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Original poster

Help me choose a private school for my baby!

29 replies

suzy16 · 14/05/2011 23:25

hoping people can help me! I have a 4 month old son and since before he was born i have been thinking about sending him to a good private school. I this a good education is one of best things u can give your child and i am very passionate i need advice as to what i can do to get started. i know hes only 4 months but i want to prepare early as possible. I currently live in newport and understand that rougemont and monmouth are the two closest. which shall i go for? Is there any thing i should start doing to prepare myself and my son? Any advice would be most helpful! Any recommendations for my son! :)

OP posts:
Pagwatch · 14/05/2011 23:29

Don't be silly
You have no idea what environment will best suit your child when he is school age.

Just start looking all the local schools and talk to other parents about the schools their older children go to.

I have children at private schools and one at a school for special needs. You have no idea what your child will need in five years time. Wait and see.

There are no prizes at private school for early registration

geraldinetheluckygoat · 14/05/2011 23:31

lol just enjoy your baby, there is plenty of time to worry about schools yet!!!

LoopyLoopsBettyBoops · 14/05/2011 23:32

Please be joking.

PurveyorOfBaloney · 14/05/2011 23:33

Try harder suzy

LoopyLoopsBettyBoops · 14/05/2011 23:34

And (in the nicest possible way) improving upon your own education (eg. writing skills: capital letters, apostrophes etc.) will probably do him more good than choosing a school at this stage.

mumoverseas · 15/05/2011 04:22

First ever Biscuit

MmeBlueberry · 15/05/2011 09:04

The best preparation you can do is to start saving.

You should start attending open days a year or two before he is ready to join, and sign up 6 - 9 months ahead of starting.

greenlime · 15/05/2011 09:13

I agree that you probably don't need to start worrying at this stage and also that it is hard to predict what sort of school will suit your child once he is school age. You can tell virtually nothing about how your child will be when aged 4/5 when he is only 4 months.

However, if you want to get started, you could attend the open days of your chosen schools (check their websites) and have a look around. If there are no open days, email them asking for a tour. I don't know the schools you mentioned, but you should also ask them at what stage you should put the child's name down for a place. Some private schools are very oversubscribed and some are not full so you can get a place a few weeks before starting.

You should also put together a spreadsheet of fees!

sahm3 · 15/05/2011 14:35

I agree; you are a tad premature . The spreadsheet is a good idea, (we did one to include siblings) When the time is right, view both schools.

LCarbury · 15/05/2011 14:51

The best predictions for academic success of children are based on the socio-economic background of the parents, and whether it is a happy home. This cannot be (fully) outsourced to schools. So focus on enjoying your baby and keeping your own mind active for now, there is plenty of time to see what schools might suit your child in time.

thekidsmom · 15/05/2011 16:59

Wow, forward planning even by my standards.

If you're really serious, I'd say work backwards from the secondary shcool you're keen on and then see what leads into there....

But 4 more years is a long itme for your DS and its a long time in the family dynamic - more DCs may come along, you may uproot and move - too many ifs and buts to get into it seriosuly.....

Michaelahpurple · 15/05/2011 21:59

A bit harsh -if she was in London she would be on exactly the right time scales - the best nurseries' application lists fill up by about 6 months old and the non-asssessed schools often by about 1.5 years old. Newport I imagine would be different though.

Original poster
suzy16 · 17/05/2011 22:26

Thanks everyone for your comments, i agree its a bit early but how early is a bit early? Yes it may be a bit premature, but when your living in an area such as Newport you dont have many options for sending your kids to good school, in my opinion there are 2 maybe 3 decent state schools and one private in Newport itself. Compared to other big cities, so im thinking it may be quite hard/competitive to get your child into the good schools here? Im speculating here because i dont know myself. My niece got a place at the best private girls school in Manchester which she will be attending from this September, she went to a state primary. My sister in law advised me that she had to prepare my niece from since she was a baby really, such as reading books to her, buying her educational toys, and as she got older she started one to one tuition and then sent her to a private tutor. My sister in law stated without the additional support she would not have had a chance. Anyway in hindsight my question should have really asked what can i do to prepare my child for private education rather than which one, because if im correct, i understand that just paying fees wont get you in, you have to show that your quite bright to get in?? Anyway thanks for the comments and any other would be much appreciated.

P.S for those who have stated that i indeed need to start saving thats correct also! Its something im hoping to do asap!

OP posts:
annh · 17/05/2011 22:32

Surely this is a wind-up? Is the OP suggesting that her sister-in-law believes that reading books to a baby and buying them educational toys has helped in getting into private education?! Is the suggestion that all the poor state-educated children have never seen a book before starting school? I am going to assume that suzy16 is still suffering from the sleep deprivation that comes with having a newborn.

