Prep school vs state primary

debecca

I am a maths teacher and have worked in both. I would think for primary a good state school would do just fine but think carefully about sending your son to a state secondary school, the standards can be appalling, even if rated well by Tossted!

inkie

For most people, the issue of affordability precludes them for even thinking about this for their child. Therefore if cash is not an issue - then i would go for it - class sizes being one of the advantages.

Savvy_Sue

Depends on the schools. There are good and bad prep schools out there, but if there's a local one which would suit your child, then it may be worth considering, especially if the local state primary isn't up to much. But the discipline problems can be huge, because the head is so worried about offending parents - because parents pay the fees!

My boys ended up at state primaries which a lot of people didn't rate, but they did very well there: the schools were happy to stretch my lads in the areas they were good at, and didn't just treat them as average because it was the easy option. My nephew was moved from state primary (in a different area) to private because the school just wouldn't accept that he was anything other than average.

clairehi

I think you should go and look round a few state and independent schools in your area and see what you think of them, ignoring the fees aspect.

IMO it depends a lot on the child, and you have to find a school that suits them, whichever sector its in. I have personally experienced both state and independent schools, and its not black and white - private schools are certainly not exclusively filled with the pony club set.

We have specifically moved to our current area in Herts because of the fantastic state educational provision through from foundation stage to A level, the OFSTED reports are glowing but perhaps more importantly we got good vibes from the schools when we visited.

I have no objection to paying for private school if we needed to although I am aware that it will be easier for DS 1 and 2 to get a university place coming from the state sector as universities are trying to reduce the proportion of students from independent school.

Jazzycat

cannyscot wrote:

PRIVATE
FOR
high achieving with little parental input.

State
Against
Needs more parental input

Its a shame you see it this way. I personally see parental input as a good thing

Imelda

Hi,

I am interested in this topic as I am a product of state school education but think I have done pretty well out of it.
I ended up at UCL, gaining a 2:1 in Classics (my parents didn't even know what this was and still lots of people think it's either music or english literature, lol!) and I now work in banking in the City. At uni I was the only one from state school, most people were from Harrow, Eton, Rugby etc and at work I am the only one in a team of 8 that went to a state school (I am also the only female), the only perceptable difference are our accents!(I'm from sowf London).
I think that I have always been a keen learner and would have done well wherever I was educated, your son is lucky that you can afford to chose whichever school is best for him but I wouldn't rule out a state school.

ruthyjo

I think a lot depends on the private school available. My sons in year 6 and 5 (i.e. nearly eleven and nearly ten) have just moved from a small state first school to a competitive entry prep school. They are not at a disadvantage academically to the other boys who have been their since age 7. Both have been put in the top stream for their year (three classes per year) and are already coming in the top few children in the class.

Both have learnt french in the state system, been swimming once a week since year three, competed in sport etc, because thwy attended a state school that was committed to giving them those opportunities. When they took the entrance exam for the prep school both came top in their respective years, although they were competing against children from small local prep schools, who in a lot of cases had also had extra tuition. The fees are approx £6,500 per year (this is oop North) so we have saved around £70000 by using the state system upto now.

That said I am really happy with what they are getting now and relieved they won't be going to local secondary schools. I think many state primary schools are good - it's a secondary school where behaviour issues etc start to come out and children get turned off learning etc. My daughter age 4 has just started a state primary school although she could have travelled to the pre prep near to her brother's school. However at four I don't believe she is ready for the formality of that setting or the long day it entails. If there are deficiencies in what the school teaches her or in extra curricular activities I can make good on those at home. She is gaining local friends from a variety of backgrounds, being allowed to play, not dressed up in kilt and boater or similar and I think getting a much more relaxed start to school.

BTW OP - I think you should be saving more than £25 a month for your child if you earn a six figure sum. That won't go anywhere near helping them through university and it's not even all the child benefit!

Mrs_pbradley936

Yes I have some experience of this topic. When my son was due to start school we lived in London and the state schools were 30 odd to a class. A local fee paying school had 12 to the class plus a teaching assistant. It was a no brainer. However time went by and we moved to Hertfordshire, the state schools there are great so we moved him and saved ourselves a fortune. He sailed through GCSEs, A Levels and university. You have to look at the social mix of the other children and if they are surround by adults who work and have mortgages you will be fine. When we lived in London the adults in the children’s lives did not value education and had no aspirations. I think this is what Fiona Miller means when she touts Redbridge as a great area for schools.

emg

I agree that it seems more important at the secondary stage of education - but this is so much more expensive to pay for privately. My thoughts would be to find a nice state primary and start putting money away to save up for a good private secondary school.

slonik

I think going to a local state primary school is a good way for a child to make lots of friends in the area where they live, with whom they can play in the evening/weekends etc. State schools tend to have a local catchment area, where as private schools take children from a wider area and they may not have any classmates near by. Once the child goes to a private school, it may be much harder to make friends with the state school kids. Even if they only interact with a certain type of people in later life, it's important to be ABLE to find common ground with all sorts of people.