from The Telegraph, 12th November 2009
An article in today’s Telegraph explores two of the three schools of the New Model Schools (NMS) company, “a not-for-profit chain of independent schools owned and run by Civitas”. The group’s Maple Walk school in Willesden, the article claims, “ticks every box for the aspirant parent who despairs of the limitations of the primary state sector but who can’t afford the independent one.”
However, the realities of the model as a system for imitation may require some scrutiny, particularly in the light of mtm’s recently published Independent Education Sector Report 2010.
The article in the Telegraph suggests that the New Model Schools group, which now has three schools in and around London, offers ”the high-quality education associated with the best independent schools but with far lower fees”, citing fees of around £5,300 per year.
Of course, as mtmconsulting has observed in our leading research of schools in the UK, affordability is a key issue for typical independent school buyers, and will become more crucial in the wake of the recession. The mtm School Fees Payment Survey, published in 2007, found that as many as 40% of current independent school buyers had concerns about their ability to pay school fees in the future.
Similarly our parental research for client schools has found that the NMS model may well appeal to parents’ sensitivities and priorities. mtm typically finds in our online surveys (click here for details of our school research services) that academic outcomes, school ethos and atmosphere and reputation are key factors influencing parental choice of school. The NMS group’s unorthodox approach and ethos is likely to strike a welcome note with many prospective parents. “An important part of the NMS model”, writes The Telegraph’s correspondant, ”is its belief in an education that prizes all disciplines, so the children have a shorter academic day – lessons in the mornings only, with afternoons devoted to creative and physical activities.” However, facilities do also frequently rank highly in lists of factors influencing parental choice, and the NMS philosophy of avoiding what they term the “facilities arms-race” may deter these parents.
Perhaps the crux of potential limitations on the viability of the NMS model lies with the fact that it is limited to primary ages only. mtmconsulting’s experience of marketing for independent schools and producing effective business strategies for schools tells us that parents who experience dissatisfaction with state education provision, but struggle with affordability issues, are more likely to defer independent education until their children reach senior age. In addition to this, the gap between fees at NMS schools (£5,300 pa) and other independent prep schools is likely to be significantly less than indicated in The Telegraph article – the 2009 ISC census shows average day fees at junior level to be £3,111 per term, or £9,333 per year.
There is no doubt that affordable, individual education, free from state control, is likely to appeal to many families, and rightly so. However, in our experience, the greatest dissatisfaction with state provision comes at senior level. Unfortunately, catering for a range of subject choices at GCSE and A level comes with high associated costs, and providing high-quality but affordable independent education at this level may be a tougher nut to crack – the Cognita chain is one example of a chain offering consistently lower priced education at all ages, but their educational business model allows for a host of economies of scale that smaller groups will not benefit from.
The possibility of a Conservative victory in the next general election has the potential to effect the current independent schools market considerably, with their plans to introduce Swedish-style state funded independent schools receiving much publicity in the press. How this model will work remains to be seen.
One conclusion demonstrated in the success of the NMS (this success cannot be doubted and is well illustrated in the NMS’s Maple Walk School’s “waiting list of several hundred children” that mtm has iterated clearly and repeatedly, most recently in our Independent Education Sector Report 2010 is that all independent schools must focus over the coming decade on provide clear value, controlling costs and providing real benefit to a core market. To quote mtmconsulting’s educational research expert Gavin Humphries, “the order of priorities for the independent school sector over the period to 2020 is: 1) cut costs; 2) explore federation; and 3) find a niche.
To view the article on The Telegraph website please click here.
For more details on mtm’s Independent Education Sector Report 2010 please click here.
To learn how mtmconsulting has helped schools marketing, college leaders and educational strategy teams all over the UK, and to see how our schools and colleges consulting services may help you, please contact us.
