Private Preps/Primaries - Fee Increase Most Years?

[WinlessChunder]

My DS is due to start at a private prep in September. We have just had the fee letter through and it's a 3% increase on last year.

I'm not disputing this, it seems average and expected but I'm new to this and was wondering if it was normal to get a fee increase every year. Would it be fair, do you think, to assume roughly the same increase every year in order to estimate fees ongoing?

I work on the basis of 5% for budgeting
Last year it was 3%
This year it was 3.75%
Other times its been between 2.5%-6.25%. Therefore 5% budget means most of time I'm okay, occassionaly we get a hit.
Other schools it can get up to as much as 10%.
Never heard of more than 10%.

You may find this thread interesting
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/education/1191110-Private-Fee-Increases-Survey-2011-12

all 3 of our do

We were told to expect 5% increase per year.

Yep, my personal experience would show me hugely surprised if there was not an annual increase in the fees. The staff expect an annual pay increase... so we need to cover that cost.
I had the biggest shock of all when my dc joined reception, aged almost 5. The fee had risen enormously from when I first viewed the school almost four years earlier. It had gone up by £1k a term by then and I was hit for six to see the new price. Clueless, that was me...

During my DS's first 3 years, the fees did not increase at all, but that was during the "good times". They have increased by 3% and nearly 5% respectively in the last 2 years.

Numbers are pretty static though, so that helps.