Private school - what fee reduction have you been given for the summer term?

[BunsyGirl]

I would just like to get an idea of what (if any) fee reductions people are being offered for the summer term. We have been offered £150 discount per child to cover lunches. I am not particularly happy as our fees cover 8-6 wrap around care. I have been told that another local private school is offering a 10% reduction and their hours are shorter as after school care is an optional extra. I don’t want to get into a debate about whether we should get a fee reduction or not. I just want to get an idea of what fee reductions are being offered.

@Randomnessembraced This particular school had reserves of £3 million last year!

I hope DS school gets in contact with us after the Easter break, because no one knows when this pandemic will be over. Fees currently stand at £7,750 per term and we've paid up until the end of the school year, so hopefully we will get some kind of deduction.

I feel sorry for those who will no longer be able to afford the fees.

No lunch or bus fees here. DD year 4 came home with some stuff and her bond books. Firefly has more stuff for next week. I'm hoping for online lessons after Easter hols as I'm out of work myself, after my employer ceased trading early march. I really need to concentrate on trying to find work or study towards a new career for plan b, as my industry has collapsed, but whilst homeschooling it's been impossible, DD isn't focused enough to work independently for long periods of time.

I'm pretty sure the reason they won't furlough or lay off staff is simply that these staff will then leave. If some schools lay off/furlough and others don't, then the schools that do will have teachers leave. As teaching is a shortage skill, schools that treat their staff poorly at this time will be at serious risk of being short-staffed next year and into the future.

I am sure private schools will take a hit over this though, as many people are going to be struggling to pay the fees if their circumstances have changed. I'm sure there will be staffing reductions, but maybe they feel now is too early.

@MsJaneAusten No at this time I don’t like the school at all. Who would want to send their child to a school which sent out a letter (on a Friday evening after a very stressful week of homeschooling) stating that if they didn’t pay up their children would be removed from the role at the end of the April and would never be allowed back! I am seriously concerned that it might have tipped some parents over the edge. If you bothered to read the rest of the thread you would see that many schools are offering discounts of between 10-25%. That is showing empathy. My husband has reduced the fees he charges for his clients and done a lot of extra work on top to try to keep their business going. That is empathy. Don’t talk to me about empathy.

MsJaneAusten once this is all over, next time you or anyone you know is out for a celebratory meal, or trip to the theatre/cinema how about the establishment just takes your money and not give you their service. You can just suck it up and use it to develop some empathy for the starving street children in Bangladesh....

The only people who think like you are bitter and jealous people who think anyone with more money that you deserves everything bad that happens to them. Your opinion has no logic. It is based on hatred of the better off

Nope, my attitude is based on the fact that we’re all in a really shitty situation and that now is not the time to be criticising schools or teachers if they’re not doing exactly what you want them to be doing.

Op, if you don’t want to send them there because of a poorly timed letter, don’t. If you do, support them.

DD's secondary has said there will be a discount of £1000 next term. They're also running a full timetable of lessons with each teacher on Teams to give work and talk it through with pupils finding it difficult. I'm very impressed.

For context £1000 is about 20% of fees.

Friend's school has offered 28% off, non teaching staff on furlough and non-essential buildings closed.

Fluffy letter stating parents need to pay ‘core tuition fees’ landed on thurs. And there may be a refund (no idea of amounts) on following terms fees.

1. My private school operates on the assumption that a parent is sat at home able to look after the child. I’m divorced and I work to pay the fees. If my children are home next term my youngest cannot be left alone all day every day. That means I either have to not work or try and find a nanny to be with my children. Given the current situation I have to be at home as that is the right thing to do. This means zero income for me. (I was due to start a new job).
2. the learning thus far has been sheets sent out beginning of week/ every morning. No online learning, no live classrooms. I have to help and supervise to essentially ensure it’s done.
3. Both of the above = I will not be paying a single penny unless they either offer a substantial discount. And / or their technology shifts to live classroom learning. They can take me court and prove how on earth they can justify charging full amounts of money given I now have to be at home and they are sending Work that I can set my DC myself from books.

Because they sent the letter on Thursday it gave me sufficient time on Friday morning to submit my terms notice to them. My youngest has a year left in this school, and if they continue with the stance of charging a full terms fees, they’re not getting another penny off me again.

I will say private schools live and die by word of mouth recommendations. How they handle these situations with existing parents will determine whether they thrive or see a lot of pupils drop out

We haven’t heard anything
This week Dd has had tasks set every day (Y10) amd from next week there’s online teaching every day.
I’m hoping for at least lunches and some sort of discount

OP harsh but true. If people don't pay up they're not entitled to the service, albeit scaled back, that the school is providing.
If people want their kids to have a school to go to once this is over, they're going to have to pay to keep their place.
I think realistically private schools can offer a slight reduction on fees, say 80% but not a lot less. At my school we're trying to work out how many staff are needed to look after the key worker children and who to furlough (whether we even qualify for that). Teachers are doing their best to provide a remote education.

