Any financial help available for gifted kids to attend private schools?

[Bibii]

DD is a gifted child from the age of 4 but because DD went to state primary schools he was dumbed down by the system but still managed to achieve level 5 in year 6. DD was offered a low-achieving state school which we rejected because we felt DD would crash out of education if he attended that school. DD did not get a school via the 11 plus exams because of late preparation. DD had no school to attend this September so we registered DD at a private school. DD received part scholarship for the tuition fees but I am not working at the moment so I still need some form of grant or sponsorship to pay the remaining tuition fees. Have any of you been in this situation and what support were you able to get?

Can someone explain what all this level 5 stuff is? What is the average level for that year? Confused.

I'd be surprised if any independent school gave much credence to SATs. They prefer their own entrance examinations, especially the non verbal and verbal reasoning, which give an indication of academic potential rather than attainment.

Hello
Thought I would tell you about my son as he has had quite a journey through state schools but has come through that to get a full scholarship to Eton!
He starts there in September in year 9 as part of their New Foudation Scholarship scheme which give 4 places a year to state educated boy. So there are some opportunities for very bright boys to get full funding in private education but you to have to plan in advance.
My DS was identified as gifted and talented ain reception and his primary education was on the whole excellent and he got good individualised input and in general didn't get too bored - he is for some reason (ie it is not because we hot-housed him at all!) a very able boy who has always loved learning and being challenged. Our local state secondaries have let him down though, he went to our local one in year 7 which has just been rebuilt ad rebranded as an acadamy but it failed its last ofsted and is now back in special measures! Then in year 8 he transferred to another state secondary which whilst much better did not recognise DS's abilities and did not put him in the top streams, at least this meant he was motivated to try and get the place at Eton.
I have to say that we thought it was all rather pie in the sky - that whilst it was worth having a go at that it was unlikely to actually happen. When DS and I were given the tour of the school/village last November we were bowled over by the facilities and level of care and education they provide. DS decided to go ahead with having a go at it and went through an initial test/interview and was then selected to go back for a weekend of tests and interviews back in January.
I have at times been quite nervous and worried about how DS will fit in and how I will cope with being an Eton Mum but we have been made to feel very welcome.
I realise this won't help the OP a great deal but if there are other Mums in a similiar situation out there and wondering what to do with their bright boys then this is worth considering!

There is nothing remarkable about getting level 5's at the end of year 6. 42% of children managed to gain that in our inner-city, 'dumbed down' state school.

I just did a quick Google and from what i can see about 1/3 of pupils gets level 5 on average.

The average for a child leaving year 6 is a level 4. Level 5 and level 6 is above average.

I agree OP's attitude towards her dc 's primary school is not good. Level 5 at the end of ks2 good is not extraordinary. Dd is level 4 c at the end of yr3 in her state primary school. She is gifted (and talented at the violin) & we feel she has been given plenty of opportunities to grow and develop at her school. She will work for her 11+ in a couple of yrs & will hopefully go to grammar school. There is a possibility of music scholarships, but I doubt we could to top one up. I think you would need to speak directly to the school.

Hello again, it seems the term I should be using is dh. I haven't said that my dh is highly gifted as has been quoted above. I merely said I was told that he was gifted by his teacher when he was 4 or 5 yrs old. I have not used that term at any stage in his further education as I felt it was for individual teachers to inform me. At 5yrs old my dh Did very extraordinary things when challenged academically. Without exposing my dh, generally he took a third of the time to accomplish tasks/challenges. He would read a letter/passage with numerals included in a couple of minutes and when the paper is removed dh would replicate the entire article word for word and with the same style of writing. Maybe a scientist would say that it is a function performed when a certain part of dh's brain is stimulated, I don't know. As for those who choose to bash me re finances, I have been a tax payer for over 20 years and although I am not in paid employment at the moment I do a lot of voluntary work helping mothers who are going through crises etc this takes up a lot of my time among other things.

DH is your husband. Think you mean DS (= son)

What he could do at age 5 isn't really relevant now. If he has a place at a private school and you can't afford the fees, the only source of help is the school itself. If you haven't spoken to them yet you need to call and ask to speak to the bursar on Monday and be prepared to give them as much information as they ask for about your personal financial situation (earnings, savings, property, monthly bills etc). But there is a strong chance that all their available bursary funds will already have been allocated at this late stage in the year.

Otherwise you will have to find a state school place for your son and do your best to support him to fulfill his academic potential.

Bibii, DH means your husband. Re your son, some good advice has been posted here and I suggest you take it.

