Beaconhouse School System

The Beaconhouse School System is one of the largest private school networks in the world.^[1][2] Established in November 1975 as the Les Anges Montessori Academy for toddlers, Beaconhouse has since grown into a global network of private schools, institutes, and universities, giving education to over 241,000 students from pre-school to post-graduation.^[1] Many of these students study at the group's flagship network, the Beaconhouse School System, while others are enrolled at The Educators,^[3] a parallel school network operated by the group.

Beaconhouse School System has now grown into an international company with independent divisions in the following countries: Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Oman, Pakistan, the Philippines, Thailand, the UAE and the United Kingdom . Its activities extend beyond education in some countries.

History

The first Beaconhouse school opened in Lahore, Pakistan, in 1975. From its initial association in the 1980s with the Moray House School of Education in Scotland, to its teacher training programme initiated in 1993 in collaboration with the University of Bradford, Beaconhouse has organised in-service teacher training. Today, more than half its teachers have internationally recognised teaching certificates while the rest are enrolled in the permanent in-service programme. In addition, Beaconhouse sends senior academics to the UK annually to pursue master's degrees in education and professional development.

In 1996, the World Bank Group, through its private sector wing, the International Finance Corporation, entered into a financing arrangement with Beaconhouse aimed at the construction of new school campuses. This project represented the first time that the World Bank had extended its arms to the private education sector anywhere in the world. The student base of Beaconhouse continues to grow at 15% per year.

In September 2012, the founder and chairperson of the Beaconhouse Group, Mrs. Nasreen Mahmud Kasuri, received a Pakistan Women Power 100 award, an award that recognises the positive impact of influential women from the international Pakistani community.^[4]

Beaconhouse has held its School of Tomorrow conference every few years, starting in 2000. Its fourth edition, School of Tomorrow: Empowering Lifelong Learners, was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in November 2012 and was the first conference to be hosted overseas by a Pakistan-based organisation.

The School of Tomorrow conferences feature renowned and inspirational academicians and thinkers from around the world and provide them with a platform to address the future of schools and learning from a global perspective.

School network

Beaconhouse owns school companies and educational institutes around the world. Some of these are profiled below.

Pakistan

The first Beaconhouse school, Les Anges Montessori Academy, opened in Lahore, Pakistan, in 1975. Today, Beaconhouse has established over 146 private schools in more than 30 cities across Pakistan.^[5] These institutions collectively provide preschool education, primary education, secondary education and preparation for the international General Certificate of Education (GCE) and local Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examinations.

Beaconhouse operates campuses for students of varying ages in the following Pakistani cities: Abbotabad, Bahawalpur, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Hafizabad, Islamabad, Jhang, Jhelum, Karachi, Kharian, Lahore, Mandi Bahauddin, Mardan, Mirpur, Multan, Nowshera, Okara, Peshawar, Hyderabad, Quetta, Rahim Yar Khan, Rawalpindi, Sadiqabad, Sahiwal, Sargodha, Sheikhupura, Sialkot, Sukkur, and Wah Cantonment.^[5]

Beaconhouse has also helped fund or manage several other educational programs in Pakistan:

• The Educators, a separate private school network^[3]
• TNS Beaconhouse, the first school in Pakistan to embrace the Reggio Emilia approach^[6]
• Gymboree Play and Music, an international franchise of play centres for which Beaconhouse is Pakistan's franchisee^[7]
• The Early Years, a child development centre in Lahore, Pakistan^[8]
• Bubbles, a playgroup programme developed by Beaconhouse, offered at selected schools
• The Discovery Centre SmartSchool in Karachi, Pakistan
• Beaconhouse National University, a private liberal arts university in Lahore, whose establishment was assisted by a US$6 million contribution from Beaconhouse.^[9]
• Concordia Colleges, a group of college campuses established in 2014 in several cities in Pakistan^[10][11]

United Kingdom

Headquartered in London, Beaconhouse Educational Services Limited, or BESL, was set up by Beaconhouse as a school management company. It also serves as a holding company for Beaconhouse schools in Asia and the Middle East. BESL manages the conceptualisation and construction of start-up schools, the acquisition of existing schools, and day-to-day school operations.

BESL's driving force is to establish international quality benchmarks in all services offered at its schools. It currently owns and operates the following schools in the UK:

• Cherub Nurseries and Preschools: Based in Yorkshire, England, Cherub is a group of three nurseries and preschools within half an hour of each other. The Cherub group was established in 1976.
• Pocklington Montessori Nursery: Pocklington Montessori Nursery is also based in Pocklington Yorkshire, close to York. It is one of the largest and most well-resourced Montessori nurseries in the UK, herb and vegetable gardens for children. We cater for children from 6 weeks to 5 years, and are registered and inspected by Ofsted and Montessori Centre International (MCI).

