If your child goes to private school, what job do you do?

[scrambledeggy]

Just curious really- I don't know anyone who has kids at private school, but I always pass a massive one on my way to work and wonder what kind of jobs people do to afford it?

It's increasingly rare I think to pay fees out of salaries.

I went to private school and most of my friends did as well and we mostly all have high paying jobs but the only three if us who send kids to private school - two of them both have only one child and were given houses outright in their early 20s so have never had mortgages and therefore have high savings and low outgoings, one has a DH who works at a private school and gets a fee reduction.

Our household income is around 200k - evenly split between us which is helpful tax wise - and we can't comfortably afford it. We live in London and have to for our careers, we don't have a flashy lifestyle, no car, no pets. Our house is a fairly standard family home. We could afford it if we downsized to a 2 up 2 down, but that feels like quite a big sacrifice especially as we both WFH some days which really helps us to manage family life.

I was a parent in a 10 year old hatchback in a London super selective. I've seen others too though we were a minority.
It's 50/50 at our current school and not a single Lambo.

The older parent thing is certainly true. That's something we have really noticed since Ds1 started going to his school. Its parent who were already relatively established. DS2 (aged 14) has a close friend and his father is either late 60s or early 70s. (There-abouts anyway). The only younger parents of late 20s and early 30s most likely have grandparents paying (I am making a big assumption here based on what i know about the family). It's probably very common though as the school offers 7 years pay fees up front which is obviously designed for IHT purposes.

My DH and I are both ex Military, so one of our pensions pay for the school fees for DC1 and the other will pay for DC2 to go to the same school. DH has a part time job and I'm running a business. Luckily we have no mortgage.

We are having some lean years at the moment whilst the business gets established. No holidays and driving old bangers that constantly need work doing but it is 100% worth it.

It has made the world of difference to our DC who is happy and smiling again after a very tough few years in the state system. They're also absolutely thriving academically so we know we have made the right decision.

I don't but have family and friends whose children go/have gone to private school for their whole schooling. Their jobs are hospital consultants and solicitors.

Our 3 finished a couple of years ago. DH works for an investment bank and I lead in Comms for a household name business.

Posh part of outer London. Lots of doctors and dentists but at senior levels - consultants, private practice etc. Pharmacists who own a few outlets. Own small or large businesses such as care homes. People who work for family businesses. A LOT of smart people who work in the city, lots of IT for investment banks, finance, senior level accountants. Lots of lawyers and senior level management / IT consultants. Insurance. One quite well known celebrity.

I work in one of the above and my DH runs a small software company and a small property company.

I would say most families have both parents working but certainly not all. Lots of family money sloshing about helping with fees. VAT has made a huge dent for many people.

I think it’s a reasonable question OP as these things aren’t always obvious.

Senior civil servant x2.

Grandparents on both sides contribute c. £10K a year toward fees. Wouldn’t be possible otherwise.

Hatchbacks at ours too. But we are small independent in a deprived area. I can think of 1 Porsche Cayenne with personalised plates so don't know how old. Maybe a BMW X5 or two. We have a VW Golf 2018 which we bought second hand. A really posh car would stand out, tbh.

Finance and marketing, senior management. Mortgage paid off otherwise we probs wouldnt have stetched ourselves.

Most others are finance, legal, tech but we are urban and most people we know are making sacrifices to pay the fees/arent uber wealthy. I think a feature of London is that certain areas have v poorly performing state schools and massively competitive grammars and the better states forces people who never thought they’d go private , into private .

At the primary that DD once went to, the mix of parents was: teachers at the school, NHS admin staff, it support worker; relatively famous musician; scaffolder, less famous classical musician, judge, dietician, farmers.

I’m a charity fundraising manager and DH works at the school DS2 attends. Private was never on our radar but DS1 is disabled and the state sector was unable to provide him with an education for several years. If anyone has a Lambo then I haven’t seen it…. they’d have to park it elsewhere as the school is on a historical site and giant sports cars wouldn’t fit through the gateway!

DS goes private, I'm an Electrician and his mum is a Piano Teacher.

My friend is head of dept in a local prep and she said more than 50% of dc are funded by grandparents. It’s a way to pass on generational wealth without tax implications. Seems sensible to me.

My kids don’t go to private but we considered it and decided we could afford

my wage is average, husband has a good salary working in a fairly (but not very) senior position in IT.
However my parents would have contributed substantially. They’re not at all wealthy - retired teachers! - but were born at the right time (baby boomers) and have been lucky with various investments. I suspect that scenario will be much less common in the future.

We sent our dd to private school, I’m a childminder, my partner a plasterer.
DD had been left money when her grandad died, we bought a house with it and used the rent for fees, plus topping it up ourselves as it got more expensive.
(6th form fees are a killer!)
Most of the parents were doctors, lawyers, business owners etc
It gave our dd a fantastic start in life, but I’d much prefer her lovely grandad to be here instead, although I know he would be so proud of the amazing woman she is (now at university)

Among the people I know who send their kids private:

• he's an accountant at one of the biggest prestigious-name firms - not massively senior - she works for local government in a senior position
• he's a barrister, she's CFO for a medium-sized business
• he's an artistic director for a theatre, she's a management consultant
• he's a mid-level not particularly senior admin person in a national QUANGO, she's a software consultant

But I know just as many if not more families who have similar seniorities/salaries in their careers and don't use private school - but do use their high income to buy into the catchment areas of high-performing state schools.

We’re in tech, I don’t know what most parents do - a couple of dentists, professional sports people, people who own their own businesses, solicitors etc. There are some ultra rich people but they are the minority, particularly at secondary level which seems a more mixed crowd than primary. Fees aren’t 30k a year per child, not sure where this figure comes from, maybe boarding? We’re paying less than that for two. The addition of vat was a bugger and we probably wouldn’t have put the youngest in private if we knew that was coming.

I wouldn’t be bankrupting myself for private but if you have some extra money or I guess older family members want to contribute it’s not a waste imho. I believe, but do your own research as I’ve only read it on here, that paying for education falls out of iht rules as well.

I'm a sahm and DH is a software engineer. Paid for from salary, no generational wealth at all.

Most parents are lawyers, business owners, work in financial services, successful in the entertainment industry, doctors, accountants, diplomats, teachers (discount) or have family wealth. Quite a few only have one child, which makes it more affordable.

Finance and law.

£30k are typical fees for one child at a London independent senior day school, e.g. termly fees (inc VAT) at Highgate are £10,525; City Girls £10,082; Alleyn's £10, 338; Godolphin & Latymer £11,698.

teacher, state school.

exH’s income pays the fees.

Thanks everyone, this is really interesting! I live in the North of England (not an affluent part), so it'd be good to hear from people up this way.

Ditto