English private schools are expanding into the Gulf, seeking to capitalise on burgeoning demand from wealthy expatriates and locals and keep fees down in the UK.
Oundle School is to open an offshoot in Dubai in September next year; Wellington College is in advanced talks to open a sister academy in Bahrain in 2010; and Brighton College is “in negotiations” over a planned school in Abu Dhabi.
They follow on the heels of Repton, which became the first traditional English independent school to open a branch in the Gulf a year ago. It is expanding this month, adding a senior college to its Dubai prep. “We have stolen a march on everyone else,” says Carl Bilson, bursar at Repton.
In recent years, English private schools have sought additional sources of income by opening private schools in the Far East. Until now, however, they had shied away from the Gulf, deterred by fears that Islamic culture would make it hard to create sister schools with any resemblance to the original home model.
The business opportunity arises from the attractions of an English private school education to the growing number of expats and Middle Eastern families. Fluency in English, internationally recognised qualifications and centuries-old brands are part of their appeal.
Tradition and Englishness are also a selling point. There are already several international schools in the region. But Charles Bush, head of Oundle, says traditional English private schools have “a tremendous amount of expertise to offer”. Above all, some enjoy a reputation that could give them a head start.
Most of the schools operating abroad have to offer education in co-operation with local partners, whose quality may vary. But institutions that have expanded overseas say this can be solved by picking partners carefully. Mr Bilson of Repton says Evolvence, a Dubai-based alternative investor, is “buying our name from us. They’re buying our brand.” To protect its reputation, Repton “has acted in an advisory capacity”.
But the potential for spoiling their brand also makes some English schools wary of expanding abroad. The headmaster of one famous school told the Financial Times he had rejected the idea because, “I don’t want to damage the brand”.
Both Repton and Oundle expect to make money from their ventures, with Repton’s Mr Bilson saying he wants to do “anything that we can do” to keep a lid on UK fees.
Analysts say British schools will face tough competition from international rivals based in the US, Dubai and other countries. French schools can be popular even with English-speaking parents in the Gulf, for example, because of the comforting uniformity of French education the world over.
Harriet Plyler, of Good Schools Guide International, describes the Middle Eastern market for schools as “like the wild west. Things are growing up before your very eyes”.
Commenting on Dubai specifically – the place with the highest density of western expats – she adds: “People are moving out there so fast, and when they get there, there are simply not enough [school] spaces.”
English private schools are also late to the field compared with educational charities and companies, which have been operating in the Middle East for some years.
Nord Anglia, the education company, has “school improvement and teaching” contracts with the Abu Dhabi government for “about 20 schools”, according to Andrew Fitzmaurice, chief executive. It also does work in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain and will set up its own international school in Qatar “when we find the right site”.
Mr Fitzmaurice says the Gulf is a growth area for the company because “the Gulf states are using petrodollars to create human capital and sustainable economies. For that, they need their own people to be well educated.”
WCLS, the UK education company, already has a primary school in Qatar, Compass International, which teaches an English-style syllabus. The company also sees business opportunities elsewhere in the Gulf.
But Marcel van Miert, chief executive, warns that fees at Gulf private schools will “increasingly have to be big” because of high land prices and inflation. However, Repton Dubai fees, charged in the local dirham, are still slightly lower than the UK senior school’s at current exchange rates.
UK education charities are already in the Gulf too. One of the biggest UK operators is CfBT, which has 27 Abu Dhabi school contracts.
Wellington plans foreign invasion
Wellington College has revealed ambitious plans to expand into Bahrain and across Asia, but with a twist: Anthony Seldon, the headmaster, does not want to make any money from his overseas ventures, writes David Turner.
Other schools have talked of using sister schools abroad to subsidise bursaries or lower fees at their original British premises. But Mr Seldon says: “The plan is the project will cover its own costs.” He intends to establish a school in Bahrain in 2010, and is looking to set up one school each in India and the Far East in the next few years. “If one looks at most of Britain’s unique selling points in the 21st century, what do we have left? Manufacturing is outsourced, professional services are outsourced but education clearly is one of our strongest features. We ought to be supporting this move abroad. It’s taken a few hundred years to develop this expertise.”
Wellington’s overseas schools will follow an ultra-traditional model, adhering to the Berkshire school’s traditions. Local children will have to learn that Orange is not just a fruit or a colour but the name of a Dutch prince who served (incompetently) alongside the Duke of Wellington at Waterloo – and more importantly, the name of a house at all future Wellington schools abroad. Mr Seldon argues this is not parochialism, but a good way to teach international history.
His vision is “a family of schools” at home and abroad.
By David Turner, Education Correspondent
The Financial Times Limited 2008