What does Scholé do?
We help successful local curriculum schools in Africa develop into world class learning institutions.
We acquire existing schools and improve them. We do this by providing investment capital to enhance facilities and drive growth and replication, alongside international education expertise to develop teaching and learning, governance and leadership.
What sort of schools does Scholé operate?
We currently operate private schools charging $800 to $2,000 per year. Our ultimate ambition is to be able to offer education that is affordable for everyone in the countries in which we operate.
Our schools cater for children at all levels – from pre-school and primary to secondary. We operate both day and boarding schools.
What curricula do Scholé schools offer?
Our schools use the local curriculum in their country of operation, which we believe offers an excellent framework for learning. We enhance this with international approaches to teaching and classroom practice.
What is Scholé‘s track record?
We started operating in 2012. In 2013 we managed the opening of a group of schools in Zambia on behalf of a multinational mining company. In 2014 we started running the Pestalozzi Education Centre, an all through school in Lusaka, Zambia. In 2015 we acquired Kisubi High School, a secondary boarding school in Kampala, Uganda, on behalf of international investors. In 2016 we added a second all through school in Lusaka, Crested Crane Academy. In 2018 we acquired the Makini Schools in Nairobi and Kisumu, Kenya.
We have overseen a significant uplift in academic performance and enrolment levels of all our schools. For example, at Pestalozzi the number of students achieving a top grade doubled in the space of two years and student numbers increased by 20% over the same period.
What can students expect from a Scholé school?
We are committed to a child centred approach and to bringing out the achiever in each child. We enable students to feel more positive about their own potential, take control of their own learning journey, shape how their school is run and connect to the wider world in which they are living and learning.
Alongside a strong focus on academic achievement, we are committed to developing the whole child. This means that we offer high quality pastoral support, a rich co-curricular programme which develops the skills and attributes of students, and opportunities to engage with the world outside the school gates.
When schools join our group, students gain access to exciting new opportunities to collaborate with their peers across the continent and around the world.
Is Scholé academically selective?
Many schools select students on the basis of academic ability. In taking students who are already high achievers, they are not necessarily adding much value.
We do not select by academic ability, since we believe that all students can achieve very good results in a child centred learning environment. Academic results are very important to us, but we are equally concerned with ensuring that every child makes amazing progress.
Our promise to students and parents is that we will do everything within our power to help every child thrive and flourish.
Do Scholé schools have a religious ethos?
We respect the rich spiritual heritage of our schools whilst remaining inclusive and non denominational.
What happens to staff when Scholé takes over a school?
We are committed to working with and developing existing staff when a school joins our group.
Our ongoing professional development programmes enable staff to develop their practice through in-service training, coaching and mentoring. These learning opportunities are designed by our School Development and Operations Directors and delivered to all staff throughout the year.
As a member of our group of schools, there will be more opportunities for staff to collaborate with colleagues from other schools and countries. These will include exchange visits and the sharing of expertise.
In addition, Scholé is the only organisation in Africa to offer the UK’s renowned Improving Teacher Programme, which gives teachers a set of skills and strategies to reach the next teaching level. This is delivered in person by our Director of Teacher Training, a leading UK expert on teacher training, and is offered to all teachers who want to improve their practice.
You can find out more about our education partners here.
Does Scholé employ a lot of expatriate staff?
We believe that some of the best teachers in the world are to be found in Africa, so our focus is on building their capacity to deliver a world class education. We do employ a small number of expatriates with experience of different education systems around the world to assist with the training and development of staff in our schools. Over time, we expect these roles to be fulfilled by local staff. We have a strong track record of job creation in the communities we serve.
How does Scholé engage with parents?
We are very committed to active, ongoing engagement with parents and we intend to build on the already excellent relationships between leaders, staff, students and their families at our schools.
Do the previous owners stay involved after Scholé has taken over a school?
Every owner has a different reason for wanting to sell their school to us. Often they want to retire, or pursue other interests away from the education sector. However, we always ensure there is a smooth handover and transition, and we seek to retain the input of the previous owners wherever possible, ensuring the school can continue to benefit from their wisdom and experience.
Does Scholé make a profit?
Scholé is a profit making company funded by a group of international investors.
For any business to be successful it is important to be wise stewards of money and to make a profit. What we do with this profit is extremely important. Currently Scholé reinvests its profits back into the business to make our schools even more successful for students, parents and communities and to give greater numbers of children the opportunity to access a high quality child centred education.
We believe strongly that, working alongside governments, the private sector has an important role to play in expanding access to high quality education across Africa. We feel we are particularly well placed to provide scaleable, sustainable and accountable schools.
You can find out more about our investment partners here.
If you have another question that is not answered here, please drop us a line.