Private school vs state school

kendun

Thank you Debbie,Naf and Sammy,
I think I'll start saving for private schooling

Mado

Sammy85 wrote: »

I am a firm believer that it is the parent that has a larger influence on their childs education than the school.

I couldn't agree more.
And this drives the self perpetuating circle; parents who care do support their children's learning and attitude to learning and these children tend to do well at either type of school.

balletshoes

Mado wrote: »

I couldn't agree more.
And this drives the self perpetuating circle; parents who care do support their children's learning and attitude to learning and these children tend to do well at either type of school.

I agree with this too - my parents always drummed into me that they expected me to do my best at all times at school (state primary and secondary). I achieved exam results which would easily have got me into university.

I have instilled the same expectation in my daughter, also going to state school.

Another consideration may be, as you children get older, is that they may have no wish to continue in further education once their formal education has finished (even though I liked school I had absolutely no interest in going to uni, I wanted to be out working).

whitewing

A lot depends on the child's personality.

I would save for private school, consider a good grammar school (assuming the child passes the entry exam) and consider a decent secondary school. If you have the money available you will be able to make the right decision at the right time.

Academically bright children can get scholarships that will pay a proportion of the private school fees. In our area some children who were top of their state primary were not offered a scholarship for secondary school, which came as quite a shock to their parents because they were used to their child being outstanding.

Also, be aware that if a child goes to a state school for primary, they may not want to leave their friends to go to a private secondary. Children won't necessarily be grateful for the opportunity. DS started at a private school for year 5, and that was good as his year 6/7 transition was very smooth for such a shy person.

The private schools in our area are all very different to each other, so you really do need to go to some open days.

property.advert

Debbie_A wrote: »

Hi Kendun,

I am a teacher and I have worked in both the state and the independent sectors. One of my children is in an independent school; the other two are in state schools. So I see both sides.

From my experience there is more variation within the sectors that there is between them. Good well-resourced schools with excellent teaching exist in both sectors. There are also dreadful independent schools just like there are dreadful state schools.

What you should do is choose the very best school for your child. If you are fortunate enough to have the means to pay fees then you will have more choice. Those who do not have the means are generally restricted to the state sector, though many independent schools offer bursaries and scholarships ... though these can be very competitive.

Good luck!
Debbie

This is exactly my findings from my research.

In the end, I made the decision to move out of the city to a place with the very best of public schooling from age 4 to 11 and near the very best from 11 to 18.

I could have signed up for private education but could not guarantee being able to afford it for 14 years at ten to twenty grand a year minimum. The very top places are over 30k a year and when you add in additions, are likely costing you 100k a year before tax.

I'll revisit it in a few years but best guess is that we'll move again if necessary and keep the half million or so school costs to fund our pension / mortgage etc.

Naf

thegirlintheattic wrote: »

I am giving generalities and my experience, it does depend on school and student, as I said.

Absolutely. I was just giving mine; not to suggest you're wrong, just my experience where it differed, or agreed with yours.

heretolearn_2

Are you sure the local grammar schools are fee-paying? Grammar schools are part of the state system and do not charge fees.

* I googled the two you mentioned. They are private (independent) schools that have 'grammar' as part of their name, confusingly, but they are not 'grammar schools' per se.

If you carry on looking there are several normal, state, grammar schools in the Manchester area.

thegirlintheattic

heretolearn wrote: »

Are you sure the local grammar schools are fee-paying? Grammar schools are part of the state system and do not charge fees.

* I googled the two you mentioned. They are private (independent) schools that have 'grammar' as part of their name, confusingly, but they are not 'grammar schools' per se.

If you carry on looking there are several normal, state, grammar schools in the Manchester area.

I think the OP's 'grammar school' is just the name of the school not the type of school.

aliasojo

whitewing wrote: »

A lot depends on the child's personality.

Without doubt.

I very much believe my youngest would benefit hugely from a private education whereas I didn't believe this to be the case with my eldest two.

My youngest is very interested in Japan, it's culture, it's people etc. (One of my cousins teaches English in Japan.) A private school in our area teaches Japanese, you don't get that with normal state schools. It has smaller classes, for a child who lacks confidence this is more beneficial to learning.

Sadly we're not in the position to be able to pay £3k per term but I would love to have been able to have the choice.

OP, I can only suggest that financial security brings options and choices. Start saving now, then make your choice nearer the time.

Schools can change rapidly, as an example, one of the top performing, well respected state schools in Scotland had a change in Head teacher. This person was uniformly disliked, had no respect and bullied both staff and pupils. The school's high rating dropped faster than a stone and for the first time in yonks, places became available where there were none previously. The Head was moved on and the replacement is building up the school again.

What school you opt for now may not still be the one you'd opt for in 2 or 3 years time but having a good financial backing will at least give you the choice.

emsywoo123

The state vs private eduction debate has been discussed, many times, to great length on this board OP, but I think to summarise-no one will be able to give you a categorical and definitive answer.

Respondants to this will broadly fall into 3 catergories:

• Support private and can afford it
• Support private and can't afford it
• Do not support private and therefore not an issue!

Educating your child (both in school and out) is IMO such a hugely important and personal decision, my best advice would be to get into these schools and have a look, ask around, the more info you can get to make an informed decision the better!