Private primary school to state secondary

[Purtyburty]

What are your thoughts on sending my child to a private primary school, but then to state secondary school? Our local state primary is not a great fit for our child for several reasons, plus academically it underperforms national average. It is a big primary school, and our DD being so timid and having not attended nursery as I am a SAHM, I don't think such a big setting would be good for her. There is a wonderful private primary close by which we visited and absolutely love. That being said, I don't think we could afford private secondary school as well, especially if we had a second child. Our local secondary school however has excellent results, outstanding ofsted report and we would be very happy to send her there.

The move will be a shock to your DC. Larger glasses. More people in general. Less facilities. Prob less after school clubs and support in general.

Plus they won't have friends.

If your child is now 3 or younger the primary and secondary can have new heads / more or less money. A school can go from outstanding to requires improvement in a few years. Things could change either way.

I went from private primary to state secondary. The primary school years are the key building block years.
For me it was because my parents were working abroad during my primary years. I then moved to an area with good state high schools. I think I probably had a head start on my meets in terms of my education.
I think the people that think the other way around makes more sense are the ones that think high school is all about making connections etc. which
i suppose has its own value. Depends what you want it for.

I think it depends on the area. In Scotland where I am, it's most common the other way around. The private schools take a large intake in P6/7 (upper primary) and S1 after kids stay at local primary school. That said, I see the logic. I've not been happy with my kids primary school (despite it being a 'sought after' school) snd DS has a tutor to keep up with the things he can't do at school due to his very distracting class. We are planning to send him private for secondary

I couldn't disagree more. Primary school is where a child learns the fundamentals for all their future education. It is where a love of learning needs to be developed and nurtured and where good habits can be ingrained. The opportunities that come from school and the confidence they get from this cannot be overlooked. With the current funding crisis in education, more able students are left to their own devices in the state system or to teach others.

As a PP said, more connections can be made in a secondary private school but academically, with a strong foundation, a child can thrive in a good state. Another consideration is that our prep fees are less than half of what state secondaries in our area charge - a massive jump when you have more than one child

Yes did it all all 3. As did lots of other people. No issues whatsoever, eldest 2 did brilliantly at GCSE as did eldest at A level. Middle moved back to private for 6th form due to wider subject choices and youngest looks set to do just as well and likely to stay for 6th form. Was prep to outstanding leafy comp. Not sure I would have done it for any of the other local schools.

We're doing this and it's not uncommon at all in our area.

About 50% of the year 6s at the private prep go to independent secondary, about 30% to state grammar and the rest to local comps. The prep does SATS and teaches an accelerated version of the National Curriculum (because of the need to cover the 11+ Maths).

As a pp says, the demographics of those comps aren't that different to the independents. Because you need to be able to afford to live within a mile of the school...

School facilities are very variable depending on age and location of school. The independents have showier stuff and are painted more often, but there are also state schools with good facilities (there's one near here with a full size theatre) and private schools on cramped historic sites with not great ones considering the cost.

I know people who’ve done it and been absolutely fine.

I think choosing private primary is money well spent - it gives them a good grounding in fundamentals and confidence because of additional opportunities for public speaking/performance etc. Arguably, it might offer greater advantages than private secondary.

For those saying they will have no friends going to secondary, others from the private primary may be moving to the same state secondary anyway (you can check secondary destinations with the private primary). Children at 11 often change friendship groups anyway. Mine had no friends moving from their private primary to our chosen secondary and has been absolutely fine. Also, moving from private to state will be no more of a shock than it is for pupils from small rural primaries with small class numbers.

Our private primary was actually a larger school than the local state primary. Even if they had gone to the nearest state secondary rather than private secondary, I feel that their private primary provided them with huge advantages compared with the state alternative.

A couple of things to bear in mind though. Firstly, fees are likely to increase substantially with VAT. Check the uniform cost and music lessons too. Having said that, plenty of private parents buy second hand uniform. Secondly, if I was moving to the state system, I’d do it at 11 and not 13.

@Comedycook i couldn’t disagree more. once children have reached secondary school age they are much less dependent on the school, they have the ability to create their own learning to a certain extend. in primary , they depend on the school, if the school doesn’t support a love of learning and/or already allows gaps in learning, even thr best secondary will have a tough job.

