If you're trying to do an impartial comparison of two schools ...

[roisin]

... to decide which is number one choice and which is number two ...

Do you include the factor that one of them costs a lot of money, and one doesn't?

(We have always been working towards paying for secondary education, so we do have the money saved up/set aside .. but obviously if we don't need to pay for education we can use it for something else.)

If possible, I would leave money out of it until you have considered the quality of education your child will receive. Have a look round (I'm a great believer in gut instinct) and talk to some parents, if possible. Whatever you do, do not look at the state school's Ofsted report in isolation. Could you name the schools? Some Mumsnetters might know them.

Hi roisin

We left money out of the calculation, but obviously subject to the knowledge that we could just about afford it in principle.

Dd1 was offered places at her first choice school and the two private schools we had as backup, including one with a scholarship. Her current school was still our first choice by a long way. The fact that it's free is a very agreeable bonus.

I think the financial factor would become more significant if the preferences were very close if there wasn't much to choose between two schools, then I think finances might swing it, bearing in mind all the fun and educational things you could do with the extra cash. Or if the finances were so tight that finding the money would cause real changes to the family lifestyle, then you would want to feel that the expensive school really was very significantly better in areas you felt were likely to be very important to that particular child sports facilities, say, or music or special needs.

But in the first instance, I think you should look at each school on its merits, weighing up not just results and facilities but how approachable the schools are, how long the journey would be, the general demeanour of the pupils, likely friendship groups etc etc.

I'd also leave cost out of it for now. Look at all the main plus and negative points of each school first.

May be... psychologically people appreciate what they pay for so that's another factor perhaps pro-paying. You kind of con yourself it must be better because it's expensive.

I think it is genuinely an important factor. If you've got the money set aside and don't use it for that may be put it aside for their university and gap years.

It is so difficult. The schools are actually extremely different, but I think both would be good for ds1 in some ways. But the independent school is nearer, much smaller (which I think would be good for him), and he is likely to know a few children there already. Average results are higher there too, but that's not really relevant as I expect "academically" he would do very well in either place.

I work at a secondary school myself, and already know quite a lot of "gossip" about both schools - and all the others: the ones he's not going to!

I'm going to see if I can wangle some time off work to go and see the state school during the day, and try and get a feel for the place.

It is an important factor, but think it's important to figure out the relative merits of the schools first, and then see how/if cost changes the equation.

Xenia, I couldn't appreciate my dd's school any more than I do, honestly. It doesn't have the swanky facilities (think elderly Volvo 850 rather than BMW X5 ) but we would still have chosen it over the private school even if she'd been offered a place for free.

Sorry, not boasting or being incendiary about private schools. But dd1 has been hating primary school for 7 years, so I'm enjoying basking in the warm glow of having finally found somewhere that suits her.