OH and I are seriously considering putting Wil through a private school because we don't think the state system will enable him to reach his potential and we want him to have every opportunity to excel in life.

My sister is a state primary school teacher and my mum is a special needs classroom assistant in a state school and they are totally against private education and claim it is full of rich, thick kids. (it comes up occasionally in conversation but we have never mentioned Wil going to one).

The school we are thinking of has entrance exams, assessments and interviews so unless you can bribe the headmaster with loads of money then I don't get the rich, thick idea.

We are by no means rich and if we do send Wil it will mean we have to tighten our belts in other areas, if we have another child it will be a real stretch while they are both in senior school but I think it is worth it.

What do you think, if you could afford it would you put your child/ren through private education?

I think it depends on the state schools that are near by - our town has a very good secondary school which got Outstanding in its last ofsted report - so I don't see the point in sending her to the private school which doesn't get better results

If I could afford it and the private school was better then I'd do it

SO basically if money was no object I would send her to the better school

I agree with Lisa. If I could afford it and the private school was the better one then yes 100% I would send my two.

My OH is against them (I have no idea why and I really don't think he does either tbh ) and most of mine and OHs family's are of the opinion that "if it was good enough for you..... blah blah blah" but I disagree. The school system, education, funding, discipline, national curiculum etc have all changed since we were at school so I don't think that argument holds any water.

We have had the 'if I won the lottery..' discussion a few times with friends and family and I always get> when I say I would send my kids to private school but if I could afford it then I wouldn't care less what anybody (family or not) thought. I will always do the best I possibly can (or what I think is best at the time) for my children - they are my kids and it's got nothing to do with anyone else (apart from Oh of course but he does as he's told ).

xx

I agree with the above. If the Private school is performing better then the state school then I would not send my child to the private school.

We have talked about this as OH went to a Private all boys school and he wants the same for Rowan. Now if we had the money yes we would as there are some outstanding private schools around here. But we chose to have another child which means at the moment we can not afford a private school for Rowan.

Yes I would

my worries are that under this government by the time our babies are ready for school the schools will be shite!

My other two children have had a great state education but this was when labour were ploughing money into education. My son has two years left at his high school I just hope it can continue it's high standards in time fir his gcses.

I work in FE the recent cuts are killing us!

It's very sad but I reckon under this government education will soon be for those that can afford it.

I do hope to send ellie to a private school as a good education is so important
x

I know what you are saying Pen, its scary, even the change of a head teacher can dramatically change the results a school gets! The primary school in the village was really good, then the head left and all the others teachers did within 2 years cos the new head was awful...so they suddenly had all new staff and for some reason it just never worked out as well.

I intend do to a fair amount of home schooling on important subjects too - I am not prepared to leave my childs future in anyones hands than mine - too many parents pack their kids off to school and then moan when they get crappy grades - I will put the effort in at home and take responsibility!

Lisa could not agree more. Schooling does not finish at home it should continue.

Just because a child reaches school age does not mean we should stop schooling our children just because they are at school

Yes lisa, I do agree, it's up to us mums to ensure our kids get the best education.

I've helped my other two as much as I can but some of the stuff (maths) I couldn't do so they've both had to have private tutors. It's not cheap but I always managed, even as a single parent as I was always willing to go without things myself.

Now I'm much older (much much much) so I'm financially stable so if needs must ellie will go private. Just have to convince oh that that is what will happen. Hehe it's really quite funny when we're with family and friends and they ask which school ellie will go and say "towers". He'd never argue with me in company but do laugh about it later.

I think education is so important i want the best i can for c and awen. That said the only way im affording private is to win the lotto or sell my liver. So will end up in the state system. If money was no object id be going with the best option i had whetehr private or state but in my present finances im going with the best i can in state. And like others i will then make sure i do everything i can to continue her education at home and give her whatever aids she needs that i can afford to excel. I think even private sschool wont give you a heads up unless you put the time in at home too.

