Introduction
Wycombe Abbey is one of England’s most famous girls’ schools. It also lends its name to a group of co-educational schools in China. But the two are not the same institution. Together they form what is known as Wycombe Abbey International Schools. This guide shows how they connect, who runs the China schools, what each campus offers, and why the Nanjing campus closed in 2026.
Wycombe Abbey in China at a Glance
The China and Hong Kong schools are co-educational. The UK school is girls-only.
They are run by BE Education (必益教育) under an exclusive partnership with Wycombe Abbey UK.
The Nanjing campus opened in 2021 and closed in June 2026. Its students moved mainly to Changzhou.
All mainland campuses accept both Chinese nationals and foreign-passport holders.
Key Takeaways
Wycombe Abbey’s China schools are co-educational and run by BE Education, unlike the girls-only UK original.
BE Education has run the schools since 2016. Wycombe Abbey UK oversees them with inspections.
Three Wycombe Abbey campuses operate in mainland Changzhou and Hangzhou plus day-only Hong Kong.
Wycombe Abbey Nanjing closed in June 2026 after five years. It merged into Changzhou instead of going bankrupt.
Changzhou tuition runs RMB 126,000 to 191,100 for 2025–26, while Hangzhou reaches RMB 264,500.
Changzhou’s 2025 leavers all won QS Top 100 offers, including both Oxford and Cambridge places.
Mainland campuses accept Chinese nationals and foreign-passport holders. Full boarding starts at age six.
Is Wycombe Abbey in China the Same as the UK School?
No. Wycombe Abbey School in England is a girls-only boarding school for ages 11 to 18. The China and Hong Kong schools are separate, co-educational schools. They use the Wycombe Abbey name under a licensing and operating partnership. A company called BE Education runs them.
The UK school opened in 1896. It ranks among the most established UK boarding schools, with results that place it at the top of national league tables. Its founder was Dame Frances Dove. It sits in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, and teaches about 650 girls. Results are strong. In 2025, 76% of A-Level grades were A* or A. Around one in three leavers earn an Oxbridge offer. The current head is Mrs. Jo Duncan. Wycombe Abbey School is registered as Girls’ Education Company Limited. Its company number is 47031. It is also a registered charity with number 310638.
The UK school keeps oversight of the China schools. It joins a five-person Joint Advisory Board. Two members come from the UK Council and three from BE Education. It also runs annual quality inspections and helps appoint the China heads. So the brand and the standards are linked. But ownership and daily operation sit with BE Education.
Who Runs the Wycombe Abbey Schools in China?
BE Education runs the operation. It is also called British Education Limited or 必益教育. It was founded in 2003 by William Vanbergen, a former Eton pupil. Its offices are in Hong Kong and Shanghai.
BE Education began as a consultancy. It helped Chinese students win places at top UK schools. It then ran summer programs at Eton and Charterhouse. Since 2016, it has been the exclusive operator of Wycombe Abbey’s schools in Asia. So each China school blends a British school heritage with a China-based operator.
Which Wycombe Abbey Campuses Are Open in China?
Three campuses operate today. One campus, Nanjing, has closed. The table below shows the current picture.
| Campus | City | Opened | Boarding | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Changzhou (常州威雅) | Changzhou, Jiangsu | 2016 | Yes | Open — flagship |
| Hangzhou (杭州威雅) | Hangzhou, Zhejiang | 2021 | Yes | Open |
| Wycombe Abbey School Hong Kong (香港威雅) | Hong Kong | 2019 Prep · 2025 Senior | No (day) | Open |
| Nanjing (南京威雅) | Nanjing, Jiangsu | 2021 | Was | Closed June 2026 |
Wycombe Abbey School (WAS) Changzhou
Opened
2016 (grew from Oxford International College Changzhou, est. 2012)
Age Range
Ages 3–18
Enrolment
~1,200 students
Accreditation & Boarding
COBIS (5-year, 2024) · Cambridge & Edexcel exam centre · Boarding from age 6
Changzhou is the first and largest campus. It opened in 2016, growing out of Oxford International College of Changzhou, founded in 2012. It teaches ages 3 to 18 and has about 1,200 students. It holds a five-year COBIS accreditation, awarded in 2024. It is a Cambridge and Edexcel exam centre. Boarding is available from age 6.
