My parents pay £90k a year for my kids’ private school fees…. now they’re out of money and I am furious with them

A MOTHER-OF-THREE has expressed her frustration after her parents were no longer able to fund their grandchildren's tuition fees.

According to data by Killik & Co, a whopping 18 per cent of parents with children attending a private school had received financial help from their parents.

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But now one mum, Diana Smith*, has revealed how relying on her parents for tuition fees has taken a horrific turn, the i reported.

According to the mum, the couple have three daughters - who are in Year 12, Year 9, and Year 7 - and they've all been at the same independent school in London since they were seven ''and are all really happy''.

The school, which has not been named, is said to offer ''impressive resources for music, art, and sport, and it achieves really good academic results''.

The girls, the mum said, have been loving the ''intimate feel'' and overall appear to be ''thriving'' in the small environment - so much so that the eldest got 8s and 9s in her GCSES.

However, it's never been the parents paying for the fees - according to the mother, the couple's combined household income is £93k before tax, which is the same as the total cost of the girl’s school fees per year.

The independent school charges an eye-watering £10k per term per child, which brings the total to £30k a term - or an astronimical £90k for the year.

''We do the extras – the school trips, uniforms and that sort of thing – but they cover the fees.

''I am so incredibly grateful to my parents for what they’ve done for us.''

The mum insisted that when the duo had their first daughter, her parents told them they’d like to pay for her private education - and she was beyond ''thrilled'' at this.

Despite the hubby's initial reluctance and fear that the child would grow up ''posh and entitled'', the couple ''found the right school'' - which it has remained ever since.

The kids, she added, do realise that they have '' a very privileged school existence'' - but they're aware that this is not the case for the majority and appreciate their position.

When the mum gave birth to their second and third child, her parents told they had the funds to pay for their fees too - despite her telling it would be totally fine to have just one girl at private school, if they couldn't afford all three.

''They assured me it was what they wanted to do, and that they felt no obligation, only desire to help.''

The parents have a lot of money, and have been living a frugal lifestyle with the huge sums they have.

Their impressive assets are down to a combination of a large inheritance, ''excellent and lucky investments in the 80s, a huge London house they bought in the 70s, which they’ve sold and made a big profit on'', as well as the ''dad having had a high-paying finance job''.

Rather than passing it down to money and resources after death, making it liable to inheritance tax, the duo - both in their seventies - decided to spend money on the children’s education.

However, recently things took a sharp turn, when her dad dropped a major bombshell, announcing that he and his wife don't have enough money to keep the funds going.

There are lot of reasons for this, including the mum's care for Alzheimer’s, as well as some investment-related issues they ened to tackle.

The parents also revealed that the hefty sum of £90k a year for several years has taken a bigger hit on their savings than they had imagined, and in general the ''dad’s got very cold feet about carrying on''.

Since learning about the news, the couple have been massively shocked and the mum has ''barely been sleeping'' since the announcement.

Although the girls are yet be informed, as the duo ''try to figure out what this means for them'', the mum said she was ''furious'' with her parents.

However, at the same time, she also admitted feeling ''guilty for feeling like that, because they’ve been so generous and they mean so well''.

Now, she feels ''stupid for having been so reliant on their finances'' and insists it's difficult to see any option other than taking the girls out of the school.

But although she was convinced that this drastic step would  ''massively disrupt the girls’ educations, exams, social lives, everything'', the mum was aware that even with her hubby's income, the duo wouldn't be able to cover the costs.

''I am so worried about how they’ll adapt to a big, more anonymous school, where they’ll be far more left to their own devices and have less attention.

''I know there are lots of incredible state schools, I just feel that the transition might be really tough, especially with not much notice.''

Now, assessing the situation,  the mum reckoned that perhaps the couple ''should have sent them to a normal school all along''.

''I’m saying all this because I know lots of people whose parents or in-laws pay the school fees, and while grandparents’ generosity is amazing, it can also go wrong.''