To wonder how the bloody hell people afford private education for their kids?

[HarderToKidnap]

Thinking about TTC and getting WAY ahead of myself I idly googled the local private schools. Bloody hell!! HOW do people afford this? My DH and I earn 100k between us every year so certainly not poor, but with a mortgage (on a two bed terrace) and other, what I consider to be reasonable, outgoings there is just not a way it could be done. So all these children being privately educated, do their parents earn masses and masses? Or am I missing a trick?

(Incidentally I wouldn't send my kid to private school - comprehensive was brilliant for me and if a child is going to do well they will do well, I believe. Was just wondering.)

I earn significantly less than 100k in fact maybe 1/4 of that but I plan to put my son to private school.

For me the circumstances are different, the two local schools are rubbish and I couldn't drop him off in the morning or pick him up from school, but the location of the school I hope he attends allows both of these things. Ds currently goes to the nursery part of the school and have done more than any other nursery to help him to me it is about consistency in what have been a difficult 4 years for ds. I will have to sacrifice a lot being a single parent to do this but to me it is a worthwhile expense and I can justify it to myself at the end of the month that is all that matters.

I couldn't privately educate a child at any of our local private schools on a gross income of £25 000. How will you pay your housing costs and basic living expenses?

LittleMarshmallow unless you get a scholarship or bursary I just don't know how you will do it.

Day fees at the independent school closest to me are £20K a year.

I am surpised that some schools offer bursaries on wages up to 75K.

I was talking to a woman the other week about where our children would go after primary school. Our local secondaries are crap and I don't want dd to take the grammar route. She said to me that a huge number of children from the village primary go to the local independent primary as managing it for 5 years was not of the reach of most people. I was amazed that she thought most people could find 20K out of post tax income.

As i do not live in london the school costs are signifcantly less than what you are quoting it does vary btw! also i do qualify for a bursery. also i have been paying private nursery fees for nearly 4 years now and his school fees are cheaper than that so i am aware of what i am getting into.

I am not in London either!

Senior day school fees 3 miles away from home = 20k

Senior day school fees 15 miles away from home = 21k

Senior day school fees 9 miles away from home = 21k

Senior day school fees 17 miles away from home = 14k

Ds's fees are just over 10K, it's a school in the top 80, it's the top school for our area.

Here you go daisymiller

Whitgift Foundation Bursaries

ds seniour school fees are between 10-12k depending on certain things, by that time i will be able to afford that, i am lucky in that school holiday care will now be covered by ds's extended family at their request, but money isnt everything, it might pay the bills etc but to me ds being happy and supported is worse it but i am aware that this isnt the case for everyone, and i am also aware that had i a better local school on my door step that i could take my son to myself and pick him up myself i would do that in a heartbeat, private school isnt about status to me just flexibility and consistency

Are they prep fees though? I think prep round here is from about 12-15K.

We could afford up to about 15K anything above that we would struggle. We have considered the independent school for dd as so many of her friends are in independent schools. Dh is sure that be the time she is in secondary we could pay the 20K, but of course fees will have gone up by then.

No, not a prep. Ds's prep fees were £1,800 a term.

DD's fees are currently 6K pa, but will rise to more like nine by the end of Y6. It's one of the top 50 schools, and isn't in London.

Don't be put off by the doom-merchants, Marshmallow!

I know whitgift well, however although we could perhaps just about afford to send dd to a top public school we could never afford to live in London.

These schools must be up north. We have, as I said above, looked at various independents for dd - so I know all the fees. I could make it my mastermind subject.

up north?

I'm in the East Midlands, I suppose it's north of Watford, I don't consider it to be north though.

AlfredaMantolini thanks, they won't put me off, I only want to do the best by ds and at the moment this is to me the best for him personally so I am comfortable in my decision despite getting a lot of strange and wonderful comments from strangers and health care workers.

I live in scotland where the school system is different so the fees might reflect that or not, it all depends on where you live up here too.

It is north of us, but agree it is not up north.

I don't want to put anyone off getting what they consider to be the best education for their child. I am just amazed at how cheap it is elsewhere - or expensive it is here

Look around and try to find the right school for your child marshmallow, beit a state or and independant. Ignore everyone else, everyone has opinions but at the end of the day, it's your child.

You should move to the east midlands daisy

I love where I live so will not be moving anywhere - but it seems that comes at a cost.

I am really amazed at the variance of school fees.

Do remember that you get what you pay for in most occasions, there's a private school a few hundred yards from where we live, £50 a week, 2 classes, one taught by the head who (apparantly) led the class outside and forgot about them, they stood there whilst she went for tea. There's 15 children in the school, uniform's nice though. No facilities, not even grass.

Yes I agree - have had a quick peek at schools in East Midlands and fees seem to go from 9-18K for secondary.

Do you have grammars where you are. I am wondering if that is why we only seem to have very expensive independent schools. Perhaps only familes with a huge amount of money use independents as there is the grammar option.

No, there's no grammars apart from an independant.

I think 18k if for boarding/Repton? ds's is 3.6k a term.