Providing their children with a good education is a priority for most parents and is often on the list of key considerations for families looking for a new home and to deciding where to live.
While there is most definitely a premium attached to some neighbourhoods surrounding the best state schools across the country, there are also many that come in under the county average, particularly outside of London and the South East where homes remain more affordable versus average earnings according to the latest research from Lloyds Bank.
House price growth in areas with top performing state schools has significantly outpaced the rest of the country in the last five years for example house prices near top schools grew by 35% (£104,365), compared to the English average of 20% (£49,082) over the last five years. The average house price in areas close to top performing state schools is now £400,850 compared to the average of £293,824 – a difference of £107,026.
Two thirds (21) of the top performing schools are in locations where average house prices have grown by at least £80k in the previous 5 years, half (10) of which are in Greater London. House prices in the postal districts of the top 30 schools are on average £30,968 (8%) higher than other locations in the same county (or local authority in London). The largest premium (149%) is nearby to Beaconsfield High School in Buckinghamshire (ranked 29th) where homes are now worth over £1million when compared to the county average of around £600k. This is twice the premium of Cheshire, home to Altrincham Grammar School for Girls (ranked 10th) and Loreto Grammar School (ranked 20th) which has the next highest house price premium when compared to the country average (£434,756 compared to £249,829 or 74%).
Out of top 30 schools, 11 are priced under the English average. Properties close to the High School for Girls in Gloucestershire (ranked 19th) are £129,982 (44%) below the county average, followed by King Edward VI Handsworth School in the West Midlands (ranked 6th) at £86,953 (42%) below the county average and Kendrick School in Berkshire (ranked 12th) at £135,919 (32%) below the county average. The most affordable are properties near King Edward VI Handsworth School in the West Midlands (ranked 6th) where house prices are just 3.7 times average local earnings.
The average house price in the postal areas of the top 30 schools is nearly 10 times average local earnings – compared to 7.9 across England. Homes close to the Henrietta Barnett School in Barnett (the best performing state school in the country) are the least affordable at 22.2 times gross average annual earnings in the area.
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