The Changzhou campus is known for strong academic results. In 2025, every leaver received a QS Top 100 offer, and 81% received a QS Top 50 offer. Changzhou also won both Oxford and Cambridge offers that year — the only school in the city to do so. Across its graduating classes, about 70% of leavers reach QS Top 100 universities. Changzhou now also welcomes former Nanjing students.
Wycombe Abbey Hangzhou
Opened
2021
Age Range
Ages 3–18
Enrolment
~600–700 students (growing)
Accreditation & Boarding
COBIS Patron’s (highest level) · Cambridge & Edexcel · Boarding from age 6
Hangzhou opened in 2021. It teaches ages 3 to 18 and has about 600 to 700 students, and it is still growing. It holds COBIS Patron’s accreditation, the highest COBIS level — one of only two mainland China schools at this level. It uses Cambridge and Edexcel, and boarding is available from age 6. In 2025, its leavers earned 90 offers, and 90% came from QS Top 50 universities.
Wycombe Abbey School Hong Kong
Prep School
Opened 2019 · Tin Wan, Aberdeen · Years 1–8 · Day only
Senior School
Opened 2025 · Kowloon City · Years 9–12 · IGCSE & A-Level
Boarding
None — day school only
Regulation
Registered with Hong Kong Education Bureau · separate from mainland system
Wycombe Abbey School Hong Kong is a day school with no boarding. The Prep School opened in 2019 in Tin Wan, Aberdeen, for Years 1 to 8. The Senior School opened in 2025 in Kowloon City for Years 9 to 12, with IGCSE and A-Level. It is registered with Hong Kong’s Education Bureau. Hong Kong runs under its own school system, separate from the mainland.
What Curriculum Do the Schools Follow?
The schools provide K–12 courses. These courses mix the Chinese National Curriculum with the British curriculum. Students follow a clear path. It runs from early years to bilingual primary to integrated Years 7 to 9. Then comes IGCSE in Years 10 and 11 and A-Level in Years 12 and 13. The exam boards are Cambridge International and Pearson Edexcel.
School life follows a holistic education model rooted in British tradition. Each school uses a house system and a personal tutor. A student-centered teaching model places one tutor with about five or six students. Boarders receive 24-hour pastoral care. Students can pick from more than 100 activities. These include rowing, sailing, fencing, music courses including orchestra, art courses, the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, and Model United Nations. The schools also run summer and winter camps, which are open to outside families too.
One point matters for local families. The schools are licensed as private (民办) bilingual schools. So they can enroll Chinese nationals, not only foreign-passport holders.
Wycombe Abbey China Fees (2025–26)
Fees vary by campus and year group. The figures below are 2025–26 tuition fees. They exclude meals, uniforms, and trips. Boarding costs extra.
| Stage | Changzhou (RMB / year) | Hangzhou (RMB / year) |
|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 126,000 | 167,500 |
| Primary | 157,500 | 201,000 |
| Middle School | 165,900 | 222,500 |
| High / A-Level | 178,500–191,100 | 264,500 |
| Boarding (extra) | from 22,080 | 40,000–50,000 |
Wycombe Abbey School Hong Kong sets its own fees. For 2025–26, its day fees run from about HKD 188,000 to HKD 218,000 per year. It also charges a capital levy of HKD 35,000 to HKD 45,000. These figures come from official and school sources for 2025–26.
