Prince George at Eton

[squashyhat]

Can anyone explain why Prince George is boarding at Eton when the family home is just minutes away across the river?

Thank you for this reply & sorry to hear about the medical issues your family has had. So can I ask, do you mean it would have been the best thing for your daughter at age 16, with or without the medical emergency? Or do you mean, looking back, you should have done it when she was younger? And is it the facilities for sports and hobbies that makes it better than being at home? Or something else?

really can't think of anything that I'd let my kids leave home & not see me for weeks for before they were late teens
@Puffinsandcoffee
As pp have pointed out they don’t go ‘weeks’ without seeing their parents. There are regular exeats, matches where parents come and watch and I used to have tea with my ds most weeks.
Obviously this may not be the case for boys from overseas.

There's been various reasons given already on the thread for him plus many other people choose to do this for a variety of reasons. Not everyone's lives afford the 9-5 routine. I know many children who have boarded because of jobs and location. I live opposite a private school and there are many different type of parents there from Taiwanese who want their children's English and education to be upgraded to a well known dare I say infamous parent. It's very normal to some.

That's an interesting alternative opinion but one I disagree with. Every child is different and some will relish Eton and some, possibly, won't settle. It sounds, and I don't mean this unkindly, as though you would keep your children close until adulthood mainly for your benefit without considering what's in it for them. I don't think George (and most children) would suffer being an unhappy boarder in silence - his mother was moved to a different school so I'm sure W&K would do the same if necessary.

OK sorry I've not read all the posts in detail, but the thing I was getting at is that it seems like "opportunities" is a big reason? And I don't understand that - I was just saying, I don't think I share those values, because I can't think of any opportunities I'd let my kids accept at the cost of living with me, until they're older. I get that e.g. diplomats/ military etc their kids get a bit more stability in their friendships if they go to boarding school. But the royals have all the time and money in the world, and sending their kid to boarding school makes me think: I don't have the same values as them. I'd rather my kid was a bit less fluent in Latin or a bit crap at rugby/ cello/ etc. or didn't get a really important job, and just spent his childhood hanging out at home with his family and mucking about with his friends, in our garden. I want him to have an education and get a good job and have nice friends, but all of that he can get while still living at home.

Oops ! Many apologies! Wrong poster.

Yes, she would have gone at 14 instead of 15 as we are in the USA and high school is 4 years 14-18.

Knowing what I know now, that she is thriving there academically and socially, and the school is amazing - we are incredibly privileged to have a grandparent funding it.

I also seem to spend as much quality time with her as I did before (even before the medical emergency) as by the time she started high school she was out of the house from 7am to 5.30 for school 5 days a week, with sports and hobbies would catch 20 mins with her for dinner before homework and bed. Then weekends she wanted to hang out with friends or do hobbies etc.

Now as she's having fun with her friends all week, we do a lot more quality time together on the weekends when she comes home which is almost every week. Terms are much shorter and vacations longer too. And the school is very welcoming so it's okay to pop over and deliver something after classes, pick her up for doctor and dentist appointments etc.

I had no experience of private or boarding schools so I wouldn't have realised how amazing some of these schools are, and of course I'm lucky that DD is a really good fit for this particular school.

Oh definitely in part for my benefit, absolutely! But I also definitely consciously consider it to be for their benefit too, to be with their family until they're adults (and, in fact, near their family in adulthood too). I think there are huge benefits to that, for my kids. Not great opportunities in terms of learning or careers, I do recognise that - they're not going to be concert pianists or diplomats. But other benefits, I think.

Thank you for responding. Sounds like this has worked out so well for you all & that's really nice to hear. Her high school days sound very long - maybe I'm in for a shock when my kids are in secondary school!

Can I also ask does your daughter have siblings? Do they go to the same school and get to spend time together? Really grateful for your answers btw & that you don't seem to feel judged as I don't mean to be judgy at all. It's just a different world for me (there are no privately educated anyones in my family, and no grandparents with the funds for it either 😂)

I think most parents feel like that.
And most parents take jobs to fit their families.

As can youngsters who go to boarding schools. It's very individual but there are indeed life benefits in networking like this too.