Did any of that make sense? Basically gill you are doing the best you can by will so what other ppl think doesnt really matter and i know you and i know wil will also get that extra help at home to reach the highest he can.

BTW i think Tim Nice But Dim perpetuates the rich thick stereotype

Can i just ask is there a website that has your local schools ofsted reports?

here you go Terri
http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-home/Inspection-reports/Schools

Thanks i just googled it though and it came straight up. Ekk the secondary school i went to is all 4s, it has gone down hill very fast!

Just google ofsted of look at the local school websites and it will say what their current position is. But things can change so just because somewhere is grade1 now doesn't mean it'll be that way when our los are about to start. In my area the catholic schools usually do well as they're funded.

I just had another look at the state school Wil would go to near his childminder and their new report (Oct 2010) is full of 4s. It basically says the teachers can't teach.

Looks like the decision might be made for us because there is no way I would send him to an inadequate school.

I agree about schools changing in a short time but I would expect that going from a 1 to a 4 in a short time is more likely than a 4 to a 1. With the best will in the world a good headteacher is going to have their work cut out with a bunch of useless teachers, inadequate facilities or parent who couldn't care less.

(I had a nosy at my sister's school too and it seems she is fairly good at her job according to the report - felt like I was snooping in her private business though )

It is a difficult one as i would like to say i would go with state school but to be honest if it was rubbish then i would rather pay the money for private. In reality I will probably move house to an area with a better secondary school if it comes to that.

I can see the advantages to private school but then another side of me thinks that I dont want Lily to only mix with white middle class people which would probably be the case if she went to one of the fee paying schools here!! A couple of my friends went to private school and they are often a bit naive as they were quite sheltered.

I am not concerned about this yet as the infant school is good so I will review when we get closer!

Of the 2 schools closest to me the primary round the corner is a mix of 2s and 3s and the CofE school my friends boy goes to a couple of streets away is all 2s aside from a 1 for pupil attendance. Will be making note of this site in future. Not sure when ive gottas start looking ive got preschool t think of 1st lol

I agree send your child to the best IF you can afford it. Its normal for parents to want the best for their children.

I do find the idea of private schools a bit odd though. I think its because the education system in NI is a bit different (its in the process of changing again though). We have secondary and grammar schools thats intake is decided by 11+.

I got an A in 11+ and got into a grammar school (only me and one other boy in my class at primary got into a grammar school so my state primary didnt have the best results). At my secondary I think the basic pass rate for GCSE's (5 at A*-C)was something like 94%. Seriously even the messers/wild kids in my school still got pretty good grades. Whether that is to do with teaching standards or the fact that the children were (perhaps) slightly smarter to start with I dont know. Most grammars have prep departments (private primarys) but tbh the 3-4 people in my class who had been to the prep really werent that much more capable than the rest of us, in fact 1 boy in my class did struggle a bit.

People in NI did fiddle the system slightly by paying for a private tutor for the 11+. Constantly going over past papers for up to 2 years before the exams.

I agree private eductaion is great in England if you can afford it, and I dont think my local schools are as bad as some in areas of England so I cant judge, but I dont think id ever consider it for Caitlin, even if I could afford, basically just because our schools arent that bad and iv saw first hand how people from private primarys have still struggled when put up against people deemed academically equal in a level playing field.
I also dont agree with people feeling they need to finacially cripple themselves to pay for private education. I dislike the idea of there being a social side to education - the rich(er) can afford to educate their kids and the other 90% cant. I think more money needs to be invested in schools but that doesnt look likely anytime soon.

I agree with what others have said. Education begins at home & should continue to. If necessary I may consider additional tutoring in years to come but atm im content enough with Caitlin being state educated. I agree with kate too that education isnt just about exams (I know that wasnt your exact words!), I too want Caitlin to mix with a variety of people and not be excluded/sheltered in a way from the world. I dont want 'poor' people just to be things she reads about in books or see's on the tv.

At the end of the day if your local schools are crap, you can afford it and it suits Will then go for it. Im not getting at you for wanting to send will to private school - its just not for me (thank god as im on benefits lol!)

