We live on outskirts of London and are looking at the private schools in our general area for our DD when she starts reception.
Two of the schools that I really LOVE the look of would be a 20 min drive in OK traffic, realistically more like 30-40 (max) in rush-hour traffic.
WE have no other children and are not planning any so I wouldn't be concerned about dragging another younger child on the school run. Also I work from home so although my time is precious it's not like I HAVE to be in an office at a certain time of the morning or worrying about getting away from work in time to make it for pick-up.
However... is that a pretty daunting commute, given that we are in London area, for a very young child? I was always driven about 30 mins to school at that age but that was because we lived in the middle of nowhere and EVERYTHING was a long drive away, so no choice.
There are a couple of schools I like less that would be more like a 5-10 min drive, maybe a max of 15 in absolutely awful traffic. But I like them less. They are not particularly spectacular schools; the ones that are further away are really terrific.
Also I have to think, I guess, about things like friends - if your friends are all a 30-40 min drive away, maybe even more if they come from the other side of the school, does that mean you don't get as much of an out-of-school social life as you need, eg after-school playdates, weekend parties etc - or are you just ALWAYS in the bloody car...?
We can't move closer to the amazing schools as we can't possibly afford it!!
So really the question is - amazing school but hellish commute, or fine school with easy commute?
I am aware of how tired 4, 5, 6 year olds get after a long day at school and would hate to do anything that would eat into time just mooching at home after a hard day.
WWYD?!