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Hong Kong’s biggest international school group to freeze tuition fees, but at least five of city’s private schools want parents to pay more
- English Schools Foundation makes announcement amid backdrop of coronavirus pandemic
- Some parents believe it is the least the group could have done
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Hong Kong’s biggest international school group has decided to freeze tuition fees at its 22 schools for a second consecutive year amid the coronavirus pandemic, but at least five private schools have proposed an increase of up to 4.9 per cent for the upcoming academic year.
The English Schools Foundation (ESF), which has more than 18,000 pupils at kindergartens and schools, also said in a letter to parents on Wednesday it was “experiencing more withdrawals than usual” this year while more parents faced financial difficulties.
Even though some parents called for a freeze at fee-paying schools this year, a Post check of 20 private and international schools – which typically charge parents more than HK$100,000 annually – found five were planning a rise for the 2021-22 school year.
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The city’s education sector has faced unprecedented challenges over the past year. In-person classes have been suspended for months because of Covid-19, leaving pupils scrambling to adapt to online learning, while many families have also left the city or plan to do so.
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Covid-19: Hong Kong’s needy pupils sidelined by online learning one year since class suspension
Covid-19: Hong Kong’s needy pupils sidelined by online learning one year since class suspension
Education authorities have yet to decide on a full resumption of face-to-face lessons, with most schools bringing a third or more of their pupils back for half days, despite the mass vaccination programme starting in late February. So far, about 5.4 per cent of the city’s population has received a first dose.
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