Boarding and Guardianship
Changzhou and Hangzhou offer full, weekly, and flexi-boarding from age 6. Wycombe Abbey School Hong Kong is day-only. Boarders live in single-sex houses with resident staff. China also sets a rule for many minors on a student visa. If both parents live outside China, the family must appoint a guardian who lives in China. Boarding does not replace this. Alifa can arrange guardianship and landing support.
University Results and Outcomes
Changzhou has the longest record of strong academic performance. In 2025, its leavers earned more than 280 offers, with 100% reaching QS Top 100 and 81% reaching QS Top 50. It secured 17 G5 offers, plus both Oxford and Cambridge. Across all its classes, about 70% of leavers reach QS Top 100 and about 35% reach QS Top 25.
Admissions and Who Can Apply
Both Chinese nationals and foreign-passport holders can apply. Entry usually involves an assessment and an interview. Popular year groups fill early, so families should plan ahead. Boarding is available at the mainland campuses. Foreign families often need guardianship for minors, and Alifa helps with this step.
What Happened to Wycombe Abbey Nanjing?
Wycombe Abbey Nanjing closed at the end of the 2025–26 school year, in June 2026. The school called it a consolidation with the Changzhou campus, not a bankruptcy. Most students transferred to Changzhou.
Nanjing opened in September 2021 in Tangshan, in the Jiangning District. It was built for about 2,000 students. But enrollment stayed low. It peaked near 500 and fell below 400 by 2025. Its first graduating class had just 10 students. On 18 April 2026, the school told parents it would stop operating after that term.
Several pressures drove the decision. Enrollment was weak, and education rules had tightened. The campus sat far from downtown Nanjing. There were fewer school-age children, and strong lower-cost schools competed hard. A slower economy added strain.
The school planned an orderly wind-down. It called the move a merger into Changzhou, not a closure, and asked parents not to spread rumors. It offered transfers to Changzhou with tuition unchanged and boarding fees waived, plus a Nanjing-to-Changzhou shuttle bus. Families could also move to Hangzhou or Hong Kong. Others could wait for new campuses in Bangkok, Singapore, or South Korea. The foreign head, the academic deputy, and some teachers moved to Changzhou too.
The closure drew wide coverage. The Financial Times reported it and linked it to China’s falling birth rate. Chinese outlets, including Sohu, 163, and Tencent News, also covered the news.
Nanjing Is Part of a Wider Shakeout
Nanjing’s closure was not a one-off. Between 2024 and 2026, several China international schools closed or merged. Shanghai Dulwich will merge its Puxi and Pudong sites into one college with two campuses from 2026. Beijing’s ETUx (一土致知) closed in December 2025, and its students moved to Beanstalk (青苗). In Shenzhen, both Zhiyin (智胤) and Houde (厚德) also closed. So Nanjing reflects a structural shift across the sector.
Campuses That Were Announced but Never Opened
Two other China projects never became schools.
Hengqin (Zhuhai)
Announced in 2017 with a local government partner. Planned for 2019 and for more than 1,000 pupils. It was never built and later left official plans.
Jinan (Shandong)
Named in a single 2020 news report as “signed.” No campus was ever developed. It appears to have been an early plan that did not proceed.
The Global Wycombe Abbey Network
Wycombe Abbey International Schools is growing overseas under its “Wycombe 130” plan. A campus opened in Cairo East, Egypt, in 2025. New schools are planned for Bangkok in 2026, Singapore in 2026 and 2028, and Incheon, South Korea, in 2028. Nanjing families were offered places at some of these schools.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Alifa Education Services Can Help
Alifa Education Services
Comparing campuses or need a transfer? We’ve got you.
Alifa Education Services helps international families place children in China’s schools. We offer school placement, guardianship for minors, and full landing support. Whether you are comparing Wycombe Abbey campuses or need a transfer, we can guide you.
📅 Book a Free Consultation →Disclosure: Alifa Education Services is an independent education placement consultancy. We may earn a referral fee from partner schools when families enroll, at no extra cost to the family. Our recommendations are based on fit, not fee structure.
Member comments