Do you think your shy child will cope moving from a small prep school to a large secondary?
Will her friends from primary be going elsewhere meaning she moves up on her own?
Academically it's easier to support a primary school child at home if you feel there are gaps.
I would be inclined to hold back on spending now in case you need to later.

I agree. Arguably, if you can only afford private primary OR secondary, primary might be the one to choose as it provides a solid grounding.

Do you think your shy child will cope moving from a small prep school to a large secondary?

Our two local prep schools are larger overall than most of the surrounding state primary schools. Admittedly the class numbers are smaller, but the private pupils have more experience of a larger school (playtimes/lunch/assemblies etc) than the state school pupils do. State pupils from small schools have to cope moving to large secondaries.

Will her friends from primary be going elsewhere meaning she moves up on her own?

Mine went to a secondary where none of their friends went and have been absolutely fine. Lots of children I know have done the same. It’s sometimes easier to move without a group of friends because it allows you to start afresh and forces you to mix with new people. Interestingly, the pupils I know with friendship problems at secondary tend to be the ones who moved with lots of people they knew.

It happens relatively often here but it tends to be kids who went to a private primary and went onto a grammar school (we have three within a reasonable commuting distance) so the environment/standards are probably reasonably on a par. Facilities etc might be a bit less but I don't know of any major problems.

I went from a small state primary to the local massive state comp. There were a few of us who moved there together and in my experience, the comp arranged things so we as separated as possible. Not a single lesson conducted together, no matter what permutation used, even if both in top sets, it was done in such a way that they were different first sets. I don't think this is any different.

Not sure if you are aware but in state primary they have PE and plenty of after school clubs that are mostly physical activities
Not sure where the notion of private education being more sporty comes from

@saltnpepper2000 Academically it's easier to support a primary school child at home if you feel there are gaps.

why?

@JustWingItLifeEyelinerEverything
As a non-teacher I would be more confident helping with primary level learning than secondary.

@morechocolateneededtoday
I'm not disagreeing with you - but these are the things that I would be considering in their position.
I know people that once in the private system find it difficult to leave.
All depends on the local area and the child.
If in doubt I would hold onto my money and give the local primary a try.

I would think completely opposite. Teaching experience and methodology is needed with primary kids as it is teaching them not only the educational content but also skill to learn and memorise.

In secondary school it is all down to the parent's education. If one parent is a scientist, he will be able effectively support a kid in quantitative subject and if the other is let's say journalist she will be able to support a child in qualitative subject.

Fair enough and if you have an excellent local primary or finances are limited, I agree. You make good points for considering

I don't agree so much with it being easier to support them with gaps in primary years - things are taught completely differently and I feel it is best for the professionals to teach the concepts. I support the school and help in any way I can but I would not be confident having to teach a concept to cover a gap

@morechocolateneededtoday
@JustWingItLifeEyelinerEverything

I guess what I mean is it's easier to do activities with younger children and read with them.

I agree that maths is taught in ways that I probably wouldn't understand at all levels 😂

Yes absolutely agree for EYFS, part of KS1 and reading throughout primary but my DC has been bringing home work that I often need to look up from Y2 and/or make sure I do not confuse them further with my explanations (and I am a medical consultant with more than 10 years experience so would call myself pretty well educated!)

Private schools generally employ specialist PE staff whereas state schools often don't. There are also more fixtures. It is a key metric that a lot of potential parents judge on whereas state schools may have good PE and clubs but much of it is down to what parents they have and what facilities there are at the school/keenness among the staff/desire to include DC whose families can't afford expensive PE kit and equipment, etc. It's much more variable and demographic-dependent.

My DD gets two full afternoons of sport a week which is absolutely not the norm in the state schools.

Ah I see, I know what you mean. Activities, definitely are easier with younger kids.
The older they are the more complicated is partnering in their playtime. I really have not that thing in me to join Minecraft 😔

I am European and I already tought my son many things that then had to be straightened up at school like that European 7 with the dash -

Or different way of writing division but...who cares. As long as he goes forward 🙈😃

secondary teacher here, no problem at all, I wouldn't even know which children have come from private without looking at their records - a good many do this.

I agree that if you can only fund a couple of years of private, that GCSE years are the best ones to fund though