Schooling in the UK

[1horatio]

Can somebody please explain me in an unbiased way how it works in the UK? What we should do? Or to a website that's unbiased and concise?

DH is great but just really biased. I'm not a fan of boarding schools. Not at all. For us it was common to have lunch at home, so the thought of a boarding school? But DH thinks it's the best?

DD is just 5 months. But we're currently trying for DC2, I'm thinking of accepting an other job offer so I'd really like to be able to plan.

I'd really appreciate your help.

[DoctorDonnaNoble]

Be sceptical about the Additional language stats. Our school has far more EAL students than is official. Parents won't say they are as they think they won't get in if they do and various other nonsense reasons (highly selective grammar school).
There are many excellent state and private options in London. London has had the benefit of appropriate funding in recent years and the schools have worked well together (funding is changing though).
As for the German language issue. Not all schools teach it and it isn't a popular option at GCSE (often because it's an additional option alongside French for historic reasons). My school has an excellent German department and our languages department has links with Switzerland for exhanges. Many schools do exchanges (not just ski trips). You have a lot to consider, but in terms of secondary level provision (this where languages really take off) you do have time to consider your options.
In fact, by the time your daughter is old enough my school will probably offer girls boarding

[Out2pasture]

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/education/2516490-Hill-House-International-has-a-new-Headmaster

[Out2pasture]

reports.ofsted.gov.uk/inspection-reports/find-inspection-report/provider/ELS/100518

this is available on the ofsted reports site
the schools latest inspection was much improved.

in the education section there is a tread about the school "hill house has a new headmaster"

[1horatio]

I have.
They sound great. But didn't they get a really bad ofsted report? That's at least what popped up when I googled them.
www.theguardian.com/education/2015/mar/11/hill-house-prep-school-prince-charles-damning-ofsted-report

That's great advice. Yes, we'll put down her name and then see. thank you very much.

[Mary21]

Have you looked at Hill House International School. They spend time in Switzerland when they are older.

For now, If you want a prestigious private London day school or want to keep these options open go on a a couple of waiting lists. This is for age 3 or 4 entry. Do bear in mind some of these schools are first come first served and some have an entry assessment. At any school it is largely play based the first year or so.
Other private schools and state schools you won't need to think about till closer to the time. You apply for states primary schools the January before the September you start.
Some people will go private all the way through from 3 or 4.
Some will go state for the first few years and move to private age 7 or 8
Some do state till age 11 and change then. Most privately educated children attend day schools.
Most London day private schools are selective at 11. Some are very selective. At this stage you will have no idea how smart your children will be.
At this stage enjoy your baby. Financially plan for private if you might go this way. And if you want one of those prestigious schools go on the waiting lists

[1horatio]

mummy

Many around us aren't either. We've started looking into it (I'm home today because I had a little accident, so we had a lot of time...) and I feel like we're on the right path.

phil of course not, neither of us had ever considered that.

not

Very true. I'll do my best to not let myself be driven crazy.

[mummytime]

Umm none of the schools where I live just outside London are as cheap as £9000 a year. And they often increase by 5% a year in addition to age increases.

[Noitsnotteatimeyet]

If you wanted her to go to one of the sought after London pre-preps then yes you would have to put her name down now - in fact for some you'll already have missed the boat ....

However home is completely right in that a) it's really not necessary and b) because you simply can't tell how your lives are going to pan out over the next few years

We ended up having an unexpected year in the USA when the two eldest were small - it was supposed to be for between 3 and 5 years but 12 months after we'd arrived dh got offered his dream (at the time) job back in London so we arrived back home 3 weeks before ds1 was due to start reception with no place lined up and everywhere we tried was full. It was a bit hairy for a while but worked out fine in the end.

Key stage 1 (pre-prep in the private sector) is pretty much the same wherever your child goes. With supportive parents and plenty of stimulation nothing at school in the early years will make the slightest difference to how your children turn out later on, no matter how eye-watering the fees

[PhilODox]

Yes- you need to put her name down now for London pre-preps... but they aren't boarding!

[1horatio]

home

Thanks😊. But is it really not now? Some posters suggested we'd have to put down her name early for pre-prep etc...?

[homebythesea]

I've been a parent for nearly 20 years. I think it is true to say that planning is very much more difficult in relation to another small person who will develop and change and be moulded into something you can have no idea about at this stage. And all adults will know that our own lives in terms of jobs and health and relationships are also changeable to an unknowable degree. And schools change, sometimes really quickly if, for example, there is a new Head or if a private school gets into financial difficulties, or if a state school becomes an academy.