Newlands School Pocklington, Yorkshire. We are small Independent School conveniently situated on the A 1079 on the outskirts of Pocklington. We are an associate school of Hymers College Hull with transports links between the schools. We cater for children from 4 – 11 years old.

• Newlands School: Acquired by BESL in July 2009, Newlands School is an independent, coeducational day and boarding school set on a 21-acre property in Seaford, East Sussex. The school caters to students from prep school through sixth form. In 2011, following its acquisition of Newlands UK, Beaconhouse introduced the Newlands UK Activity Programme for Classes VI to X, giving Beaconhouse students the opportunity to enrich their education and expand their cultural knowledge of England with two and six-week residential trips to Newlands School.

Malaysia

The Beaconhouse School System was the first Pakistani education system to cross borders to Malaysia.^[2] Beaconhouse Malaysia Sdn Bhd was established in 2004 to operate schools in Malaysia.

Beaconhouse owns eleven schools in Malaysia, all of them in or around Kuala Lumpur. Of these, seven are preschools and four – Sekolah Sri Inai, Sri Lethia, Sri Murni and Beaconhouse-Newlands Kuala Lumpur – are primary and secondary schools. In particular, Sekolah Sri Inai was a major acquisition that put Beaconhouse on the educational landscape of Malaysia. Built on 2.5 acres of property 15 minutes from downtown Kuala Lumpur, Beaconhouse Sri Inai has recently undergone a major upgrading of facilities and infrastructure.

Philippines

In late 2005, Beaconhouse acquired Dame Theresiana de Montealegre School, a private school based in Manila, Philippines, that offers English-medium education to over 200 students in an upper-middle income suburb of the city. Apart from a sizeable enrolment from within the local population, Theresiana also benefits from Korean students whose families send them to Manila to learn English and Mandarin.

Beaconhouse acquired a second school, St Paul Learning Centre, in Cebu City, the second largest city in the Philippines. The school has been improved to meet the demands of a steadily increasing enrolment.

In early 2012, Beaconhouse entered into a partnership with the Angels in Heaven school in Cabuyao, Laguna, south of Manila. Divided over two campuses located close to each other, the school caters to students at kindergarten, elementary and high school level.

Thailand

St George's International School is a purpose-built school catering to the expatriate community in Bangkok. Built on a 3-acre (1.2 ha) site close to the new Bangkok airport, St George's caters to children aged 2 to 11, with plans to go up to senior school.

Indonesia

In 2010 Beaconhouse completed a strategic partnership with the SIS Group of Schools, comprising the popular Singapore International Schools (SIS) and its other national plus (private) schools. The Group has close to 3,000 students.

Bangladesh

The first branch of Beaconhouse in Bangladesh commenced its first academic year in August 2006 and relocated from Gulshan to Banani, another prestigious neighbourhood in Dhaka. Beaconhouse expects its growth in Bangladesh to be driven largely by start-up schools, and is already in the process of establishing a second branch in another part of the capital.

Oman

Beaconhouse established its first school in Muscat, Oman, in September 2006. This school has been established through Al-Kanz Education, a joint venture between Beaconhouse UK (which owns majority shares) and a local Omani group.

Beaconhouse is exploring opportunities in Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia.

UAE

In 2009 Beaconhouse acquired the Gulf Nursery in Sharjah. The same year the Group also entered into a public–private partnership with the Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC) to improve the general performance of a cluster of government schools, with particular emphasis on ensuring significant improvement in students' achievement in English, mathematics and science.

TBT Online

Launched towards the end of 2011, The Beaconhouse Times Online is an interactive news portal developed by Mudassir Ali that connects the Beaconhouse community, including parents, across 9 countries. A network of student and teacher correspondents provides campus news on a regular basis, facilitating the sharing of achievements of Beaconhouse students, teachers and staff members across the world. Features are regularly added on TBT Online including discussion forums, online competitions, student polls, upcoming events, videos, and educational features.

Other operations

The Beaconhouse Group is involved in a number of activities that extend beyond education.

Beacon Energy Limited

Beacon Energy Limited is the group's power generation company that has leveraged on the Government of Pakistan's recently introduced alternative energy policy. It was the first publicly listed company from the Beaconhouse Group and is currently involved in a number of projects.

Premier Trading Services (Pvt) Ltd

Premier Trading Services, the Beaconhouse Group's commercial wing, comprises Premier Trading and Premier Bus Service. Premier Trading's business includes the production and distribution of school supplies and other products. Premier Bus Service, now a major division of Premier Trading, was started in 2003. It provides premium transportation services to the general public of Lahore, Pakistan.

Premier DLC

Premier Diverse Learning Concepts is an institute offering various professional training and certification programmes in Lahore. The institute is a joint venture between Premier Trading and the UK-based company DLC Worldwide.

Beaconhouse Estate

Beaconhouse Estate is the official housing society for the Beaconhouse School System and Beaconhouse National University.

References

External links

• Beaconhouse Group
• Beaconhouse official website – Pakistan