Heilpädagogische Schule Bezirk Bülach

What Heilpädagogische Schule Bezirk Bülach does

Heilpädagogische Schule Bezirk Bülach (HPS) is a public intercommunal institution (Interkommunale Anstalt) headquartered in Winkel, Canton of Zürich, Switzerland, providing special education to children and youth with cognitive impairments across the Bezirk Bülach district. Founded in 1990 as a Zweckverband and restructured into its current legal form on January 1, 2021, HPS operates a designated mandate under the Canton of Zürich's education framework and is the exclusive provider of Type C special education placements for the district.

The school's service portfolio comprises three interconnected programs: a Tagessonderschule (day special education school) in Winkel serving approximately 85 students across 12 classes from kindergarten through secondary level; the Sonderschulung 15plus in Kloten serving 17 students aged 15-20 across three vocational/academic/sheltered-employment profiles; and the Integrierte Sonderschulung (ISS) supporting 30-33 students integrated in regular schools of their home municipalities. These are wrapped by therapeutic services (speech-language therapy and psychomotorics), an on-site lunch program (60-90 daily meals), after-school Hort care, school social work, and specialist consulting including autism consultation, supported communication, and pedagogical ICT support. Technology infrastructure is built on the Escola web-based school management platform, used for attendance, scheduling, parent communication, and transport booking.

HPS's economics are dominated by a fixed canton subsidy of approximately CHF 58,200 per student per year (in place since 2022), with municipalities billed by the canton for their cost share and bearing transportation costs separately. Ancillary revenue streams include B+U Fachstelle consulting to regular schools at CHF 170/hour, quarterly-billed Hort fees, and limited gymnasium rentals. Governance is exercised through a Verwaltungsrat (administrative board) led by Geschäftsführer Fabiano Marchica, with oversight from an Aufsichtsrat (supervisory board) representing member municipalities and a positive external school evaluation completed in December 2020.

Name

Heilpädagogische Schule Bezirk Bülach

Legal name

Heilpädagogische Schule Bezirk Bülach

Website

https://hps-bezirk-buelach.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Heilpädagogische Schule Bezirk Bülach is a public intercommunal special-education institution in Canton Zürich that teaches and supports approximately 132 children and youth with cognitive impairments across day school, extended (15plus), and integrated classroom programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Special Education Services

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Special Education Schools & Programs (EDAJAAAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Autism Classroom & School Program Support (Inclusion/Resource) (EDAKAKAC), Autism Parent/Caregiver Education & Training (School-Linked) (EDAKAKAJ)

Keywords

• Special education services
• Therapeutic school programs
• Inclusive education support
• Vocational preparation training
• Autism consultation services

Headquarters

HQ city

Winkel

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Special Education Funding (Sonderschulung): Since 2022, canton-funded fixed per-placement lump sum (approximately CHF 58,200 per student annually) for special education services. Municipalities no longer pay lump sums directly; the canton bills municipalities for their share (as of September 15th).
2. Student Transportation: Transportation costs are directly borne by municipalities. The school organizes transport and invoices municipalities quarterly.
3. Consulting Services (B+U): Fee-based consulting services to regular schools on topics including challenging behavior, supported communication, autism, educational diagnostics, and career orientation. Charged at CHF 170/hour plus travel expenses.
4. Extended Care (Hort): Fee-based after-school care services charged to municipalities, which then pass costs to parents. Registration is binding for one school year.
5. Room Rental: Rental of school facilities (gymnasium with side rooms, school kitchen) to external parties under certain conditions, subject to house rules and fee regulations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Heilpädagogische Schule Bezirk Bülach delivers publicly mandated special education for children and youth with cognitive impairments across three interconnected programs: a day school (Tagessonderschule) with approximately 85 students in 12 multi-age classes at the Winkel campus, Sonderschulung 15plus covering 17 students in three classes at Kloten, and Integrierte Sonderschulung (ISS) supporting around 30 students integrated in regular classes across district municipalities. The instruction is grounded in the Canton Zürich Lehrplan 21 framework and is supplemented by Logopädie, psychomotorics, supported communication, autism consultation, school social work, after-school Hort care, an in-house kitchen meal program, and external Fachstelle B+U consulting services billed to regular schools.

