Why parents will make a

sacrifice for schooling
THERE ARE nearly 300 independent Catholic schools in England and Wales offering a broadbased education in a Christian and specifically Catholic community atmosphere. They receive no Government finance and so naturally must charge fees, and the range of fees charged is very wide. There are Catholic independent schools covering the whole of the compulsory school age range and sixth form, and they offer parents an extended opportunity to choose the type of education they want for their children within the Catholic school sector.
The reasons why parents choose an independent school in preference to Catholic voluntary aided or local State schools are various. Clearly the ability and willingness to pay fees is a first consideration and for some is the first hurdle. But they are not the preserve of the rich. More and more families are making great sacrifices to be able to send children to Catholic independent schools.
Even where there is Catholic provision in local schools. some parents still choose an independent school, often because of the good reputation for academic success or simply because they are worried about developments in the stateaided sector and the standards achieved in comprehensive schools.
Each independent school produces a prospectus, an informative brochure outlining the school's aims, outlook, style and basic regulations. Every head teacher will readily send a copy to an enquiring parent, and this service of initial information is an essential part of the process of making an informed choice about a child's future. Great emphasis is placed on the fact that the school is first and foremost a Christian community. Independent schools generally are smaller than most State or voluntaryaided schools, particularly the comprehensives, and this too is an important consideration when Catholic parents are exercising their choice of schooling for their sons and daughters. Classes also are smaller and this helps to ensure greater personal attention to pupils' needs and their spiritual, intellectual, emotional and physical development.
Some schools specify that pupils must come from only practising Catholic families. Others admit pupils of other denominations and faiths; indeed some Catholic schools would not remain viable without a proportion of non-Catholic pupils and special arrangements are made fot their religious education. In some parts of the country, particularly where Catholics are less numerous, the Catholic independent school is the "local" school, so it performs a wider service of education to the whole community as well as to the Catholic population.
Many independent schools operate a selection test before admission. One such school is St Joseph's Preparatory School in Ipswich. Brother Kevin, the headmaster explained that this test in basic arithmetic, English and reading is not so much a condition of entry, but a way of deciding which teaching group the boy will join. The school provides specialist teaching for slow learners as well as the very bright, and has special provision for youngsters with learning difficulties such as dyslexia, which might be overlooked in a larger school or when the child has attended several schools already.
St Joseph's, like many independent primary-age schools is the preparatory school for a senior or secondary-age school, St Joseph's College Birkfield, Ipswich. The College is set in 50 acres of grounds and was established at the request of the local Catholic community for a secondary school for boys in East Anglia and is run by the De La Salle Brothers.
Though Catholic in ethos and intent, and academic in teaching, it has always attracted a significant proportion of non-Catholics and of pupils who might otherwise have been selected for less academic State education. There are about 600 boys at the school now, of whom about 230 are boarders. Girls are accepted as day students into the sixth form.
While many independent schools are boarding schools, most take day pupils also. and in at least one case the school has recently changed over to day pupils entirely. This is La Retraite at Burnham-on-Sea. It is the only single-sex Catholic girls school in Ale Somerset and Avon region and the change this year to become a 'day school reflects an increasing concern to cater for the Catholic families of that area, when previously boarding places were taken by girls from families overseas or in the forces. The school manintains high academic standards and a solid Catholic background and training for girls from the age of eleven to 16, in smaller classes than in many other schools.
The Irish Christian Brothers maintain St Edwards College as an independent Catholic school in Liverpool, along with a Preparatory school, Runnymede. Runnymede is a day school for boys aged seven to 11, where as well as the full junior curriculum of RE., English, Mathematics and other subjects, special attention is given to music. Each form has several music lessons every week and in addition there is free tuition in small groups for some stringed and woodwind instruments.
Among the pupils of St Edwards are the 36 boys of the Cathedral Choir, an arrangement that was begun in 1973. Choral scholarships are available from the Cathdral which offset much of the cost of school fees. St Edward's College was formerly a direct grant school for boys aged 11 to 18. There are about 700 on the roll and the school maintains a strong tradition of music, academic standards and sport.
The independent schools, just as much as the state-aided sector, now face the problem of falling rolls, there are just not as many schoolchildren around these days to fill all available school places, and this can have a direct financial impact on a fee-paying establishment. Nevertheless, some Catholic boarding schools report a continuing big demand for places.
David Browne