Whether you're an expatriate or not, offshore investment can give you the 'edge' you're looking for when it comes to returns on your savings. And as a parent you're already aware that you have a strong obligation to provide your child with the 'edge' when it comes to their education and start in life. After all, doing the best that we can for our children and setting them up for their future is the best gift that we can give them.

Whether your child has yet to be born or is already in education, this article will cover the facts that you need to be aware of when considering your child's education and the article will attempt to answer those nagging financial questions that just won't go away!

Is a private school education best for your child?

Clearly every child is unique; and as parents we all want our child to retain their individuality and to grow and develop into confident, independent, respectful adults with a wide cultural, social and educational awareness. Therefore every decision about whether a private school education is best for a child will be unique and will depend upon so many different factors.

The considerations of an expatriate

If you are an expatriate there a number of points that are worth considering when determining the right path for the educational needs of your child: -

• Are you in an environment where the local education standards differ greatly from the standards that you would like to achieve for your child? What choices are available to you?
• Are you living in an environment that is not 100% safe or stable for your child? Could this adversely affect their educational development? If so what action can you take to protect your child's educational needs?
• Culturally, morally or religiously does the environment in which you live match your family's beliefs and ideals? If not, what can be done to safeguard your child's social welfare?
• Are the educational, extracurricular and social facilities offered locally wide enough to encompass your child's personal needs, talents and desires?
• Is the language in your country of residence going to prove a barrier or a retardant to your child's learning?
• Do the standards of qualifications achievable in your country of residence compare favourably to the standards back home?
• Do the standards of teacher qualifications in your country of residence compare favourably to the standards back home?
Is there a potential for the repetition of any educational or social disruption to your child if your job or that of your partner means that you will regularly have to travel or relocate?
• How can you overcome any worry or anguish involved in potentially sending a child away from their family?

The considerations at home

The country in which you live, the town in which you live, even the area of the town in which you live can all dictate the standard of education that your child will be entitled to.

The considerations that you need to have in mind should encompass the following points: -

• Are you happy to be at the mercy of the local education system?
• Is your government doing enough to fund and develop and improve state schools?
• Do the best local schools guarantee places to the best pupils?
• Does your child stand a chance of getting the education they deserve?
• Are you happy to leave your child's education to chance and play the lottery of the state school?
• If only those children who leave education with the best qualifications stand a chance of getting the best jobs, will your local, state funded school provide your child with the best chance to achieve the best qualifications?
• Class sizes, teachers' qualifications, facilities, availability of extra curricular activities for social and personal development.
• Recognition, appreciation and ability to help special needs and specially gifted children.

How do you ultimately decide - private or state?

There are 3 clear points that you need to cover in your own mind: -

i) You need to make sure that you understand how important it is to you that your child has a good education.

ii) Then you need to understand what that means to you in terms of selecting the right school and the right schooling method.

iii) Finally you need to accept that it is down to you to take the responsibility of providing your child with the educational opportunities to set them up for life.

Who can help you decide?

• To help you decide talk to your partner, your family and your friends - what are their thoughts and personal experiences?
• Draw on your own educational experiences - what was important for you, and what was not?
• Think about your child's personality - are they robust enough to cope at boarding school? Are they dynamic, specially gifted, outgoing and likely to benefit from boarding school?
• Is the state school 'good enough'?
• What about local private schools where your child could attend daily or weekly?
• If you are away from home get advice from other expatriates in your country of residence.
• Could you educate them at home?
• Examine the options available to you in your country of residence - are there international schools, do the local schools have special arrangements for foreign students?
• Might your child benefit from attending a local school and becoming socially absorbed into a new country and culture?

If private education is your decision, what next?

Having decided that due to your own personal circumstances a private school education is the best option for your child, you now need to find the best school.

The number of private schools available at home and abroad is vast. To make your choices, and ultimately your decision easier, focus on the basic considerations of what type of school will best meet the needs of you and your child.

You can use the internet, library and personal recommendation as starting points to narrow your search. Then contact a short list of about 10 schools for their brochures and detailed information.

Make sure you gather information on the average academic achievements of the school's pupils at each key stage of development and testing. Examine the school's facilities, security arrangements, pupil welfare programs - everything that is of importance to you and your child.

If you are thinking of sending your child overseas or back home to be educated will the school assist with the logistics of travel, what weekend activities are available for them, are there other pupils who will be in the same situation as your child, how easy will it be to communicate with your child?

When you have further reduced your short list, visit the schools that you are interested in with your child, and visit during term time. Get a feel for the atmosphere and talk to pupils and staff. Make sure you, and ideally your child, are comfortable with the school.

The costs

Fees charged in different countries and across the different institutions can of course vary massively.

As an example for you to base preliminary financial considerations on: -

> In the United Kingdom average private school fees in 2004 are just over £3,000 a term for education, that's at least £9,000 a year.

> In the United Kingdom average boarding fees in 2004 are just under £6,000 a term in addition to education, that's at least £18,000 a year.

> The demand for private schooling in the United Kingdom in 2004 is up for the 9th year in a row.

Carefully examine the registration, entrance and school fees together with boarding fees and extras when you research your preferred schools.

If you have more than one child then obviously multiply costs applicably.

Also take into consideration inflation if you are planning ahead for the education of a young child - and inflation in educational spheres is currently running at about seven and a half percent per year.

Bare in mind inflation again when adding up the number of years your child will need schooling for and you can quickly and easily come to a large and frightening sum of around £100,000 per child for average school fees alone.

Affording to give the Greatest Gift

The benefits of providing your child with the very best start in life must outweigh the costs - both emotionally and financially.

On an emotional level you want to make sure that your child is given every opportunity to fulfil their potential and that their school life will be both enjoyable and productive - that makes you a great parent.

On a financial level there are many options available to you when it comes to the planning for, saving for, financing of and enabling your child's education.

If you are not an expatriate there are savings and investment plans available to you, designed with 'saving for education' in mind. The 'right' plan for you will depend very much on your specific situation and requirements and it will be necessary to speak to an independent financial adviser to get the clearest picture of what's on offer.

As an expatriate there are advisers who can help you find and arrange savings and offshore investment plans to provide the money you will need to pay for your child's education too - and you should make use of your offshore advantages - you'd be MAD not to!

Plan now

If you want to start saving or want to put away a lump sum to cover the investment in your child's future, today couldn't be a better day to start.

In this instance it really is a case of not putting off until tomorrow what you can do today - can you afford to neglect your child's future?

Author Biog

Rhiannon Williamson is an experienced publisher who has produced articles for leading travel and tourism guides and financial magazines. Her specialist knowledge about both travel and finance gives her site http://www.shelteroffshore.com/ the unique ability to literally cover every single aspect of moving & living abroad - including the often less discussed offshore tax advantages that can be available when leaving our homeland.