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Leading British independent school opens satellite school in India
Repton school in agreement with the VR Group of Bengaluru is all set to open their satellite school in the city. Besides, the venture will also look at establishing a sports academy in collaboration with TENVIC, a company founded by former cricketer Anil Kumble.
Leading British independent school Repton has announced a landmark agreement to open a satellite school in Bengaluru, India. Repton has entered into an agreement with the VR Group, a major Bangalore-based real estate group with interests in IT & business parks to enter the Indian education sector. It is the first such venture to be established in the city and among the first in the country. A premium Repton international school, together with four pre-schools will be set up in various locations around the city.
The venture will also include the establishment of a sports academy on the same site which plans to host international sports events as well as specialist sports coaching courses. The exciting collaboration with TENVIC, an Indian sports development and training company founded by India's highly-acclaimed former cricket captain Anil Kumble, will see establishment of a sports academy on the same site as the school.
The state-of-the-art sports facilities will be available to all Repton's pupils. The proposed school will be located on a 34-acre site in the south east of Bengaluru, home to a number of multi-national IT companies and with a growing population of highly-educated professionals seeking quality education for their children. Repton Bangalore will offer the IGCSE curriculum and the IB Diploma, enabling the best pupils to gain passage to international universities.
The Bengaluru school is scheduled to open in September 2018, will be co-educational and cater for over 2,000 pupils. Repton hopes to follow up this initial project with more schools in other Indian states where suitable local partnerships are entered into.
The proposed school will be the latest addition to Repton's existing family of 4 international schools operating in the Middle East. Income from the school will help to strengthen Repton UK's bursary and scholarship fund which assists less well-off families to gain access to an education at Repton and Foremarke Hall.
Founded in 1557, Repton was found on the site of an 800-year-old priory, and counts many famous people among its alumni, including writers Roald Dahl and Christopher Isherwood, and many sporting legends including Olympic gold medal athlete Harold Abrahams – made famous by the film Chariots of Fire – and CB Fry, the renowned cricketer. The school boasts an enviable sporting heritage, producing several national and international-level sports stars at cricket, football, tennis and hockey.
"We are delighted that we will be able to play a part in promoting sports development in India with TENVIC. Traditionally, India has focused on academic achievement. In addition to a first class academic education, this platform will allow us to provide a full array of extra-curricular activities, helping children achieve on the sports field as well as in music, drama and the arts."
KC Vijay Kumar, chairman of the VR Group, said: "We are very excited to introduce Repton to India and to Bangalore. Repton has a deep commitment to providing an all-round education as well as being tried and tested in running schools internationally. We are delighted that our integrated model will, for the first time, allow children to fulfil their potential in the classroom and on the sports field and that we will have the combined dedication of Repton International and TENVIC to establish a new benchmark for schools in India."
With the advent of Repton, the education system in India is all set to get a huge leg up. Besides, many more international schools will soon follow suit. One quick question to ponder here is, will these schools be open to implement RTE?