Hence my friendly advice to just enjoy your baby, hopefully have another and consider your educational choices at the relevant time. Which really isn't now.

[1horatio]

LIZS
Yes, we are currently trying for a 2nd (and last) child. We would not consider options we couldn't afford.

UK private schools are actually cheaper than I anticipated.

[LIZS]

If you are considering private you may want to take advice from a specialist financial adviser to forward plan. To fund a secondary day place you are looking at earning around 20-25k gross, boarding around 40-45k gross at current level, per child. Allow for annual increases of around 5%. Are you considering having further children?

[1horatio]

Oops. Yes, carer in this case. Not caretaker. DD isn't a garden or something. 🙈
Thanks :)!

[1horatio]

Well, faith schools are out in this case. We are both non-religious and the thought of spending Sunday mornings (for example) in a church or similar functioning facility sounds to me personally like a waste of time. (DH agrees).

I am not saying that state schools aren't good enough.

[rollonthesummer]

We tend to say primary carer, not
Caretaker. A caretaker is the person who does the maintenance on a building, e.g. a school.

Your daughter is very young-you have lots of time. Only the top 5% or so send their children to private schools-mainly because they are very expensive. They start at around £3000 a term here, so £9k a year and this increases with age/inflation. Obviously uniform, after schools clubs, trips, extracurricular clubs are extra.

Public schools are elite private schools-e.g. Harrow/Eton. Expensive and the option to board.

State schools are free and start in reception though it's not compulsory to go until the age of 5. Schools in deprived areas often have a nursery attached which you go to part time the year before. State schools usually have a catchment though if it's popular, you might still not get a place as older siblings will have priority.

Faith schools usually require some sort of attendance at church and some grammars can have a catchment-with an entrance exam and if you are within the catchment, you need to get a lower pass mark than those living further afield. Super selective grammars have no catchment and the pass mark tends to be very high due to the competition for places.

You don't need to go to anything other than state school to get a university place

[1horatio]

the

Well, neither DH nor I went to the school nearest to us. I'm sure there's nothing wrong with it, my little sister did, for example.
But unless this school near us is in our opinion the best option we just don't want to do that.

[1horatio]

home
I like to plan. 1 year plans, 5 years, 10 years etc.
I also have weekly and daily lists, it's not about making a definitive decision. It's about knowing in what direction we want to go and what needs to be done to get there. I'm not sure why this is confusing?


DH goes to baby groups, he's the primary caretaker.

[thesleepystorm]

If your dd is only 5 months you are overthinking this to a ridiculous degree.

My ds is 10 months and will simply go to the school nearest to us when the time comes, I don't get all this hand wringing.

[homebythesea]

Oh and does your DH really know how / where he will be working in 11 years' time? And how much he will be earning? And what about you?

[homebythesea]

STOP!!!!!!

You have NO IDEA what type of school will suit your daughter when she is not even eating solids yet! By all means educate yourself on the system but really you are overthinking this to the nth degree.

If you go to local baby groups over the next couple of years you will hear about your local schools. You will also get to know your daughter's personality a bit more and be able to assess whether eg she is artistic or musical or even whether she displays signs of having learning difficulties. you can then look at schools of whatever kind in the light of what's best FOR HER not based on some abstract principles.

[1horatio]

opal of course :)

mummy I'm sorry but I'm not sure what you mean with a city job. I'm sure we're all doing our best.

dragon

Will do, thank you.

I talked to DH today and understand his perspective on boarding better now. I was probably being a cow. Whilst currently DH does work part time/mainly from home this won't/can't be permanent. Which is why he thinks weekly boarding would be better. I'm still not sure I agree. But I think my initial reaction was too harsh. Also because he is the primary caretaker. So yeah. I was a cow :(
(Btw, I have nothing against boarding schools. But the thought of sending our beautiful baby away did provoke a bit of a reaction 🙈)

[TheMortificadosDragon]

It would be perfectly reasonable to ask your colleagues in the same general terms as here, then its up to them if they want to discuss in terms of their own DCs schools.

[mummytime]

Where I live there are lots of people with City jobs who can't afford Private schools, certainly not all the way through or all children. ( Lots go State for primary and then might go independent for secondary, or can only afford it for one child who really needs it.)

[OpalTree]

Dd is at our local non selective state school (comp) and hasn’t mentioned any knife fights if that's any help.