Prep school

[DrCoconut]

I have no experience at all of independent schools. However, we have worked out that a prep school near us will be cheaper than childcare currently is (we get no help with it) once DS 2 is school aged. The school has a good reputation and many pupils go onto grammar school rather than local comps/academies. So, is it worth considering? Would not coming from a fee paying background be a problem socially? Would we be as well to save the money and send him to the local infants school?

You need to consider all childcare including holidays to make sure the costs match up. Visit both schools you may adore one or equally hate one. Factor in that school fees often rise faster than childcare fees, 5% per year is pretty normal.
Having said all that as well as being cheaper than childcare the benefit I found was all the activities are at school. So now DD is in year 5 she is in two choirs, an orchestra, plays the clarinet, does netball/rounders club, additional maths club and science club all at school making my life much easier.
At DD's school not being from a fee paying back ground would be the norm for parents. Though it is worth checking out the cars in the car park at pick to get an idea. There is another prep nearby which is all Brand new Range Rovers.

DrCoconut "Would we be as well to save the money and send him to the local infants school?" - only you can answer that question I think.

A few points to consider:

Interesting that many of the pupils go onto grammar schools rather than private schools.

On seeing this I would guess that the local grammars are high performing, oversubscribed schools with intense competition to get in. If this is the case, you have the option to pay for the prep. or use the money (or possibly less) to pay for tutoring and mocks. Where I live, the outcome is pretty much the same except the prep offers more extra curricular actives, wrap around care and comes at a higher price tag.

If this is the case, the children going to the prep. will be very similar to those going to the local state primaries as the prep. is being used as a channel into the local state secondaries. In light of this, it is unlikely there will be any social issues as a result of attending the prep.

I think you need to decide what you want the outcome to be really. Perhaps a close examination of the leavers destinations, a visit to those schools you have short listed along with careful consideration of the added extras to warrant the higher cost will make the choice clearer.

You are right about the grammar school. There is just one and not enough places for everyone who wants one, therefore competition is very intense. The prep is probably not a "top" prep with public schools in mind, but the 11+ and grammar school is seen as the norm rather than the exception and it is highly regarded, though possibly some people consider it a bit snooty. I guess the social question was also in terms of if there is a significant cultural difference between state and independent it would be better to start as we mean to go on rather than have him get used to one and then try to move him.

DrCoconut as previously stated, the suitability of any school can only be ascertained by a visit to the school and clear understanding of what you want to get out of it.

Swapping between state and private will undoubtedly bring about complications due to the fact that they may follow a different curriculum.

Regarding the social differences, I think people often have the impression that all private schools are like Eton. I'm sure some are. However, given that some are now being used for streaming into Grammar, super selectives, semi-selectives etc., in this instance, there would likely be a very diverse cultural range. After all, you don't need to be rich or a snob to be academically focused.

Additionally, in areas where school places are in short supply and parents are not getting any of their preferences, private schools are often considered as the fall back option. This too is likely to result in a diverse cultural range.

Some people believe that private schools get much better results than state schools. However, some private schools achieve pretty mediocre or even dire GCSE and A level results as do some state schools.

To be honest, Im not sure getting a general insight into the pros and cons of state vs private is really going to help you decide what is best for your DCs.

Perhaps if you short listed the various schools you are currently considering, and perhaps ask for opinions on those specific schools, you may get the answers your are looking for.

We have two in mind. We plan to visit both and see what we think. The main reason for asking on here was because we don't really know anyone with a child in a private school. It's early days yet, he's due to start compulsory school Sept 15. I have a tendency to start thinking about things quite early.

This is not early to start looking around - only detailed visits to the schools around you will give you the answers you are looking for as every school is very different as is every family

Its not early to look at schools at all! I started to look for my eldest when he was 2, admittedly that was partly because we were moving and I only wanted to move into an area (of the same town) where I was happy with the school/s.
Do not be swayed by superficial things, do your budgets carefully. But do go by gut feel. What you want in a school for your child could be very different from what other people want for theirs (eg. are you for homework or think primary age are too young?).

THe headline fees may well be cheaper than the cost of childcare.

But you need to add it all up at this point. Will you need before or after school care? Does he prep offer it, is it included in the fees, if not how much? What holiday care might you need? (Prep holidays typically longer than state schools and play schemes etc will not necessary cover the additional weeks unless you're somewhere with a concentration of private schools) and how much is that? Have you checked how inclusive the prep fees are? (for example, are lunches and trips included - if not what is a typical termly spend)

And what are the current charges for after school activities (if they bring in a coach or other specialist provider, here will be a charge) and how do those compare to the going rate of other venues?

My ds is at prep school mostly because it worked out for childcare - before and after school care is included in the fees, and the vast majority of clubs are too. The school has holiday clubs each holiday (which is extra) using all the facilities.
Theres lots of 2 ft working parents at ours - neither dh or I have a private school background or anyone in our families