to suggest that every single parent with a child at private school apply for a state school place asap?

[sarjd]

let's see how that works.

My children went to a lovely London state primary and I assure you there were many many families of 3, 4 and even 5 children. The demographics were very mixed. The only people I know who have sent their children private are those with only 1 or 2 children . Actually when I was at school, I was private the whole way through, and I actually didn’t know it was possible to have more than 1 sibling. I literally knew absolutely no one who was not either an only child or only had a brother or a sister.

This is quite a well-organised campaign on MN, isn't it? A new take on this issue every couple of days - this time the poster doesn't bother coming back but garners page after page of engagement.

But this is based on having no understanding on how admissions into state schools work

Well quite. I didn’t say it made sense! It’s a stupid plan regardless, because as I mentioned it’s not like private school parents holding onto state places they have no intention of taking up is an unknown phenomenon. It is pretty much the norm in Y7.

Why? My children are privately educated. I can afford the uplift. So can everyone we know. Sure some don't like the belt tightening but none of them are on the breadline and I dont know anyone actually planning to move their children.

So the reality is only a small percentage of privately educated children will switch, and that's only a tiny percentage of the whole school population.

I don't understand all the shrieking about this on here. It's faux concern. Noone is actually worried about swamping state schools they are just worried about their bills getting higher.

@echt Yes we must protect the privilege of the most privileged children in society you know. We can't actually have them, you know, pay tax on luxuries like the plebs do.

No - all their kids go to the grammars...

Yeah meanwhile in the real world I don't know any friends or family with children in private school who are really thinking about it all that much. Most of us have decent salaries and healthy savings.

No, OP. But I can understand why you feel bitter.
We can afford the VAT, but I will not be making any more charitable donations or giving any of my time or services free to good causes again in the future, particularly for local schools, and after many years of doing so.
I don’t have the luxury or the inclination to do that because if people are really stupid enough to think this politics of envy/ dog whistle policy will help schools in any way, I can’t be bothered.
I feel SO sorry for those parents whose children have extra learning needs who will now need to move to the state sector where provision is an unfunny joke.
If the people who support this policy think it’s going to fix anything at all, you’re going to be bitterly disappointed. It will widen the chasm more. I presume you don’t remember how Labour f@cked up comprehensives?

You’re expecting the parents of 7% of the school population to sort out issues relating to the other 93%?

State schools mainly underperform due to their intake.

Bad behaviour in lessons doesn’t occur if the pupils who choose to behave badly aren’t present.

If those 93% parents really, truly cared about the education of their children don't you think the state system would already be better than it is?

Or are you suggesting the 7% parents are more intellectually capable of demanding change?

The poster's children are entitled to use the state system.

Angry with Labour about the VAT. Conservatives have been a shit show, but Labour will be worse imo.

Everyone shouts about politicians, but parents are to blame for many of the challenges I saw. There’s no excuse for not potty training a NT child, paying for lip fillers and sending your child to school with no winter coat, having more children than you can feed, letting 5 year olds run feral and so on.

@HandaFae lots of what you mention is poor parenting, not the tories! Not potty training before starting school aged?!

Do it across the board then - get the wealthy grammar parents to pay for their luxury selective schools. That would be far more beneficial to the state sector.

We can afford the VAT, but I will not be making any more charitable donations or giving any of my time or services free to good causes again in the future

This is even more batshit. Why are you taking your annoyance with Keir Starmer out on Oxfam and the Dog’s Trust (or whichever charities you support).

Absolutely apply for a State place. Where I live there are plenty in the requires improvement category. What you ain't going to get is a place in an over subscribed school or an infant place where the 30 per class is enforced by law.
We relocated when our youngest was in year 5. She was allocated a place under the Fair Access Protocol on the only primary in town. But that was solely because the LEA would have had to pay for transport.

"Do it across the board then - get the wealthy grammar parents to pay for their luxury selective schools. " . They aren't choosing to pay for the education of their children though are they, so you can't charge them. Nice attempt to deflect though ( actually it wasn't, it was very, very poor).

Why hasn’t this happened already?

What makes you think 7% of parents can succeed in an endeavour in which 93% of parents have already failed?

Unless what you’re actually saying is 93% of parents haven’t bothered to make any effort to improve the standards in their local schools.

In which case why should the parents of the 7% care about the education of the 93% when their own parents clearly couldn’t care less?

"We can afford the VAT, but I will not be making any more charitable donations or giving any of my time or services free to good causes again in the future"

I'm pretty sure you never made a difference when you did anyway.

Don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Honestly the way some private school parents are carrying on about this rise in fees I'm starting to think maybe we need to start sending food parcels to school gates ?

All I see around me at pick up time /when we go for play dates with my children's school friends are people with deeply comfortable lifestyles (I used to be a single mum on a low income before my career took off, I know actual struggle). . So unless all their shiny cars and big houses are just loans /mortgaged to the max ,then most parents have plenty of wriggle room.

I feel like Mumsnet private school parents live in an alternate reality sometimes!

What a bonkers post.

You either care about society/charities you support or you don't.

It's totally irrational to withdraw your £2 a month to the donkey sanctuary or whatever because of an unrelated tax

And under labour maybe we won't need as much random philanthropy as the state will do it's job.

As for volunteering, I know plenty of volunteers who have very little themselves. They don't sit around sulking and refusing to volunteer because some people get to eat caviar while they worry about electricity bills.

I wasn’t suggesting that there aren’t families bigger than two children in state schools at all! What I was pointing out was the way society has taken to judging parents with that lovely phrase you have to cut your cloth accordingly- hence child benefit being cap at two children… (personally I’m against what they have done to child benefit system) there is an argument that it shouldn’t be any different for people who pay for private schools.

Of course they aren't choosing to pay - they can get it free and pretend to be morally superior. They're still taking more from the state than dd or myself are.

Yep this is just mean. All parents would be worried about having to change their children’s schools if they were happy and thriving regardless of state or private. Sneering at parents who find themselves in this position is just downright nasty.

In London maybe, not in my county. There are no secondary places at all.

Yes, we know.