Are private schools worth the fees you pay?

[lupo]

Hi

I was looking for some advice from those of you who send your kids to private school. I have one son and recently went to visit Staines Prep School and really fell in love with it.

The thing is we could just about afford the fees, but I will need to work more hours (full instead of part time)as well as few sacrifices along the way. not planning on having any more children, and would like to go private as classes seem smaller, and sounds like children get lots of help and support.

Just wanted to know of your experiences of independant schools and whether good ones are worth the money. Any advice much appreciated.

Like the school but am going on gut instinct, and it is one of the few we could just afford.

Just changed my ds(9) and dd(7) from state to private this year. They were in good state schools but private for us has been so much better. They get fantastic opportunities and the pastoral care and attention is way better. Thats the differnce between 30+ in a class vs 15 per class.

For us its been a great (but expensive) move.

At primary stage I'm not sure that a private school is necessarily worth £XXXX more than the state school, though I think you do have to look at your local state schools in order to compare. I have to say that there are one or two local state schools that I would have definitely paid to avoid.

If it is going to be tight then I would consider saving for secondary school where I think that the private benefits are far greater.

As for our own experience, we live in a funny location for state schools as we're effectively out of any catchment area. Ds1 is in Yr 1 in the pre-prep of one of the local prep schools. He is in a class of 16, the school has excellent facilities, he is already taught by specialist teachers for science, French, geography, history, music, singing, PE, Games and Swimming. The school has a caring ethos and is strong pastorally. He reads to a teacher each day. In reception we had a weekly session where parents went into the class and went through the previous weeks work with their children. In Yr1 we go in once a month and do the same. Any time I chat to the class teacher she has the full measure of ds1, and can always let me know of any moodswings or other items from that day, so he isn't lost in the midst of a large class.

But in terms of value for money - it is hard to know what you're measuring. Academically he would probably do just as well in many of the better state schools (which seem to be able to stretch pupils according to their ability). I guess at this age it is hard to know exactly what you're paying for and what the value is. We could afford the fees, so just looked at both private and state schools and concluded that this particular one would suit us best.

Not sure all schools are the same but we seem to have plenty of homework - times tables, reading and spellings as well as a weekly worksheet.

I think good schools are definately worth paying for. I'd say the opposite to LadyMuck though - start in private where they'll get a really good grounding, then when they transfer they will find it easier. Also they may well have learnt how to learn by then so be more motivated and able to work independently. Plus you might be able to afford secondary by the time they get there.

There are alot of scholarships and bursaries available when it comes to secondary, and a good start may help them to gain these.

definitely, yes

It really depends what the state primary schools are like in your local area. Until this academic year, we've always educated our daughter privately (she's been to two private schools, as we moved areas). This Sept we moved her to state - yes there are advantages to the private school; smaller classes, more attention, greater range of club and facilities, but have to say, I'm not sure its worth 800 £ odd a month if your state primary schools are decent and in a good area. Yes, its worth it if you are wealthy and aren't having to make sacrifices to send your kids to the school - but if you aren't I would think carefully. There's also the peer pressure at these schools - I got fed up trying to make excuses for why we weren't going on some exotic getaway every half term (unlike many of my daughter's classmates) ... At secondary, we definitely hope to send her back to private again (as I think its more important at this level) - but for now she's fine ... though I keep an eye on her homework more at home now

No, not in my view.

But I suppose it depends what sort of result you want.

Depends mostly on the other options I guess. Some state schools are really good and you get some very dodgy private schools.

...we made the decision to up sticks and move so that we could afford private education. DS started 2 weeks ago (pre prep)...and his reading has improved dramtically in 2 weeks...which seems unbelievable but the smaller class size (of 11) seem to suit him and have given him the confidence that he didn't have in a much larger class size of the (good) primary school that he left.

I look at the attention all the children get and think this is how the education system should be for ALL children when they start school so that they can ALL get the best start... but as it isn't that way then we'll do whatever we can to continue DS and, from September DD education in the private sector.....

Depends upon the kid of course, and what you mean by "worth it".
Private school kids are vastly more likely to go to a good universtiy, yet tend not to get much better grades, amy even be a negative correlation.
The evidence is strongly that educational outcomes are mostly genetics, and avoiding the worst schools. Thus to be "worth it", you need to compare it to "free" education, given that the genetic die is cast.
You do get fewer "troubled" kids at private who disrupt others education.

The fake French that kids get taught in preps is of absolutely no educational value at all, though I must confess to a smugness when 2.0 at 5 emits sentences better formed than some people who got GCSE pass can manage, But my smugness is not the objective here (entirely
If he's into music there is usually much greater opportunity (though of course yet more money gets sucked out).

Better ratios of teachers, and in my experience better teachers, though I'm not sure how you prove the latter objectively.