I spent hours researching schools when I moved back to leicester last year and it's not just about the ofsted reports, you will know when you look round the school if that school will suit your kids! I did look into private schools even though I knew I couldn't really afford it just to be nosy and make sure that the boys were getting the best and luckily round here the school they go to is one of the best so I don't feel they are losing out by being state educated. So in answer to your question Gill, if i could afford it and state schools were performing at a lower standard then yes I would consider private. I want the best for my kids!

I also agree education doesn't just stop at school and parents can do huge amounts to help there kids without huge amounts of effort.

There is more I want to write but my brain is currently shutting down so will continue my waffle tomorrow or even today!!!

Xx

Holy cow I just looked at the school on the link - £12k a year for a day pupil! (I was thinking about £7k) If you had 2 there that would be £24k on school fee's a year! Sorry my mind is going into overdrive... £84k per child for secondary education.

How would you feel if you invested £170k into your childrens education and they failed their A levels. A friend of mine went to private school (boarded) and this was paid by the forces as his dad worked in navy. He took 3 years to complete his A levels and ended up with CCD, started uni and left after 1st semester. Took a job in tesco as security... got sacked cpl years later and now works in furniture removal.

The point im trying to make (but im a waffler lol) is that £££ wont buy exam results. Private school may be great, but it wont guarantee Will passes his gcse's, gets into uni etc.

Id have to have the £12k a year as totally disposable income because I could see it harming my relationship with Caitlin if I scrimped/saved/had great aspirations for her that revolved around academic performance & success and then found at 17 she wasnt interested and education and wanted to be a hairdresser/model/SAHM. I can just hear the wee madam screaming back at me ' I never asked you to send me to X schoool'.

Basically my opinion is the same as 9 hrs ago lol, I just now think that you would need to be super rich to consider it. Im sure that there is extra's throughout they year as well as the fee's - uniform/ski trips/projetcs. Id also need to be super rich to consider it as I wouldnt want Caitlin to be bullied if we were the poorest at the school. Eg to fit in (and i hold my hands up that this is a stereotype that im holding, perhaps as I feel inferior), I think at private school you need to be having a holiday every year, parents drive nice cars, live in big houses with huge gardens, wear designer clothes.

Snoops, you're dead right £s won't buy exam results but with a good education, whether it be private or state you've got much more chance of getting your results.

Grade 4 schools mean inadaquate teachers! That's a fact! Ofsted observe teachers and grade them. In an ofsted report 6 questions are asked. And all findings are graded. Personally I would prefer ellie to go to a grade 1 state school, but if I can't find one at the time then I'd do all in my power to raise the dosh to go private.
Ps- the school I'm looking at isn't as expensive at Gill's. But Gill I love that school and it would be a great opportunity for wil.

I admit my opinion is swayed alot because of education system here. I was lucky in my grammar school/free education...

http://www.friendsschoollisburn.org.uk/

here it is the exam/ inspection report

http://www.friendsschoollisburn.org.uk/policies/Inspection%20Report%20October%202005.pdf

im the same as most and would want the best for my 2, if money was no object and the private schools would be better then yes id send them, although never as a boarder.

looking at the ofsted reports though, the school i went to and my 2 will be attending got all grade 1(apart from attendance at grade 2) so im quite pleased to read this, although i did alredy know this was one of the best if not the best schools in the area anyhow, so im quite content with that x

i absolutely would send elijah to private school, and will if we are able to afford it when the time comes (probably depending on how many babies i have haha). it isn't just about the quality of the education, but the culture and lifestyle that comes with it. i would prefer that elijah grows up to expect more from life than we were taught to at our state schools (me, hubby, friends etc) - and that he goes into the world a confident person - i personally think that a private education can be really helpful in helping to achieve these things....i also expect elijah to go to university, but we will see, maybe academia won't be for him at all!

am i being thick ,, i am entering my postcode and showing not 1 result x

i did too michelle im not sure what the scottish equivalent is - had a quick google but i'm sure it will come to mind