ARCHITECTS and scientists can no longer afford to send their children to private schools, according to a report released today. Halifax, the bank, says that soaring fees have put private education beyond the reach of all but the highest earners.

The average cost of sending a child to private school has increased by 42 per cent to nearly £10,000 per year in the past five years, but average earnings have increased by only 24 per cent.

A worker on the average salary of £28,210 would have to hand over about 35 per cent of his or her gross earnings to cover the cost of sending one child to private school, up from 30 per cent in 2000.

Five years ago single-income families where a parent worked in any one of 20 occupations, including architecture, science and journalism, could expect to fork out less than 25 per cent of their gross annual salary to cover the average annual fees, making it an affordable option.

But today only a handful of workers, such as judges and chief executives, earn enough to cover the cost of school fees from their pay packet comfortably, according to Halifax.

Sending a toddler to a private pre-prep school can cost £4,500 a year, and the most ex- pensive boys’ boarding school costs more than £21,000 a year.

Each child sent to a private school charging average fees would account for only 7 per cent of the annual salary of a senior director or chief executive. But an engineer would have to part with 28 per cent of his or her earnings to cover the fees for a private prep or secondary school, and school fees would eat up nearly 40 per cent of a nurse’s annual pay.

The Halifax report was criticised by the Independent Schools Council, which said that families where both parents worked could afford to send their children to private schools.

Jonathan Shephard, general secretary of the council, said: “Two newly qualified police constables on a basic salary of £22,107 each can afford — on the Halifax’s own calculation — fees for one child at the vast majority of independent day schools. Schools take affordability very seriously: the current year’s fee increases were the lowest since 1999.”

Parents currently expecting a baby would need to start saving about £500 a month for 11 years, assuming a growth rate of 5 per cent, to cover all school fees for their offspring between the ages of 11 and 18, according to Hargreaves Lansdown, the independent financial adviser.

About 7 per cent of the school population attend independent day or boarding schools, but they make up 38 per cent of all students who receive three A grades or better at A level. More than 90 per cent of private school pupils go on to university.

In February, 50 public schools found guilty of operating a fee-fixing cartel agreed to pay fines and penalties totalling £3.5 million.

How the annual cost of a boarding place has risen from 1995 to 2005:

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