Afford should be boolean, yes I can or no I can't, your parents made sacrifices in areas of their/your lives so that they could afford to send you to a private school - they could afford one or the other, not both. I could buy a brand new car, but I make the choice not to as it would have a large negative impact on what I can afford when I'm retired, others would just spend that money, borrow more and worry about the consequences later, which is labours approach.
It's ironic that you lived in a council house and went to a private school, so perhaps the very people that labour claim to want to help, but then would have stopped you going to a private school. It's not always about how much money you have but how you choose to spend it (no holidays, old car), an awful lot of people lack the ability to manage their income, and thus fall into severe debt.
My mother and father split up when I was about ten years old, I remember my mother getting by on food handouts from the salvation army, my brothers and I used to wear second hand clothes we were given as well.
