A NEW report, conducted by the Centre of Business and Economics for Killik & Co, the private client stockbroker and wealth manager, reveals the soaring cost of private education today and over the next 13 years.

Currently, the average annual fee of a private school in the West Midlands is £11,000 and increases up to £28,400 for boarding. If current trends persist, however, fees will more than double to £22,700 and £59,400 for day and boarding schools respectively by 2027.

The report shows how the average family will pay half a million pounds (£526,000) to send two children to an independent school, including the typical educational extras that most families opt for. The cost soars up to £821,000 if parents should wish to send two children to boarding school from age 13.

Private schools’ average annual day fees have more than quadrupled since 1990 from £2,985 in 1990 to £12,700 per year in 20143. If current trends persists, they are likely to rise by a further 115% by 2027. The rise in fees is attributed to demand outstripping supply as British independent schools attract a new clientele - international high net worth families, ranging from royalty to children of multi-millionaires.

School fees alone do not provide the full picture as the cumulative cost of "educational extras" add to the growing financial burden to parents. The cost of those extras, ranging from extracurricular activity like music lessons to school uniforms and sports kits, have also sky-rocketed, from an average of £1,200 a year in 1990 to £3,000 in 2014.

While independent school day fees in the West Midlands are lower than the national average, they still amount to a significant chunk of a family’s income. An average earner in the West Midlands will need to put aside 88% of their net income to send one child to an independent school, including all the additional educational extras.

The least expensive day schools can be found in the North, with London having the most expensive. In relation to average salary within the region, however, London has private schools with the lowest day fees, while Wales has the lowest for boarding. The highest school fees in relation to regional average income can be found in the South West.

Even the average professional worker will have to syphon over half (57%) of their income to privately educate one child while boarding school fees would need more than one professional worker’s salary, taking a proportion of 121% of the average net income.

A number of trends are coming to the forefront as affordability becomes a pressing issue for those who want their children to benefit from private education. Many parents are now opting for "State until Eight" or "State until Eleven", which could save the average family £94,000 and £175,000 respectively.

Sarah Lord, managing director of Killik Chartered Financial Planners, said: “For any parent considering private education for their children, the results of this study will prove very alarming.

"To put these numbers in some sort of perspective, the total cost of educating one child privately at day school is close to the current average house price in the UK. The big difference is that you cannot secure a mortgage against your child’s education in the same way as you can with your home.

"Many parents view a child’s education as the best investment they can make and private schooling is still a big draw for many. The earlier you start planning and budgeting for it, along with scholarships, financial planning and investing for your child’s education is more important than ever.”