I can’t afford a tutor for my daughter — will she still fulfil her potential?

You have two children, aged eight and four. Your eight-year-old is very bright: in year 3 she is doing year 6 maths. Her state school has large classes and limited resources, so you challenge her with fun maths at home. You hoped to try for a grammar school because local state secondaries do not get good results, but many local parents pay for private tutors, which you cannot afford.

You fear your children will be penalised and stuck in a cycle of not fulfilling their potential. This feels personal: you were diagnosed with dyslexia in your 20s after underachieving and disciplinary issues at school. You worry you may be projecting your baggage and putting unnecessary pressure on your children, and you feel sad and hopeless about the unfairness of the education system and how the rich can outrun the poor.

You work hard in a job you love and your salary is OK, but it is unlikely you will ever earn much more. You feel like this now when they are so young, so you think it will only get worse as they get older.

United Kingdom

tutor, grammar school, state school, year 3, year 6, educational inequality, dyslexia, large classes, limited resources, school admissions