Fee increase

[SchoolFeePain]

So I’ve put it here to hopefully cut down on the diamond shoes comments…

Is anyone else just staggered by the fee increases this year?! Fees have gone up 11% for us, 9% last year. We’ve cut back and cut back, DS is starting Y11 so realistically we can’t move him for a year but then DD moves to Y11 the September afterwards.

And yes, like a coward I’ve named changed because, frankly, I can’t face the “well I saw you went to Costa in 2013 on a previous thread so you obviously live beyond your means” type comments

I really feel for you. We’ve got 3 DC and I pulled them out of their independent day school 2 years ago. It was instant relief and costs were unfortunately increasing beyond our means - 10% for the past 3 years. I dread to think what the increase is this year.

Is there a good Sixth Form option that you can move to?

Can you switch to day pupil?

If your DD is going in to Yr 10 this September, that’s a bit hard as well. Many state schools round here start studying their options in the final year of Year 9. You could look at moving her, though, if you had to. I would probably give notice at the beginning of term, and have her moved after Christmas.

Also, when did they inform you of the fee increase?

Most private schools have a policy of needing a term’s notice, but some are a bit naughty about not telling parents about the increase in time. I believe you can fight the term’s notice if it wasn’t given in time.

They told us 3 weeks ago… 2 weeks after the end of term

@SchoolFeePain well I don’t think they should expect you to have to pay a term’s notice if they haven’t informed you in sufficient time.

In your situation, I would be contacting the bursar and letting them know that you are withdrawing your DD with immediate effect.

If they ask for a term’s worth of fees, then you could strongly argue for the cost of the term before the increase.

Ultimately the most important thing to focus on in is their education: I’d be sorting out a new state school place for your DD so that her two GCSE years are not interrupted and start her in September. Then move your older one after GCSEs.

Unless you can afford to keep going that is! Can you?

We can - but at the cost of everything. My socks and pants are more hole than anything else, DD needed travel sickness tablets today and I worried about the cost, it’s rained for so long all my washing smells of damp but I dare not use the tumble dryer. We just have no quality of life anymore.

I have looked for a state school place for DD from September but the only places with spaces are schools that ‘require improvement’. They also don’t even offer her favourite subject at GCSE.

All ridiculously first world issues. No one is starving, it’s just the sheer drudgery of scrimping for every penny.

DH works in a boarding school. I really feel for you. I'm scared for his future. IDK how long parents will be able to absorb these sort of fee increases. We were supposed to be putting DC1 (4) into private in September and it was heartbreaking having to email the school in April and tell them we were going state instead (and I've NC'd as well) but we just couldn't make it work. It must be so much worse when private is all your children have known and they're on the verge of such important years.

Ultimately the most important thing to focus on in is their education: I’d be sorting out a new state school place for your DD so that her two GCSE years are not interrupted and start her in September. Then move your older one after GCSEs.
This is what I'd recommend as well, if the move is inevitable. I had to move school in Year 11 and it caused huge problems. They couldn't match up my old GCSE exam boards with the new ones and I had to start all my coursework again. I was doing GCSE art. With different syllabi, I also didn't have the full two years' worth of studying the correct topics/poems/Shakespearean plays/artists. They also didn't offer all the same subjects so I came out with 8 GCSEs instead of the 10 I'd been doing before, because they wouldn't let me pick up new subjects so late in the day. I still got OK GCSE grades because I was bright, but it deeply affected my A-level attainment as I didn't have strong enough foundations. It was also an utter disaster socially and I spent year 11 extremely lonely and with no one to talk to/be friends with.

Any school with RI will be focusing on exam years and should be receiving a lot of support.

Your DD will likely go into good sets (assuming she’s academic, of course) and if she works hard will still do well. You could direct some of your money into a tutor for her favourite subject.

Don’t forget that there may well be an added incentive when it comes to uni applications - they will look at her school and if it is RI and she’s got good grades, they will take that into account.

Is it possible to restructure finances and use some of the school fee saving to move to an area with better suited state schools?

Have you checked the contract, doesn't sound right.

I’m sure them giving such short notice will be against the terms and conditions that you’ve agreed to.

protesting might buy you a bit of time. Not a lot but it might help a bit.

what else could you do to get them through their GCSE years? Extend your mortgage or take a mortgage holiday? Borrow from parents? Any scope to increase your earnings?

We moved DS from a big name boarding school after his GCSES last year. I thought it was the end of the world at the time, I wish we had done this years earlier.He is having a fantastic experience at 6th form and his grades are predicted to be all A* next year.

In hindsight I wish we had never gone down that road. DS says the teaching is far superior at his state 6th form. His doesn't miss the favouritism, I now wonder what on earth we were paying for.
The teachers are available to him during the summer holidays by email and work has been set.

We had absolutely no quality of life and we were paying a school which was making many millions each year and doing very little for DS.

@Windswepts I think we might be at the same school 😂honestly, half the time I’m not sure what we are really paying for. Teaching quality isn’t that great and the staff turn over is horrendous. But I can’t move them in their GCSE years, it would be just be so wrong.

It turns out were paying for the name whatever that means @SchoolFeePain, I thought he would have fantastic education. Many parents are tutoring non stop during the holidays but we didn't have the means , imagine having to do that when you're paying those fees.

We were expecting fantastic teaching but it was so underwhelming. Pastoral care was also non existent. Good luck with your decision and to DD for her GCSE results. My DS is thriving at his new school and I have been so impressed with the teaching and pastoral care.

I can sleep at night, I realize now who stressed I was. It does help that DS has never been happier. I see now that the very best teachers are in the state system.

Good luck xx

Why are the annual % increases so big? Surely they can't need that much just to keep things at the same level of provision?

I don't think you deserve any criticism for feeling the pain at that level of rise.

My dad had to move at a similar age in similar circumstances and he always says it was the making of him (he's very successful in his chosen, very selective, profession) . So if it's got to that point i think you must panic.

Also, some schools are just better at gaming the Ofsted system, it doesn't necessarily mean they are better.. my children's head teacher was rubbing out answers in SATs and correcting them

And often in "good" schools they are propped up by lots of parents paying for tutors. In fact that might be a good compromise option for you, state schools plus tutors?

I don't want to sound entirely brutal, but if this is how badly your life is affected by putting your children through private school, you probably shouldn't be putting your children through private school. It sounds like it is dangerously overextending you.

Have you spoken to the school regarding hardship funds/bursaries etc.? It might get you through another year, but I would try to get your youngest in somewhere else.

Cry me a river.

Because state school teachers are better trained than private school teachers.

Our day school fees increased by 12.9%, which was a lot more than I was expecting. We also only found out about the new fees after the end of term, which feels underhand. I think they should declare new fees before Easter to enable withdrawal if necessary.

For now, we will continue, but I am hoping for smaller increases in future years (I have a lot of years ahead of me).

You are aware most teachers - private or state - are trained in the same place? Some private school teachers are trained 'on the job', but the vast majority have done exactly the same teaching qualification as state school teachers, and most have taught in the state sector.

I moved between both as a child. I was much happier in the state schools. The teachers were better and the children were by and large much nicer. (I had some nice friends in private school but there was a huge group of bitchy and avaricious girls who dominated the atmosphere)

The facilities and the uniform were fancier in private schools but by and large I think if you can find a half decent state and supplement with tutors /good holidays/lots of extra curricular activities then theres definitely no need to be " heartbroken"

@WayDownInTheHole
State school inset training is excellent. This is what I was referring too