Product overview

Heilpädagogische Schule Bezirk Bülach operates as a unified special education service rather than a traditional product company. The core offerings center on three educational programs: Tagessonderschule (day special education school for 85 students with intellectual disabilities from kindergarten through secondary), Sonderschulung 15plus (extended special education for 15-20 year olds with 3 profiles), and Integrierte Sonderschulung ISS (integrated education placing ~30 students in regular classrooms). These are supported by therapeutic services (speech therapy, psychomotor therapy), after-school care/hort, lunch program, and specialized consulting services including autism consultation, school social work, and the B+U Fachstelle which extends expertise to regular schools. The school also provides pedagogical ICT support and offers facility rentals. The Tagessonderschule forms the primary service, while Sonderschulung 15plus and ISS represent differentiated pathways based on student age and integration capability.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Tagessonderschule (Day Special Education School) Full-day special education program for children and youth with intellectual disabilities from kindergarten through secondary level, with instruction, therapy, meals and extracurricular care delivered in year-group mixed classes of approximately seven students each at the Winkel campus.
• Sonderschulung 15plus Extended special education program for youth aged 15–20 with cognitive impairments, offering three profiles (school-oriented, vocational preparation, sheltered workplace preparation); currently 3 classes with 17 students at the Kloten site.
• Integrierte Sonderschulung (ISS) - Integrated Special Education Integrated special education service in which students with intellectual disabilities attend regular classes at their local school while receiving 4–9 lessons per week of support from an HPS special education teacher; supports approximately 30 students across district municipalities.
• Therapien (Therapy Services) Therapeutic services including Logopädie (speech-language therapy) and psychomotor therapy, delivered by qualified professionals in individual, group, and classroom-integrated settings.
• Schulergänzende Betreuung / Hort (After-School Care) Fee-based after-school care offered Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from end of school until 17:30, billed quarterly to municipalities which pass costs to parents; registration is binding for one school year.
• Mittagstisch (Lunch Program) Supervised lunch program where students eat together as a class; meals are freshly prepared daily (60–90 meals across four weekdays) in the school gastro kitchen with attention to cultural and special dietary needs.
• Unterstützte Kommunikation (UK) - Supported Communication Communication support service for students with speech and language impairments, employing pictograms, sign language, visualized schedules and electronic aids to enable students to express needs, wishes and interests.
• Beratung Autismus (Autism Consultation) Internal consulting service supporting staff in understanding and addressing the needs of students on the autism spectrum, expanding professional competencies in handling autism-related challenges.
• Schulsozialarbeit (School Social Work) Low-threshold counseling service for students, parents and teachers on personal, academic or family challenges, covering media, violence prevention, social skills, sexuality and health promotion.
• Fachstelle B+U (Consultation and Support Services) External advisory service offering consultation to regular schools on challenging behavior, supported communication, autism, educational diagnostics, pedagogical ICT and career orientation; charged at CHF 170 per hour plus travel costs.
• Pädagogischer ICT Support Internal ICT support service assisting teaching staff with digital materials and media in instruction through regular ICT sessions and individual consultations.
• Raumvermietung (Room Rental) Rental of school facilities including the gymnasium with ancillary rooms, available to external parties when not required for school operations and subject to house rules and fee regulations.

Quantifiable outcome

• ~85 students served in day school, ~17 in 15plus, ~30-33 in ISS integration
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Spitex Mobile (Kinderspitex Switzerland)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCooperation with private company Spitex Mobile to provide wheelchair-accessible vehicles free of charge to families with disabled children. Vehicles can be borrowed for up to two weeks for family visits, excursions, or vacations throughout Switzerland. Parents only pay for fuel. A family bus is stationed on school premises for booking through the Spitex Mobile website.
• Pigna Foundation (Stiftung Pigna)coreOthersHPS Sonderschulung 15plus is housed in Pigna Foundation's commercial building at Oberfeldstrasse 12a in Kloten, sharing location with Pigna's production facilities for adults with disabilities. Previously housed at Pigna's Feldstrasse location in Bülach from 2005-2013.
• Eric Pfister PersonentransportecoreOthersTransportation company engaged to transport students from their residence to school and back home using school buses. Parents report absences to Eric Pfister Personentransporte (044 836 90 43) in addition to school absence reporting via Escola.
• Escola GmbHcoreTechnology or IntegrationWeb-based software provider for Swiss school daily operations. Escola platform used for parent communication, attendance reporting, scheduling, special needs transportation booking, and educational planning documentation.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves11 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Stiftung Schloss Regensberg: Canton of Zürich special education foundation operating schools and residential programs for children and youth with cognitive and multiple disabilities. Closely comparable service offering (Tagesschule, vocational prep) under the same cantonal regulatory and funding framework.
• Heilpädagogische Schule Zürich: Another Canton of Zürich Heilpädagogische Schule, larger and serving the city of Zürich. Direct peer because it provides the same Tagessonderschule / Sonderschulung / ISS service mix under the same cantonal funding regime.
• Heilpädagogische Schule Horgen: Direct peer as another Heilpädagogische Schule operating in the Canton of Zürich under the same cantonal per-placement funding framework, serving children with cognitive impairments in a different Bezirk. Operationally and structurally analogous to HPS Bezirk Bülach.
• Heilpädagogische Schule Winterthur: Heilpädagogische Schule serving the Winterthur region in Canton Zürich. Direct peer operating the same tripartite structure (day school, 15plus, integrated special education) for children with intellectual disabilities.
• Stiftung Bühl Wädenswil: Special education institution in Canton Zürich offering school, vocational preparation, and residential programs for children and youth with cognitive impairments. Comparable in mission, scale, and funding model to HPS Bezirk Bülach.

Others

• Pigna Stiftung (Räume für Menschen mit Beeinträchtigung): Foundation for adults with disabilities sharing the Kloten facility with HPS's Sonderschulung 15plus. Adjacent peer providing sheltered employment and adult services — the natural downstream counterpart of HPS's vocational-prep track and a real partnership counterparty.
• Escola GmbH: Provider of the web-based school management platform used by HPS for parent communication, attendance, scheduling, and educational planning. Ecosystem/technology partner rather than a competitor, but a comparable Swiss school-IT vendor to other special education schools.

Regional players

• Schulheim Sonnenhof Arnegg: Special education school in Canton St. Gallen serving children and youth with cognitive and behavioral challenges. Regional peer with analogous residential/day school model, operating under a different cantonal funding regime than HPS Bezirk Bülach.
• Sprachheilschule St. Gallen: Special education school focused on speech and language support in Canton St. Gallen. Comparable in that it provides therapeutic and pedagogical services to K–12 students within a Swiss cantonal education framework, though with a narrower clinical specialization.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/heilp%C3%A4dagogische-schule-bezirk-b%C3%BClach

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Heilpädagogische Schule Bezirk Bülach