UK-based boarding schools cash in on increasing demand from greater China region for quality education

The headmaster of the Malaysian branch of a top UK boarding school is seeking to explore the growing market in China, as more parents are now able to afford the fees even though they are higher than expensive boarding schools in Hong Kong.

Robert Pick admitted only the top 5 per cent of the working population were able to afford costly boarding schools such as Marlborough College Malaysia, but these schools were branching out to meet the growing demand.

This year is Pick's third visit to Hong Kong to recruit pupils and he attracted about 60 local and expatriate parents to hear his talk.

The school, which caters to children aged from four years old to 18, charges annual tuition and boarding fees of up to 150,750 ringgit (HK$325,438), compared to HK$296,176 at Harrow International School Hong Kong and HK$288,000 at Li Po Chun United World College.

Pick said there were about eight to 10 pupils from the mainland, Hong Kong and Macau studying at the school, which opened in 2012.

"Parents see it as advantageous not having to fly to the UK to get a similar education," he says. "They can easily hop down from Hong Kong to see [their children] during term time."