'Finding the right school for my child is the most important decision I will make as a parent, a major emotional investment as well as a financial one,' says David Wellesley Wesley, director of the Independent Schools Show. 'School selection is no longer a question of which old school tie your father wore but rather which school best suits the child's disposition, needs and skills.'
Independent schools have faced many difficulties in recent decades — the Lloyd's crash, recessions, political opposition, rising costs and fees and so on. Some schools survived, others didn't. But the sector as a whole has emerged stronger than ever. Today, with ever more international interest in British private schools, marketing has become more important, as well as league tables and other measures of excellence.