So George is in a similar position to my daughter (only in this one regard!) that his school is so close to home that he will see his family ALL the time.

The longest I didn't see DD was three weeks at the start of the term where they ask everyone to stay at school to get into the swing of the routines. After that I hardly went longer than four days without seeing her, and if you add in sports matches, parent days, popping in to deliver something, school events, picking her up for medical appointments it felt like she was never away.

George like William will probably do regular days home to visit his grandfather, see his parents for school events, private schools are always adding in these little holiday days you don't get in state schools - it's quite annoying on one hand as we are paying a FORTUNE for her to hardly be there!

She has much older half siblings who have their own homes so is effectively an only child - she's my only one. The separation is definitely much harder on me than her - she's very social.

Could you explain - "as can youngsters who go to boarding school" - I didn't understand what that referred to? Did it refer to me saying my kids can have an education and get a good job and have nice friends, while still living at home?

And also "networking" - what does that mean in this context?

Thank you - again, I'm curious, not judging.

I think families make choices depending on finances, circumstance and the child involved.

There Is no right or wrong answer here. Too many variables.

Today? I saw a happy and relaxed looking young man starting a new school.

I am fairly sure that his happiness will be paramount to W&C and they will act accordingly.

Boarding is not for everyone but there are many aspects of it that would be beneficial to young people.

I would have loved it. I found that kind of environment slightly later in life. It shaped me in ways I would never have believed.

Really ? Most parents take jobs to suit their families? I guess that does happen. It depends what your thoughts and ambitions are . Do I need to be there at 8 am and 3 pm everyday ? Do I go for this promotion or job abroad to improve the family finances? There are generations of people who did not have that option or didn't want to settle for a mediocre life and wanted to improve their life. I'm watching the 7 Up documentaries just now and so many of these points are addressed in that as well as the topic of boarding school.

If William becomes King in the next five years it will be far less disruptive to his children's lives if they are in boarding school.

3 weeks sounds so long. 4 days also very long, but then my kids are much younger than your daughter. I can imagine once they're 16 a few days with not much contact wouldn't feel so bad. But then, they've barely had a night away from me since birth so just not having them in their beds would feel weird to me. Maybe I'll feel completely different when they're teens.

I have to confess that my kids have plenty of little holidays they don't "get" in state schools, because I just take them out 😂

And yeah, you must miss her so much! And that she's probably having a great time with her pals.

These are the times I’m actually glad I am not posh and super wealthy. Kids go soon enough at 18 can’t imagine sending them away at 11. Even if they would be fine ( debatable) I wouldn’t be.

Yes you are correct with your first point.

Networking - there's obviously going to be advantages in mixing with various people. These connections last eg in Old Boys or Old Girls Sports activities and don't do any harm once careers start.

Like you Mary, I’m not sure it is that simple. I think most parents can’t afford to be that fussy when it comes to jobs.

Some may be able to have that luxury. Most I think would not.

You’ll get used to it - they’ll have school trips and things to ease you into it!

I actually think this has been good for me because it’s likely she’ll be at a university much further away in 2 years and I’d have had to go cold turkey for ten weeks.

I’m practicing letting go!

Thank you for replying. I know kids who board could get what my kids get by staying at home: an education, a good job, nice friends. I don't fully see why other parents don't chose that/ what the cello/ rugby/ Latin. Or - I get that people say opportunities etc, but I don't know why that matters so much. That's the bit I just don't share at all. Why the royals, with so many options, don't just want to hang out in their beautiful home and garden with their beautiful children. That's what I'd do.

On the networking, yeah, totally agree there's advantages mixing with various people, including people below a certain income bracket (different advantages maybe?) Once you have a fee that's more than a lot of people's yearly salary, you're cutting out the vast majority of people so it will be a less diverse mix of people (though prob a more useful mix from a career perspective, I can see that). I'd also say there are advantages to mixing with people of all ages from your own community too - the wisdom of elders or something like that? Boarding seems to be a lot of mixing with people roughly your own age, plus the teachers?

Hey, I don't disagree with lots of what you've said here - not everyone had or has the option to take a job to suit their family - but nobody has a "mediocre life".