Can we do it? Secondary private school fee and other expenses, and budgeting

[evademama]

Hello, I hope it's okay to post here—I would really appreciate some perspectives if possible.

DD is an only child and currently in state reception. Our catchment state secondary school is underperforming, and since we do not want to move in the foreseeable future as we like the area, we are hoping to send her to a private secondary school (including sixth form if necessary). We also prefer a private secondary education for DD for experience.

We are not very high earners, with a combined income of £130k (I know we are fortunate compared to many, but DH puts anything above £50k into his pension atm, and we have a high mortgage, so our disposable income is not huge). After mortgage, all bills, childcare and holidays, we can save 2k per month. We are overpaying our mortgage atm and hope to clear it in 10 years, but if we send our daughter to a private secondary, we are happy to overpay less.

I am in my late 30s and work in the public sector, while DH (early 40s) is in a not very profitable industry, though his job is quite secure. Our earning potential is unlikely to change significantly in the future, and we do not receive financial help from grandparents. We live a modest life and are not into luxuries.

We would like to start saving and budgeting as early as possible. For reference, we live in the Northwest, and nearby private schools charge around £20k per year (including VAT) from 2025.

I would really appreciate any advice on the following:

1. On average, how much extra on top of school fees should we budget? Would an additional 20% per year be enough to cover school trips, lunches, uniforms, and other expenses?
2. How much do school fees typically increase per year? Is an annual 5% rise a realistic estimate? If it is 10% annually, it would be a big stretch for us.
3. Do you recommend any insurance for school fees? Currently, we have life insurance for DH, and I have a death-in-service benefit through work (though due to a health condition, I find it difficult to get life cover).
4. Do you have any recommendations for savings accounts specifically for school fees?

Thank you so much and sorry for such a long post.

I budget for an annual 10% increase. Last year our increase was 6% and the year before 8%. I'm expecting at least 10% (possibly more) this year as private schools lose their charity business rates relief in April and there is also the national insurance increase and minimum wage increase for schools to absorb. Schools have also recently had to increase their employer contributions to the teachers pension scheme.

In terms of extras, 20% seems fair - unless you want her to be able to go on the school ski trip/Classics trip/ netball tour, these come in at about £1,500 per trip, but are not compulsory and there are no issues if children choose not to go. Outdoor Pursuits in Y7-9 (which is compulsory), is about £700. Check whether exam fees are extra, we have to pay for GCSE/A-Levels which will be about £600, we also had to buy a laptop for DC via the school, which cost £1,500. Mine don't have music lessons but think they are about £1,000 a year, school lunches are about £300 a term but mine take packed lunch. We don't use school transport but think the cost of that is huge. A full set of uniform including the PE/Games kit is about £800, but once you've had the initial outlay, it's much cheaper to just replace pieces as and when needed - most schools have a very good second hand uniform shop which is well used.

We don't have any form of insurance and pay out of income, but do have sufficient in savings to be able to pay for the remaining years if we lost our jobs. I'd try and get at least a years fees saved up front as a back up, preferably two, so you wouldn't need to move her mid-way through GCSEs/A- levels.

I think it's doable on your income, but think your DH will need to stop paying so much into his pension and you'll need to rethink the mortgage overpayments,

As a guide we had £190k in savings and even though one DC went to a state primary, it now won't be enough to see her through private secondary to 18 as a weekly boarder. We thought it was just over, now it's about 50k under.

Thank you so much; this is very informative and incredibly helpful.
10% is probably the maximum we can afford. Yes, we’re considering reducing our pension contributions and overpaying less in the next few years to build some cushion.