Leading Early-years Education, Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai is Officially Open

Designed to meet the needs of children between the ages of 2-6 years, Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai adopts the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) as a framework for practice, which will also be linked to the Wellington Aptitudes

Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai Opening Ceremony

Shanghai - February 29, 2016, Wellington College announced that Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai Early Years Centre, its seventh new member, is officially open. As an important part of “New Bund Wellington College Bilingual Education Project”, Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai aims to provide high-quality educational resources for more Chinese families. The opening of Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai Early Years Centre marks another major breakthrough in Sino-British education cooperation which extends to early-years education and covers all development phases. Many representatives participated in the opening ceremony, including: Ms. Chen Tiedi, former Chairman of the Standing Committee of Shanghai Municipal People’s Congress and Vice-Secretary of the CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee, Mr. Hu Wei, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Shanghai Committee, founding Mayor of Pudong New District, Shanghai and Chairman of Shanghai Public Relations Association, Mr. Yin Houqing, State Educational Inspector, Vice-Chairman of China Institute of Education and Chairman of Shanghai Institute of Education, Ms. Helen Kavanagh, International Business Director of Wellington College, Ms. Joy Qiao, Chairman of Wellington College China, Dr. Ahmed Hussain, Director of Schools, Wellington College China, Ms. Joan Qin, Deputy General Manager of Wellington College China, Ms. Vanessa Szucs-Hussain, Master of Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai Early Years Centre, the school leadership teams from Wellington College in Shanghai and the management from New Bund International Business District.

Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai

Together Ms. Chen Tiedi and Mr. Hu Wei, said, “According to China’s National Plan for Medium- and Long-term Education Reform and Development (2010-2020), early-years education for children aging from 0-3 years shall be prioritized. Early-years education plays a significant role in enhancing the future development of children and the overall quality of life. Shanghai Municipal government has always been actively promoting the development of early-year’s education. Wellington College has chosen to open its first bilingual education institution in Shanghai, which will meet the needs of Shanghai families for high-quality education, introduce world-class early-years education model into Shanghai, and provide reference for the reform and development of Chinese early-years education. We hope that Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai will be the leading force in early-years education in Shanghai and China.”

Recently, Wellington College and New Bund, a division of Shanghai Lujiazui Group, signed a cooperation framework agreement to jointly develop the “New Bund Wellington College Bilingual Education Project”. As the third project for the Wellington College China Group, but first bilingual setting, Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai is to provide a bilingual curriculum for children between the ages of 2-6 years that is designed to meet China's domestic demand for high-quality education. The second phase in 2018 will extend Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai Early Years Centre to a school designed for children between 2 to 15 years. Ms. Tao Jianwen, General Manager of Shanghai New Bund International Business District Investment (Group) Co., Ltd., said: “Allocation of educational resources plays an important role in an urban economy. We are pleased to see that Wellington College actively fulfills its commitments to the New Bund, which enables more international and Chinese families to have various and excellent choices in early-years education.”

As the first bilingual education institution with a British tradition in Shanghai, the bilingual immersion of Wellington College Shanghai Bilingual will ensure that the children have a 50/50% exposure to Chinese and English. In the early years’ setting, Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai will adopt the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) as a framework for practice, which will also be linked to the Wellington Aptitudes. It will embody the Wellington Core Values leading to the Wellington Identity, thus creating a unique experience of education for children through combining academic excellence with a strong values based ethos in a personalised, fun, active manner.

Ms. Helen Kavanagh, International Business Director of Wellington College and Deputy Chair of Governors of Wellington College China

“Since its entry into China 6 years ago, Wellington College has been committed to providing first rate, all-round education for pupils and supporting their development both in and out of the classroom. As 'Sino-British relations' enter a golden age, Wellington College International Tianjin and Wellington College International Shanghai have demonstrated remarkable achievement and are valued highly by parents and industry partners both locally and nationwide.” Ms. Helen Kavanagh said: “The 21st Century’s economic globalization, the introduction of the population policy, a broader minded educational outlook of Chinese families and changes to family structures have all led to new requirements for early-years education. Against this backdrop, Wellington College and Shanghai Lujiazui Group jointly developed the ‘New Bund Wellington College Bilingual Education Project’. Thus this project is another example of our commitment to China. Chinese families will benefit from the Wellington Identity, its values, aptitudes and commitment to excellence. Further, the organisation will share research based, proven successful education approaches to learning and childhood development with Chinese families and contribute to the sound development of China's early-years education provision.”

