How do people afford private school?

[PopGoesTheWeaselYetAgain]

Following on from discussion House of Commons today, how do people afford private school fees? Is it by sacrificing holidays and other luxuries? That wouldn't by you a year, but did she perhaps mean a term? How do you pay for the other two terms?

I'd appreciate it if posters refrained from speculation. I'm interested in people's actual financial circumstances and decisions.

Dd said the bursaries are decent for armed forces too but they are pretty strict on who qualifies these days

We pay for it from earned income, no help from anyone. Currently standing at £50k per year for two at senior school, prep was half of that. We can still afford holidays, we don't live an extravagant lifestyle through choice. We also have no mortgage through working to pay it off many years ago.

We also pay out of income. We both earn £55 k - so not insane amounts sometimes quoted on MN and we have one child at private school. The fees are circa £20 k.

We do however have to make sacrifices in other ways. We downsized to a much smaller house so we could minimise our mortgage. DH has a fairly pricey hobby but I do not. We are fairly frugal generally. We are currently on holiday in Greece and in order for us to be able to afford it comfortably I actually did an extra evening job for 6 weeks, and I will probably do the same again next year (and possibly before Chritmas) as once I got used to it it was actually less exhuasting than I thought.

I know that with some of the other parents that sometimes GPs contribute. Some are just high earners (The family with 4 kids at the school make it very clear how high earning they are as they are a bit boasty!). My closest 'mum friend' has 2 at the school and her parents pay for one set of fees. She is desperately worried though because if the labour party proposed VAT on fees come in neither she nor her parents will be able to afford it anymore.

It's a strange question because it has an obvious answer. Some people have lots of money. In fact, I'd wager a lot more people than you realise have lots of money.

Some people have wealthy parents who will pay for their grandchildren.

Some people prioritize education over everything else, so will live frugally on decent but not amazing salaries to see their kids through private school.

Some people win the lottery.

Some people are on foreign work contracts that include school fees.

Some kids gets scholarships.

We have a high income and no expensive tastes — I wouldn’t call it sacrificing when you genuinely don’t want to spend money on fancy cars etc. No help from parents though (they have never had much money and in fact we have to help them and siblings out on occasion). Paid off mortgage before having children as we worked a lot and lived modestly. Fees cost the same as nursery so we knew we could do it. I went to a crappy school where you were bullied for making any effort and get a lot of personal satisfaction from sending my kids to a very different place.

The 20% will really impact us I know. We can stretch to it I think (depending on what else goes up in COL) but I know from others that they cannot.

There's a lot of foreign money in British private schools too. Parents aren't necessarily in the UK.

When my husband was alive he had a very high salary. Since he passed I've used proceeds from house sales (so sold marital home and put a couple years fees aside, moved again put another couple years aside), parents passed so put another couple years aside, sold an artwork and put some of the money aside and so on. I couldn't afford it with what I earn. School all done now so looking at less for uni (with child getting loan).

This is our experience too.

Some - vey few - have very high incomes or generous grandparents where money is no object.

Most have above average incomes but compromise on cars, holidays, houses.

I've noticed that the parents at our local prep sch

I've noticed that the parents at our local prep school are a lot order than average (late 30s and 40s). So I'm wondering do people also wait until they've climbed the carter ladder and also put some away in saving before having children.

@MintJulia that is seriously impressive. Well done you! 🥂

Yes, another one of many factors of how people afford it. Private school fees here are one of the highest in the world, they are somewhat more affordable in other countries, it's absolutely eye watering here.

DH and I are lawyers so it’s paid out of income - no inheritance or anything like that. We don’t particularly compromise on spending but I guess, while we do save, we are saving less than we would be if we didn’t have school fees. So the impact is not on our immediate quality of life but on our retirement income.

Ive wondered the same thing , married colleagues sent their 2 daughters . Fees for 2 DC 38kpa , Their combined gross salary 65kpa.
Turns out DC got music scholarship and burseries and GPs paid the rest.
Another friend also had all school fees paid by wealthy GP.
BIL and SIL did by scholarship/ bursury/ GP contribution and SIL teaching at school so staff discount.
Another friend has 1 DC and runs a successful business pays full fees themselves - but only has 1 DC.
Clearly there must be some wealthy parents who pay full fees funded entirely by own money for multiple DC but on my small sample ( or maybe circles I move in) its unusual.

Unlikely to have been planned that way around. More likely they were people who were very dedicated to their careers so were working very long hours and did not want to pause them to have kids at a point where they’d have got behind. As I said, most parents at my son’s school have professional mothers so the professional fathers couldn’t just plough on at work with willing partners to take the hit. I also think that family is often less of a goal for people with fulfilling careers and they are less likely to settle for the non-ideal partner just to have kids.

Personally, I did not plan to have my child later so I could afford private school, nor did I consciously prioritise career over personal life. I just didn’t meet the right person until quite late in life, actually due to a work posting abroad.

Also teachers can a massive discount at the schools they teach at. Our school gives teachers at least 50% off so looking at £12.5k per annum. It's a big school and most of the teachers have their kids there or been through.

Our school is consulting with parents over what could be cut back to allow them to absorb any VAT charges. Each school will take a view as to how much it passes on.

As well as everything mentioned already, often by having smaller families. Anecdotal but among private school families I know, very many seem to only have one child.

From income, I earn enough to pay for it. Ex H and pay half each. Both high earners but neither of us 6-figures.

I thought this might be the case too, and was hoping my only child DS would find some friends at school who had a similar family setup to us. How wrong I was- average family size seems to be three!

My sister and I went to private schools because we lived in an ex-council house in a bad area, my dad drove the same old banger for years and we didn’t go abroad until I was 15. So some people do afford it through sacrifice.

I afford it because I’m a widow with no debts and a lot of pensions.

But actually all good as DS’ friends love to come to ours to escape their annoying siblings!

We are both higher earners.
We only have one child.