PRIVATE school fees in this country have trebled since 1980, new research shows - so what are Oxfordshire's most expensive?

The county is home to more than its fair share of highly-regarded establishments including the world-renowned Dragon prep school, Radley College and Magdalen College School.

Being close to the capital and basking in the reflected glory of Oxford University may both be reasons why we have some of the county's top schools.

But a top education does not come cheap.

Have independent school fees put you off sending your child? Email our education reporter sophie.grubb@oxfordmail.co.uk

Here are some of the fees for Oxfordshire's most expensive independent secondary and prep schools (All fees are for full-boarding for a year unless otherwise stated; latest figures taken from schools' websites)

Abingdon School: £38,970 (£19,275 for day-boys)

Radley College: £36,900

St Edwards School: £36,570

Headington School: £33,705

Bloxham School: £32,775

Kingham Hill School: £30,450

Dragon School (prep): £29,580

Cothill House Prep School: £27,660

Rye St Antony: £24,585

Wychwood School: £24,300

St Hugh's (prep): £19,320 (boarding fee listed separately as £1,260 a week)

Cokethorpe School: £18,300

Magdalen College School: (day boys only) £17,784

Oxford High School: (day girls only) £14,985

The new research published by the Centre for Learning and Life Chances in Knowledge Economies and Societies at University College London found fees such as these have trebled on average in the past four decades.

The researchers concluded that even a family whose income is higher than 95 per cent of those in England has to pay a fifth of its income to educate just one child privately.

But, perhaps surprisingly, the study found these schools have not become any more the preserve of the super-rich as a result: while some less well-off families are put off by higher fees, this is offset by the sector’s attempts to broaden its social mix through offering partial bursaries, the research found.