IES opening a new school in Skellefteå
On 14 June 2018, IES reported that discussions had been ongoing between the Municipality of Skellefteå in north-eastern Sweden and IES about opening a new school in the Municipality in 2019. Discussions centered on IES’s potential to conduct operations in the premises of the Brännan School, which are owned by the Municipality.
IES has now signed a lease contract with Skellefteå Industrihus AB, owned by the Municipality of Skellefteå, to start operations from the academic year 2019/20. Operations will cover grade school from the preschool grade to grade 9, and an after-school recreation center. The initial estimated number of classes is 10, and at capacity, the school will have 20 classes.
“We think a competitive and international business community creates an attractive and growing labor market. To achieve this, our business community needs to recruit experts for its operations, and Skellefteå needs to be perceived as an attractive location for Swedish and foreign families,” commented Kristina Sundin Jonsson, Skellefteå’s Mayor.
“For a long time, Skellefteå’s business community and parents have been wanting the type of education IES offers. We’ve listened to them and believe that this start-up and Skellefteå’s overall education opportunities are decisive to continued sustainable growth,” said Maria Marklund (Social Democrat Party), Skellefteå’s Municipal Commissioner.
In response, Annette Brodin Rampe, CEO of IES commented: “We’ve had a fantastic welcome from the Municipality of Skellefteå. This start-up is an excellent example of how we can be part of the solution to ensure access to the highest-quality education in the Municipality in close partnership with the municipality, residents and successful international businesses. We’re looking forward to being part of this and contributing to the future of Skellefteå and its population.”
For more information, please contact:
Johan Hähnel, Investor Relations, IES
Tel: +46 (0)70 605 6334
Email: johan.hahnel@engelska.se
Internationella Engelska Skolan i Sverige Holdings II AB discloses the information provided herein pursuant to the EU’s Market Abuse Regulation and the Securities Markets Act. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the above contact, on 21 November 2018 at 10.00 a.m. CET.
About Internationella Engelska Skolan
Internationella Engelska Skolan, IES, is one of the leading free school operators in Sweden with some 25,600 students at 36 schools at the beginning of the academic year 2018/19, as well as 1,800 students at its wholly owned schools in Spain. IES operates schools for students in grades 1-12. Its main focus is grades 4-9, what is often called “middle school.” Within the compulsory school system in Sweden, IES is the leading independent operator, with nine of the ten largest free schools. IES’s results on the national tests in grade 9 are far above average in Sweden.
Internationella Engelska Skolan was founded in 1993 and is in its 26th year of operation. Throughout this period, its schools have been defined by the three core convictions of its founder, Mrs. Barbara Bergström:
- A safe and orderly environment, where teachers can teach and students learn.
- To command the English language—the key to the world.
- High academic expectations and ambitions.
Up to half of the teaching in IES schools is in English, by native English-speaking teachers. Over 700 teachers with qualified foreign teaching degrees are currently teaching in IES schools. They are mainly recruited from Canada, USA, UK and South Africa.
IES’s student base is in high growth. Over the past ten years, total operating income has increased organically by an average of 19% per year. In the most recent financial year 2017/18, which concluded on 30 June 2018, total operating income was MSEK 2,347.9, an increase of some 15% year on year. As of 30 June 2018, there were approximately 190,000 applications in the waiting list to secure a place for the current and forthcoming years.
Internationella Engelska Skolan has been listed on Nasdaq Stockholm Mid Cap, with the ticker ENG, since the end of September 2016. The largest (indirect) shareholders of IES are TA Associates of the US, which has close affiliations to leading universities and foundations in the US, and IES’s founder Barbara Bergström. At the end of June 2018, the other major shareholders were Paradigm Capital, investment company Öresund, Swedbank Robur fonder, the Third Swedish National Pension Fund, SEB fonder and AMF Försäkring & Fonder (owned jointly by LO, The Swedish Trade Union Confederation and the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise).
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