Private for years 7-11 only

[Amberkitten7654321]

Would love advice on what people think is best use of money.

3 kids, currently years 5, 3 and 1 at a state primary school.

local state secondary is years 7-11 only and is really quite average with v big class sizes and very strict to try and control some preciously v bad behaviour. Some do fine there, but it seems the best case is “they’re fine” - I’ve never heard anyone say they love it!

local state 6th form college is meant to be brilliant - but large (circa 2k kids across 2 years). I’ve only heard good things if your kids can cope with the size.

we think that we can afford to do private for years 7-11, but would need to plan for state 6th form. The private school is about 45 mins bus ride away (vs 20 min walk to state). It’s very well rounded, not a hot house, and great facilities. About half of the students don’t stay for 6th form with many going to the excellent state mentioned above.

do you think it’s worth it for just those 5 years to then go back to state system? Would we be better off doing state years 7-11 and then a very good top private for 6th form?

to me the academics are not the draw - I know we can top up state with tutoring etc. it’s everything else which is important to me - smaller classes, great sports facilities, music, art, drama etc - and generally a love for school which I’m not sure they’d get at the local state.

but ultimately if they’re ending up at the same 6th form as their friends who did state and saved the money - do you think it’s worth it?

My DC both did Y7-11 at Private School after State Secondary
However, their school doesn't have 6th form so it was the norm for everyone to leave post GCSE
We have an excellent 6th form college tht most DC from that school go to, although some go to others and some go to another Private school.
DD would have chosen to leave at 16 I think but DS would happily have stayed
DD is at Uni now and says that 6th form college set her up nicely for that

At any stage it is a question of what sort of quality of life each child will have at any school. Parents don’t owe their children heaven on earth, but you can use your judgement to assess where they’ll be offered the greatest opportunities, broad horizons and positive adventure. (They’ll have a long time to look back on their childhoods!) For some that can be achieved within the state system - for others paying for an independent school is the best way to get what they want for their child.

A word of caution: if you’re planning to pay, I would strongly advise investigating more than one school. In fact I would suggest thoroughly vetting the websites of at least a dozen comparable schools before deciding your nearest one is the best option. It might not be.

And remember it is not guaranteed that one school will work for all your children. Look at them as individuals.

You've said the state 6th form is perfectly good and the secondary not so good so why would you send them to private 6th form and state secondary?

7-11 are the perfect years to go to private school.

It's better to be at a state 6th form imo as it prepares students better for university.

The years 7-11 question is worth taking seriously on its own terms. The social foundations built in those years — friendships, confidence, how a child learns to navigate a new environment — tend to matter more than people expect and are harder to replicate later. A child who spends those years somewhere they genuinely thrive often arrives at sixth form in a very different position to one who just got through. The academics are almost secondary to that. I post more on the transition side of this at @boardingschoolguide if it helps.

My son has been in private school for very specific reasons since Y1 - it was never the plan. He is now in Y13.

My friend’s daughter was also in private up to Y11. She’s now at the enormous 6th form college. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea and some students have left DS’s private school, gone to the college for a few weeks and then returned to the school (it has an integrated 6th form). However she is thriving and is predicted straight A stars. She and my DS both have offers to the same RG university plus others. Her grades will be better than my son’s.

My cousin’s boy did state all the way through until private 6th form. He is now at the same RG uni that my DS and friend’s DD have offers for.

So they’ve taken different paths and could all end up at the same uni. I don’t regret spending the extra money for a second. We can’t easily afford it but we have a complicated home life and my DS’s private schooling has given him so much more than just education.

If your child is capable A levels then state sixth form will be fine. A level students want to be there (unlike maybe half doing GCSEs) and the sixth form will likely insist on a minimum grade at GCSE in chosen subjects to cope with A levels.

for our family it's not about the grades as much as the atmosphere during the early teen years.
yes in life they will end up at college and university with others who have attended local schools/international schools or even home school that's not the point.
we're hoping for a gentle atmosphere, kindness and understanding, so no bs about uniform/kit/chatting or (only experienced on mn) access to toilets, daily sports and solid pastoral care.
inner city, overcrowded school with draconian rules not our style, but equally rural remote small school where everyone knows each other and teachers are like extended family (or even in the case family) is equally okay.

This is really helpful thank you. I agree years 7-11 form so much of your self confidence as a kid, and being in a more supportive environment could change a lot. My eldest is v bright but also isn’t often that challenged where he is now and still does well, so enjoys to coast. I think on the state secondary he’d do fine, but wouldn’t push himself, but in a diff environment he could really fly with the right support.

it also isn’t financially easy for us, so is a big decision - and I was worried it was a bit of a halfhearted attempt just doing 7-11 and we’d miss the full
benefit but sounds like general consensus is it would still be incredibly valuable if it was the right place.

I was in private education for these years , and am so grateful for that time, particularly as the early teens are SO formative.
I benefitted so much from the smaller classes, the opportunities, the nerdy well-behaved friends and even the feeling of being somewhere special - I really attribute my own confidence & adult successes down to those years.
I don’t think I would have thrived in a state secondary, as I was bullied in state primary and was fast losing self-esteem. State sixth form wasn’t brilliant but was OK, and manageable as everyone is older and wiser.

This is so wonderful to hear and has really given me the push I need to try and make this work! I’m sure they’d be “fine” at the local state but if we have an opportunity to make them more than fine then I really want to take it!

This really depends on the private school you have in mind, but most private senior schools are from Years 9 to 13, though some do start at Year 7 (often girls schools). If it is a school that starts in Year 9, that could mean joining a prep school in Year 7 that would be a feeder into your target senior school for years 9-11.

