We went to tour the private school today. I really really like it. I want to go there myself lol! It just felt right. Seriously the only thing stopping me from filling in the forms today is the cost. The woman who showed us around told us that she has worked there for 7 years. She has sent both her daughters there from prep and the youngest is now graduating from year 12 this month. She also attended the school herself. That's a pretty good reference lol! The staff and students that we met all seemed very happy. The grounds were very well maintained and the classrooms were all neat and tidy. The facilities were excellent. DH was even impressed. He seemed pretty keen to enrol DS too. I kinda think bugger the cost. It's worth it to have the kids in an environment that is happy and nurturing, that can provide the kinds of opportunities we would like to give our kids. The cost is affordable as it is only a little bit more than daycare fees but it is tight now. The other option is to enrol them later in say year 7 and save the money we would have spent so that we can have a bit extra to spare for extracurricular activities later on. I will have to way up the pros and cons and revisit our budget.