Bellevue Education is an international private schools group founded in 2003 and based in London, UK.[1] By 2019 it has grown to consist of 19 schools in the UK and 1 each in France and Switzerland.[2][3] The Group also provides educational support to Bellevue Place Group,[4] a group of Free Schools to which Bellevue's CEO, Mark Malley, and its Group Schools Director, Steve Wade, are Trustees.[5] Bellevue Education was acquired by GEMS Education in 2018, and is a UK and European subsidiary of the Group.[6] In 2019, CVC acquired a 30% stake in GEMS Education, which also includes its stake in Bellevue Education.[7]
History
Bellevue Education was founded under the name House Education by Mark Malley in 2003, when he bought Norfolk House preparatory school in London.[8][9] He also became the headteacher, and when the school was inspected in 2007 it was reported to be significantly improved from its previous inspection.[10]
In 2008 House Education was renamed The Really Great Education Company Limited (EDCO) and purchased Weston Green School in Surrey.[8][11] It also purchased Skippers Hill Manor Preparatory School in East Sussex in 2010.[12][13]
The company adopted the name Bellevue Education Group in 2011, prior to acquiring three more independent schools: Edenhurst Preparatory School in Staffordshire, Brabyns Preparatory School in Cheshire, and Gateway School in Buckinghamshire.[8]
In 2012, Bellevue Education Group was reported to be jointly owned by Mark Malley, with a 35% stake, and its chairman Marwan Naja, owner of Plato One Ltd and Plato Two Ltd.[2] Further investment in that year by Plato Two Ltd coincided with the establishment of Bellevue Education International Limited, of which Bellevue Education Group became a wholly owned subsidiary.[14][15] The parent company completed the acquisition of a Swiss boarding school, Surval Mont-Fleuri, subsequently renamed as Surval Montreux.[16] The group's early growth was driven by funding derived largely from Tarek Obaid, the founder of the oil company PetroSaudi, which has been implicated in the 1MDB scandal.[17]
Bellevue Education formed a joint venture with Place Group, the Bellevue Place Education Trust (BPET), which operates seven, state funded, primary "Free Schools" across London and the South-East.[18][19] The Group's CEO, Mark Malley, and School Director, Steve Wade, form part of the Trustees of Bellevue Place.[20]
Bellevue Education was acquired by GEMS Education in 2018, and is a UK and European subsidiary of the Group.[6] In 2019, the private equity group CVC Capital Partners acquired a 30% stake in GEMS Education, which also includes its stake in Bellevue Education. Khazanah Nasional, Malaysia's sovereign fund, owns a 3% stake.[7]
The Group has continued its growth with its new shareholders, and acquired Farlington School in September 2019.[21]
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