LoopyLoopsBettyBoops · 17/05/2011 23:00

Yes, I think it can only be a wind up.

thebeansmum · 18/05/2011 12:31

annh - you took the words out of my mouth. Bless you suzy - just enjoy your child, you have literally no idea what will suit his individual needs with regards education yet. 'The Best' schools/type of schooling is so subjective anyway, when he's older talk to other parents, visit all the schools and see which feels right for HIM, when the time's right. Private and expensive may not necessarily fit the bill for yor ds.

manicinsomniac · 18/05/2011 18:56

???????????

Why do people think this is so odd/ridiculous/not true?

Parents come looking round the school I work in with 3,4,5 month old babies all the time. You can enter the school from the term you are going to turn 3 so it's really not that forward thinking to put a baby's name on the list.

With some of th top ranking public schools I believe it's almost necessary to have your infants name down if you want a place - Radley, Eton etc. I may be wrong about that though, I only really know Prep level.

I def don't think the OP is unreasonable to be preparing though. She can always change her mind.

Original poster
suzy16 · 19/05/2011 01:51

Maybe i havnt put it right, what i am trying to say that little things like reading to her daughter getting extra tuitioning helped. They were not the sole reason she got into private school. I cant help but think every little helps. Surely i cant be the only one who thinks that its not too early to be thinking about which school to send your kids. I agree with manic insomniac, i too have heard people thinking about their childs education from when they are born.
Of course im going to enjoy my child, but thats not going to stop me thinking about his future. Anyway the beansmum you are right at the end of the day it will depend on how hes like when hes a bit older and what our financial situation is like. i guess thats why i am thinking about it now because firstly i want to try and get him into first if that fails then i will send have to send him to state.

OP posts:
circular · 19/05/2011 13:00

It depends where you live.
When our first was 4 months, I tenatively called a prep school that i knew to be the best in the area. I was told 'don't be silly - you must register here while you are pregnant'. Thinking about it, if I had it would not have helped as she was born prematurely into the previous school year!

We subsequently registered her in the nursery of a prep school (to start at 3, although she could hace started at 2.5) when she was 6 months old, and only just got a place.

If we had later decided not to take the place up, we would have just lost the registeration fee.

I think it's worth doing as an insurance, if there is a possibility you may not get your DC into a decent state primary

AMumInScotland · 19/05/2011 13:37

I don't think that you should be looking at things like reading to your child and buying educational toys as being "preparing him for private education" - they are things that the majority of parents will do with their child anyway, if they have even the faintest understanding of childrens development. Your SILs situation was different if she was looking at moving from a state primary to an independent secondary, as there are often entrance exams which may include things which children at state school do not automatically cover, and things like exam technique can also make a big difference to how a child does in that situation, so tutoring can make a difference.

If there are a small number of independent schools within range of you, then look at their websites, get the prospectus, and phone to ask when they recommend parents to visit and/or apply - they'll be able to tell you if expressing an interest now makes a difference, or if you shouldn't fill out forms till nearer the time.

But as to what you can do to prepare your child, I'd say nothing apart from what you would expect to do to prepare him for life in general - the things which will help him grow and develop are the same whatever plans you have for his education.

cazzybabs · 19/05/2011 13:39

manicinsomniac - yes I also teach at a prep school ... we are full 2-3 years ahead for pre-prep

naturalbaby · 19/05/2011 13:43

i put ds1's name down for private school when he was a few months old. they had an open day in october and the places for his year filled up then (when he was 5 months), so if i'd left it any later i would be very unhappy and anxious at the moment! you can always take their names off the list but you can only go on a waiting list if you leave it too late for a really good/popular school. it felt really strange going to the open day and looking round with a tiny baby but it was the right thing to do at the right time for us.

AMumInScotland · 19/05/2011 14:05

It just depends how the schools in your area work - none of the Edinburgh ones work that way, you can express an interest as early as you like, and get onto their mailing list, but the application date for everyone is the autumn before they are due to start and you don't get any preferential treatment for having "put their name down" earlier. But as natural says, some schools work differently, so the trick is to find out!

LifeInTheSlowLane · 19/05/2011 14:11

Ok so you've got a while to go yet but it doesn't hurt to start doing your research. Make sure you find out about registration procedure and visit on open days.Don't know what the schools are like in your area but many private schools have nursery too, starting at 3yrs so you'd presumably have to register there quite early.

QuintessentialOldMoo · 19/05/2011 14:14

I suggest you discover religion. It is a much cheaper option, and good for your soul and salvation too. You need to be a regular church goer for 3 years prior to application, so you better start now, if you are passionate.

It wont teach you how to spell, but it sure as heck will teach your son this!

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