On the information you gave originally, posters pointed out that level 5 is not gifted academically and very intelligent children would be likely to get into grammar school. Generally state schools do not make intelligent children fail.

I don't recall anyone bashing you re finances, but it is a matter of fact that the state does not generally subsidise children to attend private schools.

Pretty much everyone who lives in the UK is a taxpayer, anyone who spends, pays VAT or other indirect taxes, even if they are not working. Good on you for doing voluntary work and supporting other mothers.

Im not sure why you think being a tax payer is relevant?

I think OP misunderstood Sashh's post..

Thanks exexpat for correcting me on the dh term. Lemonpie, the state school teacher who said ds may be better in a private school said so because ds was way above his class mates at the time, very disciplined and eager to learn. Most of the kids in the class at the time were being disruptive and trying to draw ds in that direction. I don't feel I have a bad attitude towards state primary schools, I merely expressed my opinion in relation to my ds's experience which hasn't been very good. We all know most state school teachers, schools and heads work very hard for the children. Unfortunately depending on where you live the quality of teaching varies year on year coupled with periods with no headship, changes in heads, newly qualified teachers with inadequate support being given challenging classes, excessive use of supply teachers, the list is endless. yzzyy, your story is refreshing as it shows that not all the years of state schools are fantastic but you and your ds have been steadfast and come through ok at the end. I wish him all the best at Eton.

My DS1 is on level 5 at the end of Y5, not Y6. I wouldn't call level 5 at the end of Y6 'gifted' tbh. Just on the higher side of average... In my DS1's class of 31, at least 17 are expected to get level 5 at the end of Y6, and 4 of those are expected to get level 6 in the SATS.

And if you have no money (like me) and weren't preparing your DC for the 11+ from Y4, then you missed a trick, IMO.

I wouldn't for a moment assume that my DS1 would get to go to a private school where I can afford none of the fees. So I have been prepping him myself for the 11+ since the start of Y4. He sits the test in September, and is currently doing about an hour to an hour and a half each day. Through CHOICE. Mostly working on his weakest area, which is his comprehension, he is only a 5b in that currently.

His Maths we aren't worried about, he is teacher assessed as working on level 6 work, but when the G&T group go to the Secondary, he easily manages L7 work, and touches on L8. At the end of Y5, not Y6.

Why do you feel that you should get for free what others have to pay for?

"why do you feel you should get for free what others have to pay for" this arguement could be applied to all on bursaries especially those not attached to scolarships. Bursaries are available OK maybe big bursaries Into too schools are as readily available as even the schools would like but they are there and if the OP doesn't try for one and get one someone else will.

Its between you and the school isn't it - if they will discount the place to a level that you can afford then he can stay, otherwise he wont be able to.

I know I cant spell but the Mac seems to think it knows best!! Meant to say; OK maybe big bursaries into top school are not as readily available ...

God, it sounds really pretentious and braggy saying that DS1 is 'only' on 5b at the end of Y5. I didn't mean it like that, and if it makes anyone feel better, my 14yo DD with SN's is level 4 at the end of Y9.

Most private schools are staffed in the holidays. I would speak to the school and see what they can offer. If they can't offer anything then you need to find another school ASAP and the school you've accepted can then offer the scholarship to another child whose parents can meet the financial commitments. Fwiw it is always best to be totally honest in what you tell the school regarding the need for bursary support.

Ds is going to a new school with a 50% scholarship. The school advertises that a bursary is available to cover fees up to 100% but in practice this is never actually awarded (at least that is what the registrar told me and what the CC accounts show) due to the income requirements being so low.

The other thing to also consider is uniform cost. I've just spent £600 on ds's and I've still got about another £100 to spend. A lot of schools run good secondhand shops, which helps bring the cost down. However if I'd bought all I needed from the secondhand shop it would have still cost about £350.

Thank you everyone for your comments, I will act on the advice received. The whole experience is an eye- opener for me. I will come back and let you know of the outcome.

Hi Bibii. I see this post is old but I just wondered how you and your child got on? I’m sorry you had so many comments suggesting your child isn’t gifted. People don’t always know that gifted children can struggle with a regular educational format, due to a difference in learning styles. I hope you found support elsewhere, such as the High Learning Potential group. I also wanted to put this here for anyone else that Google’s this topic and comes across these comments, to reassure them there is help put there.

How do you know your child is high IQ? Have they been tested? High IQ and slapdash tend not to go together.

@Rustygecko this is a Zombie thread from 11 years ago. Mumsnet etiquette is that you only revive a zombie thread if you have very good reason to.