Is Bute house worth it?

[Naqal22]

My DD has just been offered a place for reception via ballot at Bute which we are over the moon about however when I put her down we were only planning to have one child , now we are blessed with having another and financially we would be unable to put both of them in prep schools . Would it be harsh to put the second one in state until 7+ and until we may be in a better situation financially. Although paying £60000 a year is prob going to be impossible for us. We are also concerned that she will be the poorest one there which she most likely be… when I went to the open day most parents were decked up in designer gear and rocked up in Porsches and g wagons. Our alternative option is to send her to west London free which is outstanding state. Sorry to ramble on … but not accepting I feel I would be putting her at such a disadvantage and no ppl would kill for a ballot place ….any views or suggestions would be highly appreciated.

It doesn’t sound as if you can really afford private school for one, never mind two. Fees are likely to keep on going up.

From my life, the worst outcomes I have ever seen (emotionally not academically) were from two people who had to leave private school in their early/mid teens and go to state school at a vulnerable age due to financial pressures. I also think in general private primary school is worth less than private secondary, though I acknowledge the post 2014 curriculum has been generally a bad change for primaries.

Being the poorest at the private school isn’t great as it can lead to issues of the ‘my friends are all going to the British Virgin Islands, why can’t we’ type but is perfectly manageable imo.

Only my opinion!

Save your money for secondary school, for both children! No school is a guarantee to an elite private secondary school, it depends largely on the ability of your child. And if you cannot afford private primary for both, you should not do it. It is better and easier for kids to be in the same school at primary. Spend your cash on tutors and extracurriculars, if you must. Elite private secondary schools are not less likely to take from state primary, either. Plenty of them like to up their state school stats too.

I would send them both to a private prep I could afford, or send them both to the outstanding state primary. You can’t treat them differently ! How would you explain that to them later?

Outstanding state primary for both. Save up for private for both from either Year 7 or Year 9 entry.

I was a bit shocked at the fees. It's 3k more a term than the private prep my DD goes to.

Def don’t do it. Reconsider at 11

Lots of families in Bute tutor in academic, extra sport coaching and music outside school for 11+. So if you want both kids to go private, save for 11+. Some secondary schools have sibling discount, more generous bursaries and some scholarships gives large discount.

Bute house is pretty amazing and I'm envious you got a place in the ballot! But it does sound like it would be a struggle to afford it and that's just the reality. I think it's important to treat both dcs fairly so if you can't afford it for both then you can't really send dc1. WLFP is never going to quite match up, with the bigger class sizes, but it's a good free alternative and they'd be able to get into a good selective from there with tutoring, or continue to the senior school which is very good.

It is a great school, but not worth it in your situation. It is only worth it if you can comfortably afford it. Children there are also doing LOADS of tutoring, extra activities outside of schools, you would have to pay thousands more just to keep up (we have family in the school). Also, you can get into the top secondary schools from primary schools....just give extra support the year before. The main issue from primary is the lack of guidance for 11+ But you can figure it out (we did!)

Certainly not worth it if that means only 1/2 can go private, as it is much better to send both to a good state primary and use the money (10k) on extracurricular activities and tutoring for enrichment while saving money for private secondaries for both. At the end of the day, secondary education is more important even the costs are about the same and it is not more difficult to enter a top independent secondary from a state vs prep as long as you prepare ahead of time.

Bute or not, go for a solid state primary.

As Tony Blair said, if you face a constraint, save your bullets for when it matters the most.

It’s a good school – as most fee-paying schools are – but it doesn’t really live up to the hype once you’re inside. Lots of families join at 7+ with SPGS in mind, but in reality only about a quarter get there each year, and that’s mostly the heavily-tutored 7+ intake who continue all sorts of tutoring all the way. If you look at the 4+ ballot cohort, their 11+ results are very similar to any other solid prep.
Class sizes are 24, which is large for a private school, and they teach at national-curriculum pace. My girls were covering exactly the same maths topics and spellings as their friends in outstanding state primaries. Academically, there isn’t anything especially distinctive, and the school shares very little academic wise with parents until 11+ is looming – which is when many families get shocked unless they've been keeping a closer eye on things with other professionals' help. Asking anything about academics is treated as if you’re being pushy, which doesn’t help. They’re very firm about being a mixed-ability school, and that really is how they operate day to day. The result is that a lot of the higher-achieving girls end up getting their academic stretch outside school because they’re simply not challenged enough in the mixed ability classroom with no setting.
It’s worth considering if it’s convenient and you like the facilities, but I wouldn’t choose it for academic stretch alone.

I agree in that Bute is a leading feeder for St Paul’s Girls school, but that is mainly because of high expectations and tutoring of the parent community and girls natural intelligence rather than any “secret sauce” the school has. That is similar to a lot of the private girls preps. If you are that way minded then it’s worth it if you can afford it and if St Paul’s is your ultimate aim.

However, given your situation it’s doesn’t seem to make sense if you couldn’t send both to private. If you are alert to their progress and plan the 11 plus well, tutors etc you can also get to leading secondaries.

I second that the reputation and success of Bute is primarily attributed to its 7+ cohort, which is creamed off from other preps. Its 4+ is good, but not that different from other strong preps.

Don’t even consider it. You’re lucky to live in one of the best places in the country for outstanding state schools (my kids went to one about a mile away from the West London Free that wasn’t rated outstanding, but I thought it was). Private prep schools are a waste of time unless you’re super rich or have no decent state options. Save your money for holidays and activities and, if you insist, tutors. Lots of good state secondaries near you, too!

Quite a few Bute 7+ cohort came from West London Free.

That is really helpful, thankyou soo much and helps clarify our decision. A bit surprised at th class numbers considering WLF has 29 in a class. How do you find the parents? Is it generally a case of both working professional parents or super wealthy Russian /Chinese parents. When I went to the information day , that latter appeared to be the case , although I appreciate not everyone will take a place or get a place.

Hi, my daughter has been invited to an interview at Bute, and I was wondering if you have any insight into what to expect. I’ve heard from someone that they may ask some math questions, but their website describes the interview as a very informal chat.