Which would also be a good plan, though if the senior school you have in mind is at all selective you may consider moving your DCs to the prep in Year 6 to allow the school a bit longer to help them prepare for ISEB pre-tests (on line tests) which would then be taken in the autumn of Year 7.

Private schools are also set up to directly assess children coming from state schools at Year 9, but if you did go to a private prep from Year 7 then they would probably just expect them to sit the pre-tests, so better for them to be prepared. Lots of children joined my DS's prep in Year 6 for just this reason.

The particular one we’re looking at is co ed and has its main intake at year 7. They do have a “prep” but they call it senior school from year 7. About 50% of the intake at year 7 is from state school, with a small extra intake at year 9 from nearby proper preps. It’s not a super fancy elite school, and although they get v good results it’s much more about the co-curriculars and sport which is a huge draw. I also like the fact a lot will have come from the state system, and also that a good % go back to the state system for 6th form as it means we won’t feel like the outliers.

what you’ve commented has given me pause for thought when looking at other schools which only accept from year 9 onwards. Thank you

I wouldn't think you need to feel like outliers and please don't let my previous post give you pause for thought. There are more VWs than Bentleys in the car park at the vast majority of private schools and I would say children of the military is probably the largest single group at many schools, especially those that prioritise boarding.

My daughter did private for years 7-11 and then grammar sixth form. She had such a lovely time at the private school, loads of extra curricular, no strict rules, even uniform was fairly relaxed, made lovely friends and had lots of support. They weren't tied to the national curriculum, they often had days off curriculum, there were more trips and nice things happening than at my son's school (which was a good grammar). It was definitely worth it for her quality of life during those years. I've no doubt she'd be in the same place now (RG uni) with roughly the same grades, but that wasn't the main reason for sending her there.

My son's school was really good, I always speak very highly of it, but the site was much smaller and more cramped, they didn't have anywhere near as many of the nice extra curriculars on option (historical re enactment, ultimate frisbee for example!), they only had a rushed 35 minutes for lunch where they had to eat standing up or squeezed into the tiny dining room. Dd was able to sing/dance with friends in the many practice rooms during her one hour and 10 minute lunch hour, or go to one of the 100 or so clubs. The had lovely green grounds to roam in. These are all first world luxuries but if you can afford it - they can make for a really lovely few years.

I went private secondary incl 6th form but lots did leave for state 6th form. Those had got ok gcse so b-c and then got not great alevels.
My 14yo is y9 at a state the issues
—bullying
—majority of kids are just not nice. (Whereas at primary they had been ok
because of the bad behaviour there is a room to send kids to who arent behaving and in y7 that was 1-several kids per lesson!
-mine needs extra exam time and having raised that since y7 they may or may not be now looking at it but literally no guarantees despite adhd diagnosis
my kid had 110+ on all sats but is getting current grades of 5 for eng, 6 for maths but only 4-5 for geo or history

So the grades maybe ok — to go to 6th form however the problem then is your really need 6 and ideally 7+ for the subject you want at alevel.
We get homework but— none in 2.5 years has been marked AND returned. So they are not learning from mistakes. (Maths is on an app so not an issue). Homework is also haphazard we hardly get any english. MFL we get maybe every 2 weeks. Mostly spellings. Almost no grammar.
About 50% of homework is just revising for topic tests. No end of year exams.
Until this year the last 2 or so days of xmas term and summer term were films…

I dont know if i would go private but i would get tutors for the subjects they might do at alevel and maths and eng if needed.
State would be ok if the kid is self motivated

Private 7-11 would be the way to go. Those are the formative years and your children will get the most benefit. State for 6th form will be fine after that.

We are doing private for years 7-11. We might stay on in the private system after year 11 but that would depend on scholarships/bursaries.
We live in an area with exceptional state primary schools, mediocre secondary schools and a brilliant 6th form college.
Id say that a large percentage of the parents at LOs private senior school plan to do the same. The local 6th form has a reputation for taking on children from a few surrounding private senior schools.

Thank you that is reassuring to know! I didn’t grow up in an area where 6th for college were a thing - all states went through to 6th form hence why it felt a bit weird at the start to chop and change but it seems a lot more common than I thought.

I would disagree with your assertion that "most" private senior schools don't start at Y7. A small number of very traditional public boarding schools start at Y9 and a few more start at Y7 but have large intakes from prep schools at Y9. Nearly all (or maybe all, I've not encountered one that doesn't) private day schools have their main senior intake at Y7.

I went to a huge sixth form college, lots of us went on to Oxbridge. It was the best two years of my education!

Where I live/teach now, it’s all Y7-13, we don’t have separate sixth form provision for A-levels. I think it’s a shame in some respects.

Yes I’m beginning to think it could be amazing for the kids. It they’re in a supportive place years 7-11 and get a solid foundation and confidence and enthusiasm for learning, then get to really start their independence t a 6th form college, and then are really well set up for university should they want to go. I went to a private secondary with 6th form and I’ll admit university was a bit of a shock - no one handing everything to me on a plate?! I felt so immature compared to my peers and I’m not sure it did me any favours in the long run.

I guess we both speak from our own experience. My own is not based on a "small number" of schools but I am not suggesting yours is either. The important thing is that the OP is aware that this is something where schools do things differently and that they may need to take that into account depending on the school they choose.

My parents did this. I loved primary school, but was horribly bullied at the private secondary and didn't fit in. My parents moved me to another private school (bigger posher one) and the bullying was even worse.

I was determined my children would go to the local comprehensive at 11 years old, with majority of their primary school friends, making the transition easier. No regrets.