Normally an email from the head of governors at my old school bringing “exciting news” about an ambitious new development is cause for trepidation and accompanied by the inevitable plea for funds. A new theatre here or the irresistible offer of immortality there via my name chiselled on a flagstone.
This one, however, was different. Westminster School in London had signed an agreement to set up six new establishments in China in the next decade, the latest example of a British private school embracing the biggest education market in the world.
Under the terms of an ambitious deal, Westminster will export its successful teaching methods to Chengdu and other cities. In return the school will boost its bursary funds, making more money available to help families on lower incomes access an education at one of the UK’s leading — and pricier — academic independent schools, whose former pupils include politicians, writers, rock stars and the odd trapeze artist. The venture sits within an initiative to promote collaboration between future leaders of both countries.