Private school fees (merged)

emsywoo123

stellabgh wrote: »

I can imagine!

Really not the same these days as far as I can tell..........I had horrendous preconceptions of what "private school mummies" would be like:o before DD started, and I was proved completely wrong. Of course, there are some that shove their wealth in your face while you stand there thinking about how to pay your next bill!! But there is a small group of us (no, not a clique!!;) ) who get on really well, and can turn to each other in good times and bad. Some of us are not well of, some millionaires. But I bet if you met us all, you could not tell who was who!

Riq

I bet I could.

I'd just look at the car you arrived in

emsywoo123

Riq wrote: »

I bet I could.

I'd just look at the car you arrived in

Dammit you are right lololol.........ok ok, don't mock the car........just pretend we are all waiting outside the classrooms for our kiddiewinks....ah ha then you wouldn't know!:D

niceday999

Well if you can afford it . Why Not. Very commendable. People choose to spend their money how they choose. Should it be designer clothes , Booze, Smoking 60 ciggies a day , Holidays.etc. So whatever floats your Boat.


Mind you being a money saver i dont indulge in any of the above....lol

Rikki

My sons last year in the upper sixth was just over £6,000 for the one term. That means £18,000 for just the one year. :eek: (2006/2007)

School fees tend to rise above inflation each year.

You need to look hard into saving and investing to cover these sorts of fees in the future.

haylibo

My eldest was at private until year 6 and there was no obvious divide between those whose parents were tightening their belts for their girls to attend and those who wouldn't recognise the concept . One girl's family took mum's inheritence early from the grandparents to fund her place - she had a huge circle of friends and was very happy there.





edited because I can't spell

whatatwit

My daughter is at private school approx £10,000 per year.

Whilst there are some parents who are extremely wealthy, there are also lots of parents who both work full time to pay the fees. I don't feel that my daughter gets looked down on, or picked on because we don't own a villa abroad or go away at every school holiday.

To the original poster, if you have got spare money now, then yes, start to save it, if nothing else it will get you into the habit of doing without several thousand each year.
Most schools now offer a monthly payment scheme, it does cost you a bit more as it is basically a credit agreement, but sometimes it can help.
Or, some schools offer a discount if you can pay 12 months up front.....so, if you have saved a chunk, then it may be worthwhile paying 12 months fees and then saving each month for the 12 months.

I'm sure your daughter will have the time of her life and it will be worth every penny.

cupid_s

The OP was asking for advice on how to save/where to put to money. Not peoples opinions on whether private school is worth it or not!

I would say that putting the money towards your mortgage for the moment is a good start, especially if you can easily take it out again with no penalty (depending on your mortgage rate vs savings rate you can get etc). If you do this then by the time your daughter starts school your regular mortgage payments will be lower and you might find the fees easier to afford as your general outgoings will be lower (as an example after overpaying our mortgage for 1 year our regular payments are now 36% lower).

However as a member of the mortgage free in 3 club I'm a bit biased towards paying money off the mortgage!

Spendless

stellabgh wrote: »

No, they're not that bad, they're pretty average, but it's not just about the academic side. Going to a private school gave me advantages that unfortunately state schools (around here at least) can't provide.

I would have been happy to send her private only for secondary school which is what my parents did for me but nowadays it's extremely hard to get in after the age of 7.

Financially it's a scary prospect but to me it's worth it.

Why is it hard to get into after age 7?

stellabgh

Spendless wrote: »

Why is it hard to get into after age 7?

There are very few places that come up at 11+ ands only the brightest kids get them. More and more people are sending their kids earlier which means that more of us have to send ours earlier to get in!