I agree though that the letter could have been worded better

£300 off dsy fees and no extra boarding fees (obviously) where I work. That adds up to a 6 figure loss for the school of which we hope we can recoup about 50% using furlough scheme. But we (And a lot of our parents) will still be in a very precarious position.

We are offering a full, online, interactive timetable of academic, extra curricular and pastoral input. But that doesn't please everyone. For some it's too much and for others it's still not enough.

@sassbott I completely agree. My oldest child is very bright and super sporty. We know that pretty much any school in the country with a space (and, unfortunately, there are going to be spaces) will take him. He also makes friends easily so could adjust to a new school. DS2 is the exact opposite. I am trying to be calm about this as his mental well-being is my upmost concern. However, I don’t want him at a school which cares so little about their pupils that they would threaten parents with removing their children from the role by the end of April and to never let them back in again if they don’t pay up.

I used to be a state primary teacher and have many friends that still are. I know they are working incredibly hard at this time I’m very difficult circumstances.

I do think criticising the teachers is unfair. There have been some PPs saying that they areWFH and need the work from the teachers etc... teachers are also WFH. Imagine having a toddler and a six year old wanting entertainment while you do live teaching from your house? What if you are a single parent or your partner is a key worker so your children don’t have another adult to look after them while you are trying to deliver a complete lesson from your home?

Teachers had two weeks, maximum(?) to work out an entirely new system. Some of it will work, some schools will do better than others. Give them a little bit of time to figure it out.

I have to say I don’t begrudge our pre prep of still asking for full fees, I’m not aware of discount yet.

We have been prepping (for reception where I am) a literacy and numeracy video for each day (so practical demonstration and explanation of the task which is either a worksheet or practical task and how to record it). Sometimes it’s a game, sometimes it’s sentence building / creative writing/ free writing / handwriting etc
All our reading books have been scanned in to the system as a PDF and each child is being set their own book 3 times a week as normal.
There’s an Explore task each week based on our topic, which asks them to present their finding in a way they wish (show and tell format, a poster, in writing - whatever they wish)
There are new tricky words being sent out each week to learn, based on ability.
From the summer term another topic will be added to the mix.
They are also getting a weekly music lesson video from the music teacher, weekly French (and resources through email) and a PE lesson. I am sending some additional tools out to children I work with individually.

We are asking for Work back and are giving feedback, sometimes as a comment format and sometimes we’ve videoed ourselves. However we know that if there is not a parent able to spend the whole time with them due to work that the timetable will be difficult. We are therefore not pushing or chasing. We are giving the work, it’s up to the parents if they use it and do it. We will play catch up when we are back.

We are also open for key worker children, and our school is being deep cleaned this week.

We’ve also had barely a week to get this going and it’s been a bloody hard week. Bare with your schools, this takes time to get the hang of

None, though we pay for meals separately so imagine that will be removed (I got a refund when my child was out sick got a whole month last year). They will run a complete set of classes remotely after the Easter break, and have kept the school open for key workers over the holidays. I do not see a reason for any discount.

Our senior school has said they will be looking at fees and get back to us so I think a discount will be coming

Nothing from the prep apart from telling us that the catering staff have made sandwiches for the local hospital
(Hospital has now asked for no food donations as they were overrun)

I truly think those who are being so ridiculously critical and demanding need to look around at the situation in the world. If you can't afford the fees because you've lost your job then fair enough. But if you just don't fancy it because you don't think you're getting enough of a service during a global crisis then seriously just go and fight over a state school place in September when some of the private schools will have closed down and there'll be even more of a shortage.

Those saying it is impossible to supervise your own child and work from home - what do you think the teachers are doing?! Our children are at home with us as well while we are trying to make videos or live teach your children. A little bit of empathy wouldn't go amiss. In fairness most of the parents at the independent school I teach at have been overwhelmingly positive and supportive.

I've been impressed with DS's school.

They started planning for this a few weeks ago so the transition to online teaching - live, interactive sessions with staff (recorded in case you are in a different time zone) - has been pretty seamless.

But DS is in his last year so is good at being independent and knowing when he has to log on. I imagine with younger kids who may need more parental supervision it might be more challenging.

The work will continue next term, despite the A Levels being cancelled, so they have the opportunity to show their ability.

And homework has been set for the Easter holidays, which start today.

Plus it has been one week. One week to set up an entirely new form of schooling unfamiliar to both teachers and pupils and already it's not good enough! Entitled or what!

Yes we had the previous fortnight to plan but that was while doing FT hours onsite with anxious, unsettled children so we had to work round the clock to get everything ready. A bit of human empathy or recognition that the teachers are just a bit tired as well would be nice.