Westminister - HENRY

[SheHasArrived]

I would just like some validation on how much Henry’s are spending on Westminister education (% of earnings). We are applying for 4+ so it’s a matter of many years. We are comfortable with private school fees but it appears that Westminster is 1.5 times others. I’m just trying to get a sense of professional working parents who have children in WUS. Could you please anonymously share your family income?

Westminster is mostly unaffordable for HENRYs now. They simply added 20% VAT to their already high fees and their fee increases year-on-year are pretty scary too. There is better value to be had elsewhere.

A mid-HENRY household with one child might be able to pay but anything beyond that gets unaffordable.

There's a major disconnect in people's minds between what things cost and how much you actually need to earn net of taxes and expenses to actually afford these things.

There's a separate board for HENRY's on some forums, Reddit for example, on which you might get some sympathy but not many on Mumsnet are going to understand or care.

@itsnotfairisit depends now you want to treat the acronym? If it’s High Earner Not Rich Yet-S then it would be HENRYs?

Or if you’ve decided that Henry is a noun then yes, probably 1 Henry, 2 Henries. But beside the point!

@SheHasArrived I think if you have one child it’s just about affordable, but would be more comfortable to wait until a later entry point, with more savings in the bank.

You will likely be a scraper and your child will be subject to catastrophe if one of you becomes ill/loses their job. In my opinion an independent education needs five years of fees and the ability to move out a tiny bit or downsize in the event of emergency. That’s what we did.

Four year olds need love, security, encouragement of flexibility and breadth and depth of experience rather than prestige schools with high price tags. Money is better spent later on when it’s supply is not secured.

For perspective, when DS started a high performing Indy aged 8, the fees were a shade under £8k, when he left they were a shade over £20k. Add 20% for lunches, extra books, exam fees, trips, sports equipment and possibly the school coach.

My school bill is around £96k this year, excluding GCSE fees. I’ve been considering moving my son to KCS after his GCSEs, or possibly to another school. WS doesn’t feel worth the cost anymore.
I earn roughly £100k and have been funding my children’s education at WUS and WS on my own. We live fairly modestly and don’t spend like many families do. That said, we’re in a relatively comfortable position compared to some, as we’re debt-free and have no mortgage—unlike many at WS.
I wouldn’t recommend starting at WUS at 4+. It’s a complete waste of money in my view. The school’s management seems disorganised and is now asking parents to fund new projects! They have no defined plan for 4+, or 7+ coed for that matter, other than the beautiful (pricey) new uniforms. It’s far wiser to save the money for later, if you decide to go down that path.

Thank you ! Is 96k price of one child - your son for 11+? That’s crazy!
my son’s current fees is about 17k a year at 4+ which we can comfortably afford with mortgage. It is one of the top prep schools but not the 14 foundational ones.
my biggest challenge with WUS is the fees is more than 2x and the confusion around 4+ co ed and more.
I’m leaning onto the decision of continuing in the current school level - if he cracks Westminster and is academically so inclined we will make it happen.

What are the 14 foundational prep schools? I haven’t come across this before.

How are you funding £96,000 in school fees on a £100,000 salary?

How many children is that and how is it split?

What was your financial situation when you began on this journey?

The numbers are crazy…!

Hi @WSMama ,
96k a year is crazy! The senior school fees for 13+ day students are 46k as published on their website.
How come the spending doubles? Is it due to after school activities, trips, uniform etc? Still struggling to understand how those could double the price. We are considering the school, but if the fees published are not realistic, it will be good to know now and move somewhere else! Happy to chat over private message if you prefer

@WSMama It will be great to get your response and happy to private message. @Charlieinthesun How old are your children? Maybe we are in the same boat.

She says children’s so probably two sets of fees

Possibly. As on website it shows inclusive of VAT. Still 46k is not less. WUS is about 55% more expensive

@SheHasArrived - we have one at the moment doing 7+. The second one is a baby and soon going to nursery, so a realistic view on fees and spending is key.
Also, being a key development age between 7 and teenage years, I'd prefer one school that DS could make friends along the way and not have to do new ones now and change school later and start all over again.

What’s a respirated private school?

WUS don't have much on wrap-around care which dual working parents value. So budget for au pair or nanny as well. No coach service either. My impression from seeing others at 7+ exam that WUS is not for families where both parents have to work for living.

Sorry haven't checked since my post!! £96k for two. Both were at WUS before WS. After 20% VAT, they increased fees again in July by over 5%. Ruthless management, w a lack of empathy for struggling parents (we are fortunately, not in that boat, yet). I make HUGE sacrifices to have made this possible for the children. Many have, and will be leaving after GCSEs. Not sustainable, even w all that debt parents are accruing atm. It's not this school that gets results; it's the pupils' dedication. Good luck to you all-

Typo for respected?

Not being funny, but for that kind of money you could hire a really experienced primary school teacher full time and find a friend or two and have private tuition plus all the museums and activities on offer all over London. There comes a point where school fees at primary school are so ridiculous, doing it yourself may make more sense.

Yes !

If you are a HENRY, I would think about what sort of salary trajectory you are currently on. When we started at a prep with DD1, my husband was a VP level banker but we were pretty sure he would make it to MD. If not, we knew we could move areas and go state if we needed to, but to me it was more important to spend the money on her education and not on expensive holidays / cars / lifestyle creep expenses.

I knew I wanted one more kid but not three so also factored that in. Finance and banking salaries tend to have such angles of trajectory that what seems like a big expense now might be smaller as the years go on.