British Private Schools Chase Overseas Cash

Watch British Private Schools Chase Overseas Cash - Bloomberg on Dailymotion

Transcript

00:00Tiwa, so why are these schools so eager to open branches overseas?

00:05Well, I think, quite frankly, a lot of them are looking for new revenue streams.

00:10These are schools often with centuries-old brands, really recognizable names in the UK.

00:16And now a lot of them are looking to capitalize on that fact.

00:20And it's a booming industry.

00:21We've seen the number of private schools over the last few years tripling since 2017.

00:27It's up from 51 to 151 campuses abroad.

00:33And also, in terms of profits, they're exploding, too.

00:37Over the last decade, they're up 18 times, reaching £29 million in the last academic year.

00:43And when you also consider the fact that in the UK, most of these private schools have charitable status,

00:50which means they don't pay corporation tax on overseas earnings,

00:54it does become quite an attractive opportunity.

00:58But it's also worth remembering that there's demand abroad for these British schools.

01:03Typically, these parents would be sending their children abroad for school.

01:07But now they can access that British education on their doorstep.

01:11And crucially, they can pay the school fees in their local currency,

01:15which does make a big difference when you think about exchange rates.

01:19So this is becoming a real opportunity for schools that are looking to perhaps diversify their income streams.

01:26Yep. Guilty as charged.

01:28I live in Dubai and my children go to a British school over here in Dubai.

01:32What are the risks for some of these schools going into business with foreign actors?

01:39Well, as I mentioned, these are very prestigious institutions.

01:42We're talking about the sort of places that have educated prime ministers, for example.

01:47You know, they're so historic that in some cases they're kind of intertwined with the British identity and culture.

01:53And so I think the main risk here is denting that image.

01:57And in some cases, perhaps these schools tainting their legacies,

02:01particularly with association with foreign business partners.

02:04In the story that's out on the terminal this morning,

02:07one of the examples we go into is the opening of rugby school in Lagos, Nigeria, this September.

02:14That development is being financed by a firm called the Chagri Group.

02:18And one of their founders has faced quite a number of controversies.

02:22For example, he was forced to pay $1.8 million

02:25to resolve allegations that he broke U.S. election law in 2021.

02:31So it's a risk for these schools to be associated with some business partners

02:37that perhaps don't quite live up to their historic reputations.