Overpricing English-medium schools could hurt Hong Kong's future, say critics

As his two daughters enjoy their summer holiday, architect Marcin Klocek has school on his mind. The prospect of soaring fees at international schools has left him contemplating sending his children back to his native Poland for their education.

Both his daughters, aged seven and 12, attend the financially troubled Discovery College. Faced with the need to repay a construction loan to the English Schools Foundation (ESF), the Lantau-based college has announced plans to increase fees by 53 per cent over the next five years, taking them above HK$130,000 per year for primary-school pupils and HK$180,000 for those in Year 7 to Year 11.

Discovery College parents, who have formed a 150-strong concern group to fight the fee increase, are not the only ones worried about rising fees.

Parents whose children begin studying at the four kindergartens, five secondary and nine primary schools run by the ESF after 2016 will find the fees much higher than they are now as the government begins phasing out its subsidy to ESF schools.

With international school places in short supply, the loss of subsidy has raised questions about the future of English-medium education and concern that a lack of school places could hit the city's competitiveness by deterring talented international professionals from moving to the city.

The ESF board last month quietly accepted the loss of the government subsidy, long frozen at HK$283 million per year. But many of the foundation's supporters argue that the loss of the government cash will add to a worrying trend - the widening gap between those who can afford quality English-medium education and those who cannot.