What Internationella Engelska Skolan does

Internationella Engelska Skolan (IES) is the largest bilingual (Swedish–English) independent school operator in Sweden, founded in 1993 by Barbara Bergström and headquartered in Danderyd, Stockholm. The organization runs 46 schools serving approximately 30,000 students from preschool (F) through year 9, delivering the Swedish national curriculum with up to half of instruction conducted in English by native English-speaking teachers. Educational offerings include Cambridge IGCSE preparation, an International Baccalaureate (IB) programme at upper-secondary level, and Fritids (after-school care) services, supported by measurable outcomes of 91% Year 9 qualification rates for gymnasiet and an 85% qualified-teacher ratio in 2024/2025.

The company's core operating model is a publicly funded education platform with zero tuition fees. Revenue flows entirely through the Swedish school voucher (skolpeng) system, which is financed via municipal taxes and allocated per enrolled student; families apply directly through an ongoing queue system managed on the SchoolSoft platform. IES distributes admissions via this queue across all 40+ school locations, runs open-house events at the campus level, and uses its main website (engelska.se) as the primary top-of-funnel marketing channel. With 1,001–5,000 employees, IES combines consumer-direct enrollment, B2B-style institutional operations, and an integrated technology backbone through its core-tier partnership with SchoolSoft.

The business is anchored in three stated pillars — Command of English, High academic expectations, and a Safe and calm school environment — and is exposed primarily to Swedish education policy and skolpeng funding levels rather than to consumer discretionary spending. IES carries an inconsistent ownership signal in source data (firmographics indicate a public listing under sto:ENG, while a separate block characterizes IES as privately held with no public ticker); the more specific stock-symbol reference is treated as the authoritative signal. Other governance signals include a PE investment from TA Associates in 2012 and a professionalized C-suite (CEO Anna Sörelius, Vice CEO Jörgen Stenquist, Group CFO Lars Jonsson, CIO/CISO Scott Melnyk).

Name

Internationella Engelska Skolan

Legal name

Internationella Engelska Skolan

Website

https://engelska.se

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Internationella Engelska Skolan is Sweden's largest bilingual (Swedish–English) independent school operator, running 46 schools serving ~30,000 students from preschool through year 9. It delivers the Swedish national curriculum with up to 50% English instruction, funded entirely through the skolpeng school voucher system with zero tuition fees.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

K-12 Independent Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111), Language Schools (61163)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Language Immersion & Bilingual Private Schools (EDAJABAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

International/Global Curriculum Schools (IB, Cambridge, etc.) (EDAJABAG)

Keywords

• Bilingual education
• Independent schools
• Primary education
• School operations
• English immersion

Headquarters

HQ city

Stockholm

HQ country

Sweden

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. School Voucher Funding (Skolpeng): Funded entirely through the Swedish school voucher system (skolpeng), which is financed through the Swedish tax system. No tuition fees are charged to families.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Internationella Engelska Skolan operates 46 bilingual (Swedish-English) independent schools across Sweden serving approximately 30,000 students from preschool through year 9, with up to 50% of instruction delivered in English by native English-speaking teachers. Educational services are free to families, funded entirely through the Swedish school voucher (skolpeng) system financed by municipal taxes. Offerings include the Swedish national curriculum, Cambridge IGCSE preparation, IB (International Baccalaureate) at upper secondary level, and Fritids after-school care.

Product overview

Internationella Engelska Skolan operates a network of 46 bilingual Swedish schools serving approximately 30,000 students from preschool (F) through year 9. The organization provides educational services using the Swedish national curriculum with up to half of instruction delivered through English by native English-speaking teachers. Key educational offerings include Cambridge IGCSE preparation, an IB (International Baccalaureate) programme at the upper secondary level, and Fritids (after-school care) services. Founded in 1993, the schools are funded through the Swedish tax system and school voucher system.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bilingual K-9 Education (Preschool through Year 9) Core educational offering: Swedish national curriculum delivered across 46 schools from preschool (F) through year 9, with up to 50% of instruction in English by native English-speaking teachers. Free to families, funded via the Swedish school voucher (skolpeng). Serves approximately 30,000 students.
• Cambridge IGCSE Preparation

Quantifiable outcome

• 91% of Year 9 students qualified for gymnasiet
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• SchoolSoftcoreTechnology or IntegrationSchoolSoft provides the queue management and parent communication platform used across all IES schools for admissions, attendance reporting, and parent communications.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• AcadeMedia: Largest independent school operator in the Nordics, running a broad portfolio of preschool, K-12, and adult-education programs in Sweden under the same skolpeng-funded fristående skolor model as IES. Directly comparable in business model, customer base, and regulatory exposure.
• Futuraskolan: Independent K-9 school group in Sweden operating under the fristående skolor voucher system, often positioned as a values-driven alternative to IES. Comparable in scale, geography, and funding structure.
• Pysslingen Skolor & Förskolor: Major Swedish independent school and preschool operator (part of AcadeMedia group) competing for the same families through the same school-voucher funding model. Closely aligned in operating footprint and customer profile.
• British School of Stockholm: English-medium international school in Stockholm offering K-12 instruction following a British/international curriculum. Directly comparable to IES in target segment (English-immersion families) and curriculum philosophy.
• Kunskapsskolan Education Sweden (KED): Swedish free-school operator (fristående skolor) running a network of K-12 schools with a personalized-learning pedagogy funded through skolpeng. Directly comparable to IES in funding mechanism, target families, and competitive set.
• International School of the Stockholm Region (ISR): International K-12 school in Stockholm serving globally mobile families with an IB curriculum. Comparable to IES's upper-secondary IB track and to its English-language delivery model.

Broad incumbents

• Nord Anglia Education: Global premium K-12 school group with IB and bilingual programmes across multiple regions. Comparable to IES in IB offering and English-immersion positioning, though Nord Anglia operates a fee-paying, premium international model rather than voucher-funded schools.
• Cognita Schools: International K-12 school group operating bilingual and international-curriculum schools across Europe, Asia, and the Americas. Comparable to IES in international-curriculum (IB/British) focus and private school operations.
• GEMS Education: One of the world's largest private K-12 operators, with a global footprint of premium and bilingual schools. Comparable in scale, curriculum breadth, and international-programme delivery, though operating under a different funding model.

Regional players

• Dibber: Nordic education provider operating preschools, schools, and after-school care across the Nordics. Comparable in regional focus and child-development service model, though with broader preschool weighting than IES.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Engelska.se

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Internationella Engelska Skolan