What Scholé does

Scholé is a private education company founded in 2012 that acquires and operates a network of child-centred private schools across East Africa. The company is headquartered in London (100 Burghley Road, NW5 1AL) and currently operates five schools across three countries: Kisubi High School in Uganda (acquired 2015), Pestalozzi Education Centre (2014) and Crested Crane Academy (2016) in Zambia, and the Makini Schools group in Kenya (acquired 2018, comprising 8 schools across 4 campuses serving over 3,000 students aged 3-18). Scholé's core methodology blends British and African educational approaches, delivered through a centralised operating model that places School Development Directors and Operations Directors in each school to drive teaching, learning, governance and leadership improvements. The company offers Africa's only access to the UK's Improving Teacher Programme via its Director of Teacher Training, and draws on a talent pipeline from Challenge Partners (300+ UK schools) and Olevi International.

Scholé makes money through recurring tuition fees paid by families at its operated schools, with current pricing in the $800 to $2,000 per year range positioning the schools in the mid-tier private education market for middle-income East African families. The go-to-market is acquisition-driven: the company identifies successful local curriculum schools, secures acquisition capital (notably via its April 2018 joint venture with ADvTECH, JSE-listed Africa's largest private education provider, and Caerus Capital), and integrates targets into the network. The reported outcome at Pestalozzi Education Centre — a 20% enrollment increase and doubled top-grade achievement over two years — is the primary quantified proof point for the model. Strategic advisors include Tanya Barron (CEO, Plan International UK), Alex Nairn (former UK TDA Programme Director), and Richard Ogdon (emerging-markets investment banking veteran). The company is profit-making, reinvests earnings, and was founded by Adam Nichols (CEO), Matthew O'Connor, and Catherine Stevens.

Name

Scholé

Legal name

Scholé

Website

https://schole.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Scholé is a private education company founded in 2012 that acquires and operates child-centred private schools across East Africa (Uganda, Kenya, Zambia), serving middle-income families through a network of five schools with tuition fees of $800 to $2,000 per year.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Private K-12 Education Services

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (611110), Elementary and Secondary Schools (61111)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

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

akta.pro secondary industry

Preschool Programs within Private K–12 Schools (EDACABAM)

Keywords

• Private school operations
• K-12 education
• School acquisitions
• Child-centered learning
• East Africa education

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. School Fees: Operating private schools charging $800 to $2,000 per year. Revenue is recurring from annual/semester tuition fees paid by families. Schools serve pre-school through secondary students with both day and boarding options.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Scholé acquires and operates existing private schools in East Africa (Uganda, Kenya, Zambia), applying investment capital and a child-centred learning methodology that blends British and African educational approaches. The company runs pre-school through secondary schools (day and boarding), charging tuition of $800 to $2,000 per year, and provides professional development such as the UK's Improving Teacher Programme to staff.

Product overview

Scholé is an education company that acquires existing private schools in Africa and transforms them into world-class learning institutions. The company operates a network of child-centred schools across East Africa (Uganda, Kenya, and Zambia), providing investment capital alongside international education expertise. Key operated schools include Kisubi Schools (Uganda), Makini Schools (Kenya), Pestalozzi Education Centre and Crested Crane Academy (Zambia). Scholé's services include professional development programmes such as the Improving Teacher Programme, coaching, mentoring, and exchange programmes for staff collaboration. The company follows a child-centred learning model that blends British and African educational approaches, focusing on academic achievement alongside whole-child development including pastoral support and co-curricular programmes.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Kisubi Schools A secondary boarding school in Kampala, Uganda, operated by Scholé since its 2015 acquisition. Part of the network of child-centred schools across East Africa.
• Makini Schools A prestigious group of schools in Nairobi and Kisumu, Kenya, serving over 3,000 students aged 3-18 across 8 schools and 4 campuses. Acquired by Scholé in 2018.
• Pestalozzi Education Centre An all-through school in Lusaka, Zambia, operated by Scholé since 2014. Demonstrated significant uplift in academic performance under Scholé management, with 20% enrollment increase and doubled top grades over two years.
• Crested Crane Academy An all-through school in Lusaka, Zambia, added to Scholé's portfolio in 2016.
• Improving Teacher Programme Scholé is the only organisation in Africa to offer the UK's renowned Improving Teacher Programme, providing teachers with skills and strategies to reach the next teaching level. Delivered in person by Scholé's Director of Teacher Training.
• School Development Services Comprehensive school improvement services including investment capital for facilities and growth, international education expertise for teaching and learning development, governance and leadership support, and ongoing professional development programmes offered to acquired schools.

Named customers4 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Challenge PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUK's foremost school improvement network founded by London Challenge team. UK charity owned and led by schools working together for improvement. Over 300 schools in network. Scholé created pool of senior leaders from Challenge Partners' schools interested in becoming School Development Directors.
• Olevi InternationalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganisation driving up standards in quality of teaching nationally and internationally. Delivers teacher training and professional development programmes. Trained almost 3,000 programme facilitators in over 1,000 facilitator schools across UK and abroad. Has granted Scholé free access to all its training materials and is recruiting Specialists from its network.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• ADvTECH: JSE-listed Africa's largest private education provider, operating 100+ schools across South Africa and Botswana. Direct peer as Scholé's JV partner and the most established private K–12 school operator on the continent; competes for the same institutional investment and acquisition pipeline in Africa.
• Caerus Capital: Investment and advisory firm focused on healthcare and education in emerging markets. Direct peer through the JV structure and a thought leader (publisher of the 'Business of Education in Africa' report) shaping the same private-education investment landscape Scholé operates in.
• Bridge International Academies: Large-scale operator of affordable private schools across Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, and India. Direct peer in the East African private K–12 market, though with a more low-cost / high-volume positioning versus Scholé's premium mid-tier offering.

Broad incumbents

• GEMS Education: One of the world's largest private K–12 operators with international schools across multiple regions including Africa. Comparable as a global premium private school group; competes for international-curriculum families in emerging markets.
• Cognita Schools: UK-headquartered international schools group operating premium K–12 campuses globally. Comparable as a private K–12 operator with British-curriculum heritage and a school-improvement playbook that mirrors Scholé's Challenge Partners / Olevi approach.
• Inspired Education: Global premium schools group with campuses across multiple continents including Africa. Comparable as an international-curriculum K–12 operator targeting middle-class families, though much larger and broader in geography.
• Nord Anglia Education: Global premium K–12 school group with international campuses worldwide. Comparable as an operator of British/international curriculum schools targeting affluent families; a broader incumbent than Scholé in scale and brand.

Emerging players

• Nova Pioneer: African private school network offering a rigorous, blended international curriculum in Kenya and South Africa. Emerging peer targeting a similar middle-class East African family segment with a growth-stage, multi-campus model.
• Enko Education: Pan-African network of international schools preparing students for leading universities. Comparable as a multi-country African operator offering international curriculum pathways, though at a smaller and earlier-stage scale than Scholé.

Others

• Pansophic Learning: Global K–12 operator (US, Switzerland, Middle East) and Scholé strategic minority partner. Comparable as a multi-modality (online, brick-and-mortar, blended) private education group, though focused on different geographies than Scholé.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/schole

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Scholé