Mike Tindall's right royal school dilemma

Mike Tindall has suggested he does not want to follow the royal family tradition of sending his daughter away to a boarding school, as he would prefer that she came home every night.

The former England captain said that sending 2-year-old Mia to a remote boarding school, like the one his wife, Zara Philips, attended, goes against his "instincts".

He added that he does not wish his daughter to be "distanced" from the family home in Gatcombe Park Estate, Gloucestershire, and would rather she was educated "nearby".

"I know many people who say boarding was the making of them because they forged great independence from their parents, but I don't really want her to be distanced from us," Tindall told the Daily Mail.

"My school was a public one and plenty of my mates lived in, but I was just a day student and it definitely didn't do me any harm."

Tindall, who attended Queen Elizabeth Grammar School in Wakefield, went on: "If anything, I enjoyed the best of both worlds.

"Personally, I'd rather she attend a school that's nearby, where we'll always be on hand if she needs us. Anything else goes against my instincts."

Philips, who is granddaughter to the Queen, was educated at Beaudesert Park School in Stroud, Gloucestershire, and Port Regis School in Shaftesbury, Dorset.

She then followed other members of the Royal Family in attending Gordonstoun School in Moray, Scotland.

A royal source told The Telegraph that the Tindalls "have not yet made any decisions about Mia's schooling".

The Duke of Cambridge revealed last month that he has already started looking at schools for his children. Prince George, aged 2, currently attends a Montessori nursery close to the couple's Norfolk mansion, Anmer Hall.

The royal couple have not yet indicated whether they would send their children to a local school in Norfolk, or whether they would move back to London.

Earlier this year, it was reported the Duke and Duchess put their son's name down for his father's old pre-prep school, Wetherby, in London.

There has also been speculation George would go to independent prep Beeston Hall, in the coastal Norfolk town Cromer.

The Duke and his brother, Prince Harry, attended Wetherby, which charges £6500 ($13,500) a term, followed by five years at Ludgrove School in Berkshire before moving on to £11,478-a-term Eton College.

The Duchess of Cambridge was enrolled at the age of 4 at her local church school, St Andrew's, near the village of Pangbourne in Berkshire, where fees are up to £4980 a term.