scholarship / bursary. Both my DDs went to a private prep, and both obtained really good scholarships for secondary, which didn't cost us too much in the end.

We aren't considering private school for exam results but for the better facilities, outside space and small class sizes.

If you are considering taking money out of your house then I am guessing that you do not have money put aside for university fees or helping your kids out with buying their own property?

That's potentially a lot to sacrifice for some nice facilities.

If your state primary is reasonable I would use that and add some tutoring for core subjects.

Depends on your circumstances and what portion of equity you are proposing to use.

I'm considering something similar to pay for DD's choice of 6th form. Much smaller amount though as only looking to fund aorta of the two year cost.

I'll admit that I would agree that primary is the time to do it as they'll have strong foundations to take them to secondary at that stage. A primary with lovely groundswould be great as long as the school takes advantage and uses them in classes.
The early years are so important in education and if they fall behind at that time itvery hard to catch up....
Good luck OP , whatever you do.

I would go with your gut feeling OP if you feel going private is the best option then go for it.
I'm lucky in that both my DC went to a lovely state Primary School with lots of outdoor space, amazing teachers and facilities etc.
And now they both go to a brilliant state School with loads of outdoor space and fantastic facilities and have been happy and nurtured really well in both Schools.
I don't think the size of the classes matters because actually the larger the class the better choice pool of friendships.

*State Secondary School

And don't forget that interestingly Secondary private Schools tend to have a much worse problem for drugs and bullying than State Schools.

And don't forget that interestingly Secondary private Schools tend to have a much worse problem for drugs and bullying than State Schools

⬆️How that’s measured?whats the source for that statement?

I don't think you should because you'll end up having to talk to a load of toffs at birthday parties. Nobody there would watch Jeremy Kyle, they'd all want to talk about top hats or something instead.
And all the children would be called Jonty and be the sons of like, Boris Johnson.

It comes directly from the mouths of young 20 somethings who have been to these top private schools in my county and neighbouring county and children from state schools in the same area there was a huge discussion about it at a private social event. It was very eye opening, for me anyway.

Just on the financial side of things. I firmly believe that regular expenditure must be met from regular income, and one-off income should only be used for one-off expenditure. To do otherwise invites dooooom

I spend my life extolling, believing, selling and seeing the benefits of private schools.

I would do this in your position as long as you understand;

there are costs beyond the fees if you want the full experience / benefits

a school isn't automatically better because you pay to attend it

Go for it. good idea.

I’m planning to release equity when my DD gets to secondary age (currently finishing yr 1), wouldn’t consider it for primary but then the primary school she’s in is really lovely (most sought after in the city) and she’s got off to a great start there. Secondary schools are more of a lottery though with admissions so I’d prefer the option to go private then. She’s also extremely bright and I think she’d do better in a smaller class environment.

My parents sent me private for secondary, so it feels quite natural for me to do the same.

I would absolutely do it to provide a better education. Short-term pain for a long-term gain.