Long-term growth in the number of British private school pupils is stuck at a mere “0 to 1 per cent” a year, making expansion in emerging markets a much more attractive option, said the head of one of the UK’s biggest schools groups.
Rees Withers, the chief executive of Cognita, said growth in the UK market appeared “pretty flat”, even looking beyond the recession. It was hard for private schools to compete in certain places, such as “areas where the grammar-school system has been maintained” and rural areas with “good junior schools”.