Mr. Julian Thomas, the 14th Master of Wellington College

Mr. Julian Thomas, the 14th Master of Wellington College, wrote in his congratulation letter on the opening: “The ground-breaking initiative will draw from the very best of the British and Chinese education systems, offering a learning experience for young children unsurpassed anywhere in the world. This is yet another example of the strength of our partnership with Wellington College, China; it is a partnership which we value deeply and remains at the heart of our educational philosophy. Few schools, if any, can match the opportunities provided by our global network of collaboration and support. We very much look forward to supporting the new Early Years Centre through its early stages and beyond.”

Performance by Prep-school Choir of Wellington College International Shanghai during the Opening Ceremony

The learning environment of Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai has been meticulously designed. The interior design team and the construction team is the same as that worked on Wellington College International Shanghai. To establish a more natural learning environment, the equipment for the outdoor learning area, roof terrace, wooden staircase and learning resources have been specially selected and imported from Europe. In terms of educational philosophy, Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai Early Years Centre will fully integrate the education philosophies of both the UK and China, being committed to promoting China's education sovereignty and values, but coupled with a Wellington approach to learning. Further, it will provide children with a superior educational environment and high-quality educational resources.

Specially designed learning environment of Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai

Ms. Vanessa Szucs-Hussain, Master of Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai Early Years Centre is introducing the Bilingual setting to Mr. Gerard MacMahon, Master of Wellington College International Shanghai

Ms. Vanessa Szucs-Hussain, Master of Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai Early Years Centre, said: “To offer a bilingual education to children through an ethos of immersion not only promotes language development, but an understanding of culture, heritage and tradition. Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai has designed courses for children at various ages and phases based on the framework and principles of EYFS. The teachers will work in teams to plan effective learning opportunities that will be presented to the children throughout the different learning spaces. The team has a real talent of being able to see how children learn, define what makes each individual pupil engage in learning and personalise the learning journey for each and every pupil in their care.”

Located in proximity to Wellington College International Shanghai, Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai is part of the New Bund International CBD, in an excellent location with convenient access to multiple methods of transport. With an available construction area of 3.5 million square meters, Shanghai New Bund International CBD will become a comprehensive city centre, attracting business headquarters, cultural and media organizations, as well as providing sports and leisure facilities.

Fees for Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai will start from CNY 180,000 and CNY 200,000 per year. There are now 70 enrolled founding pupils and the first intake of pupils for 2016-2017 academic year will commence in March, 2016. For more information, please visit: www.wellingtoncollege.cn/bilingualshanghai

About Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai

Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai is an educational partnership between Wellington College UK and Shanghai Lujiazui Group. Aimed at providing a Wellington education to Chinese national families, this early years setting is specifically designed to meet the needs of children between the ages of 2-6 years of age.

Situated near Wellington College International Shanghai beyond the canal, Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai is the third also the first bilingual education cooperation between Wellington College UK and Shanghai Lujiazui Group, starting from early years educational services to be followed with a bilingual school opening in 2018 to meet the needs of the children between the ages of 2-15 years. The early years’ environment has been carefully considered to promote learning and development at each important stage of a child’s life. Supported by a purposefully planned themed curriculum, the pupils at Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai will be exposed to learning opportunities in and around the indoor and outdoor learning spaces by a team of highly motivated and qualified early years’ practitioners.

Wellington College Bilingual Shanghai represents a marriage of traditional values and evidence-based practice from the UK and China. Bilingual immersion will ensure that children have a 50/50% exposure to Chinese and English and we will follow the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) as a framework for practice, which will be linked to the Wellington Aptitudes model of education, promoting a holistic, all-round educational experience for the pupils. Our curriculum, designed to deliver high quality education through play while promoting recognised areas of learning and development, will offer each and every child their own, personalised learning journey. It is our desire to afford every child the opportunity of growth and fulfilment in a setting which imbues the Wellington Values: Courage, Integrity, Respect, Kindness and Responsibility leading to the Wellington Identity.