You also have to balance the cost against you working full time instead of part time as that may have an effect on your son too

The private school would have wrap around care presumably - but then you are working full time so he would need it.

Personally I would go with a state school and being picked up by mum at the school gate followed by a sandwich and a chat, whilst saving like crazy in case you go private for secondary.

It very much depends on what is available in your area free of charge. In our case we have a good school across the street but, although their Ofsted results are very good for almost everything, they were not exactly good for English which is the subject he will need more help for as we don't speak English at home. So we went private and it has been worth every penny, mostly because the radio of Tutor-pupil in the school is just 5 to 1 so he gets plenty of personalised attention which has helped him out of his shyness.

Now, if I have had found that in a school in the area where I live... I would have opted for the state school. (now, I'm not saying that such scenario is not possible in state schools, as I know one that it is very much the same but... we are not under its catchment)

yuo can't prove it objectively because is not true. I know teachers who moved from state to very well respected private schools and were shocked by some of the poor teaching there. The school had good results because it only let in bright children to begin with. Another friend who was a state school maths teacher regularly tutors girls from a high achieving private school. They probably don't tell prosepective parents that some of their results are due to tutors from outside the school.

'Personally I would go with a state school and being picked up by mum at the school gate followed by a sandwich and a chat, whilst saving like crazy in case you go private for secondary.'

I'm playing safe and going for the Private school option and picking the kids up at 3.30pm for a sandwich and a chat.

Seriously though, we have used two private schools after a lovely state primary. If I could get the 'normality' of our old state primary here then I would use the state system. I can't. Private schooling at least offers the type of stability, care and sheer ordinariness that we took for granted in our last village.

One private school we used was crap, it didn't take us long to realise that but now the kids are settled and thriving (at opposing ends of the ability scale) in another private school. So no, not all private schools are worth it.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

As an aside and in response to DC, would have to say that prep school French does have an academic value if you're doing Common Entrance. Some schools eg Latymers expect that you will be able to offer Higher level French. But less of an issue for 11+.

if you're working specifically to pay the fees and that means you spend less time with your child outside school hours, I would say its definitely not worth it.

Not for me.

But everyone's circumstances are different.

We have an excellent state primary so there is no reason to spend money on private education. IMO, there are better things to spend my money on.

We think so for all the reasons LM stated but haven't experienced the local state schools which Ofsted and League table ok to be able to compare. Facilities just don't match up though and for us it make an international move at Year 3 age easier for ds.

Not worth it if you are going to sacrifice other things, especially family time. But then we have a fantastic state primary 5 mins walk away, Reception class has 12 children, 1 teacher and 1 nursery nurse. The biggest class size in the whole school is 15. Typically, or at least in my area, village schools seem to have smaller class sizes than town schools.

Definitely but it depends on what you want as a family and what matters to you so I don't think anyone can answer for you. There was a survey last year which I think had some statistics that over the course of your working life if you've gone to a private school you earn £x0,000 a year or hugely more likely to earn more than £70k a year or something like that and certainly to get to a proper good university but that's only part of it. I have 3 children at university all privately educated as was I and two still at school. I find them more confident with all kinds of people, at ease, sure of success whether that's at play or at work. I also like the fact they don't swear and speak nicely too and all their huge extracurricular interests from riding to skiing, they've all found some passion because of the wealth of opportunities they've been given. Their friends are helpful. They are better able to get work experience, find people who can assist them, understand more the careers available abld obviously their teaching has been first class in gorgeous schools with lakes and fields where I can join parents' choirs or whatever and wear pretty dresses and high heels at social events.

For me it's not about buying good A level grades. If they're clever they'll get those at comprehensives. It's education to produce a rounded person where exams are not the be all and end all. Education for its own sake without the confines of the national curriculum which doesn't have to be followed. Education amongst peers many of whom are academically brilliant where everyone is clever or reasonably bright. So yes, worth every penny. And for 5 of them from nursery school through to university at about £10k a year for day schools/university costs that's about £950,000 out of taxed income (or £1.58m taxed income). Now... what else might I have spent that on.....

I think Xenia's post sums up why I would never send my children to private schools.

I don't think you need to go to private school to get the things you talk about Xenia.

What I don't understand is that people seem to see school as the be all and end all. As if school provides you with everything so you must get everything possible in one place. It's just rubbish - it's your whole life experience that makes you. Your home life and upbringing, your family, your friends outside of school, doing activities outside of school with people different to those you sit with in the classroom all day, where you travel to, what you see, what you experience.

People always go on about private schools having x, y and z extra activities but they are nothing you can't get outside of school - school does not make up the entirety of who you are.

I agree alex!

In fact it has to be a joke, right?!

I was thinking she may be a troll but then I think lots of mumnetters are but one I used to think was has been to meet ups; so what do I know? (I didn't go to public school after all, just to University with those that did).