Our model Pestalozzi school
Our school in Zambia, where character and values matter as much as academics
Pestalozzi Academy
Our own school in Zambia, where fee-paying children and scholarship children learn side by side, and good character matters as much as good grades.
The problem it solves
Top-quality international schooling is usually only for rich families, and it keeps children from different backgrounds apart. We wanted to prove there is a better way.
What the programme actually is
The Academy is the one school we fully own and run, in Lusaka, Zambia. It is a living example of our Head, Heart and Hands education. Fee-paying children learn alongside Future Leaders scholars, and values and leadership are taught right inside the lessons. Outside Zambia, we use the best schools we can find to support our Future Leaders, and Pestalozzi Academy allows us to offer those schools a broader curriculum that benefits all their children, one that is proven and tested.
How it works
Mixing backgrounds is what funds opportunity
Children who can pay learn next to scholars who cannot. The fees pay for the scholarship places, so mixing backgrounds is exactly what funds opportunity.
Families pay fees
Families who can afford it pay school fees. Outcome: a strong, lasting school that does not rely only on donations.
Fees fund scholarships
Those fees fund places for Future Leaders scholars who could never pay. Outcome: bright children from poor homes join the same classrooms.
Everyone learns together
Strong academics plus values and service for every child. Outcome: confident young people who help others, whatever their background.
A model built on integration
Breaking down segregation by design
The school follows the model Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi established at Burgdorf and Yverdon: children who can afford to pay learn alongside scholars (Future Leaders) who cannot, breaking down segregation by design. The fees paid by those who can afford the school directly subsidise places for those who cannot, making the mixing of backgrounds the very mechanism that funds opportunity.
What participants gain
Three curricula, one set of values
The school offers the International Baccalaureate, Cambridge and the local Zambian curriculum, applying the same values education and service learning to every child regardless of which path they take.
- A first-class, world-recognised education
- Strong values and leadership
- Real experience of helping others
- A school that pays for poorer children to join
Impact and proof
The impact of Pestalozzi Academy
learners enrolled, more than doubled under current management - with a waiting list in place.
fee collection, with IB accreditation gained 18 months early and the school now cash-generative rather than needing subsidy.
the most affordable International Baccalaureate school in the world.
Owned by Pestalozzi, managed by Enko Education
Pestalozzi ownership, world-class management
Pestalozzi owns the school, the buildings, and the business. We employ every member of staff, from the Head of School down, and we fund all operating costs. Major decisions, culture, budgets, senior hires, and capital investment remain with Pestalozzi. Enko is a fast-growing network of African international schools - with 19 schools across 11 African countries, it is the largest network of IB schools in Africa.
“Under Enko Education's management, enrolment has doubled to more than 1,050 learners, with a waiting list in place. Fee collection has risen to 95%, IB accreditation was secured 18 months ahead of schedule, and the school has moved from requiring subsidy to being cash-generative.”
James Haughton, CEO Pestalozzi International
Pestalozzi Academy is the most affordable International Baccalaureate school in the world
Pestalozzi Academy offers a first-class, internationally and nationally recognised education. Our students gain the skills to become self-reliant young adults and compassionate leaders, rooted in their culture and capable of bringing positive change to their communities and the wider world. The school demonstrates it is possible to democratise access to international curriculum and deliver values-led education in a sustainable business model.
Help us to reach more children
Your support enables marginalized children to become leaders in their communities.