School Fees.

[Smowball]

For those who may remember my post months ago about my son being in an apalling school an I said I was going to enter him for the entrance exam for a private school - well he not only passed with flying colours but he has also been offered a place. We are very proud of him and he is very excited as it really is a fantastic school.

The downside is that we did not qualify for a bursary and so will have to pay the full fees, which we always knew was likely. We have a lump sum in savings, and if we take the money out each term to pay, then we do in fact have enough to cover until he is 18. We will obviously have practically no savings left either, but thats the way it is.

My quesion is, is there a better way of doing it ie a loan specifically for school fees, or something else I havent thought of? or is what we are intending to do the best way? TIA x

[chrissa1]

Well done to your son Smowball. I'm not sure about the right answer but, the Interest Rates you are getting now on your savings are rubbish and to borrow the money would cost you more wouldn't it?

[Old_Geezer]

That was to be my comment too. No one 'loans' you money at a lower rate than yourself. So long as you try to keep a small 'rainy day' fund then the rate you'd get on savings is hardly worth the effort of searching for the highest rate, may as well use it for the bill

[boxtops]

I'm not saying go with this one, I know nothing about it http://www.schoolfeesadvice.org/home/why_plan_school_fees.aspx

but when I worked in life insurance, we had a whole department that dealt with school fees, you could protect the fees by a number of insurance means. It might be worth looking into.

There seems little point in saving money on one hand and taking a new loan, at inevitably a higher rate, on the other.

[Smowball]

Thanks : )

Yes thats what my FIL said, but my brain says that if we borrow then we will still have our savings. I know that probably makes no sense.

[chrissa1]

But you're not going to be paying out all your savings in one fell swoop. They Will gradually run out in time, but not straightaway. I wouldn't get a loan Smow.

[Smowball]

Guess you're all right, who knows - I might win the Euromillions tonight lol.

[Hopkirk]

We approached the problem in a different way, we moved to the catchment area for a good state school.

Son is now at university, on track for a first class degree.

[Smowball]

We have lots of good state schools but have been trying to get him into one for over a year to no avail. They are all completely full, and I couldnt let the situation carry on with the school he is currently at. Its the school, the kids, the whole thing.

[cazzz1975]

keep an eye on the ofsted as well, recently a private school near me scored a "3" which isnt good, especially when you consider the cost of fee's

also worth putting money aside for equipment, field trips and other expensive extra's that are required.

[Smowball]

I had already checked the Ofsted - 1's in every category.

[magsmay]

Congratulations Smowball on your sons offer of placement. All my children went or are going to private school - all did state school until 13 (youngest starting next year at private school) . You will not regret it, or the sacrifices you will have to make. We were lucky to get our first two on the assisted placement schemes and only paid the boarding fees. You will be able to apply for a bursary every year so maybe if he shows talent in one particular field he may get a sports or science or arts bursary further on down the line. Use your savings don't get a loan and I would suggest yoo seek independent financial advice.

[Smowball]

Thanks magsmay.It really is an outstanding school and he is so excited. I made suc a mistake in sending him to his current school and feel so relieved that he can now leave and get the education he deserves.

[albaqwerty]

smow, you didn't make a mistake, you did what you thought was right at the time,. Who'd be a mother, we beat ourselves up all the time.
I hope your son will blossom and do really well at his new school when the time comes. When does he start?

ps I wouldn't take out a loan though.

[abstibus]

Sow
First of all, congratulations on your son's achievement. You must be very proud of him indeed.
I don't know whether you have investigated the area of bursaries/scholarships, which are much more widely available than many people think, so I have included a link for you.
I hope it's useful.
http://www.hmc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/SCHOLARSHIPS-BOOKLET-20131.pdf

[abstibus]

Sorry
You mentioned bursary in your first post, but I missed it. They are often not confined to new entrants anyway, so link might still be useful.

[Smowball]

Thanks for that abstibus.

alba - no I wont take out a loan now.