One of Britain’s most prestigious schools is being forced to close a prominent new campus in China after just five years due to a mix of heavy government regulatory pressure and a declining student population. Wycombe Abbey School Nanjing, a boarding school in eastern China with capacity for more than 2,000 students, told teachers and parents this month that it would close at the end of this academic year.
A number of British private schools have opened in Asia in the hope of generating extra income for new facilities and bursaries at home. Wycombe Abbey is due to open a school in Bangkok this year and one in Singapore in 2028.
The shutdown of Wycombe Nanjing, which opened in 2021 with a 20-acre campus that included boarding lodges, swimming pool and other facilities, marks a setback for international school groups looking to expand in China.