When British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was foreign secretary there was a standard line in his speeches that the country's soft power derived from the fact that one-seventh of all the world's kings, presidents and prime ministers were educated in the UK.
In part this was due to the fee-paying public school sector offering boarding places to the global elite, not just to learn to read or add figures but to benefit from an ethos, culture and tradition that was uniquely English.
The news that Mr Johnson's own preparatory school, where the youngster who had declared his ambition to be "world king" was taught, was to shut comes amid the most severe shock the school system has faced in living memory.
Teachers and administrators point with pride to how the schools adapted, often far better than their state counterparts, to remote learning as the country went into lockdown over the coronavirus outbreak in March.
However the fees charged by day schools and their live-in counterparts – an estimated 70,000 pupils were in residential boarding schools before the pandemic – are difficult to justify for a course of lessons delivered on a screen. The personal elements of teachers, sport, music facilities and the opportunity to make valuable friendships that last a lifetime cannot be delivered remotely.
Ferdinand Steinbeis, director of a boarding-school consultancy, von Bülow Education, told The National that while parents were largely happy with how schools reacted to the lockdown, they are far more conditional about signing up for next year. Many schools had offered reductions in the summer term fees and were actively communicating next year's charges would not increase.
The concerns of parents went beyond financial considerations, he added. "This term the schools have been able to offer remote learning at very short notice," he said. "It is completely out of the question for next year. Unless the schools can guarantee they will open their physical gates, our parents won't be signing up for a glorified online experience."
"Digital platforms are not an alternative to the classic boarding school analogue offer but I'm pretty sure something attractive and sustainable is going to come out of this situation."
Looking ahead, Diana Morant of William Clarence, an advisory educational firm, said the outlook was mixed with strong demand from their clients in the UAE and elsewhere for day school place in London in particular. The traditional boarding school was facing different questions.
"It is not clear yet whether boarding schools will reopen in full," she said. "Schools are doing their best to be as open as possible in communications with parents and new parents for September. Boarding schools for example can offer their own quarantine space for returning or new international pupils."
Priti Patel, the British Home Secretary, announced on Wednesday that new arrivals in the country would be asked to observe quarantine for 14 days to lessen Covid-19 transmission risks. The restriction starts June 8 and will be rolled over every three weeks.
A report in the industry newspaper estimated that the 30 per cent of the country's independent schools, which can charge for tuition and other services but receive no state support, would shut down like Mr Johnson's Ashdown House. At least 15 had already made the decision to close.
"The schools that are most likely to struggle are those which were facing issues before the virus came along," Chris King, chief executive of the Independent Association of Preparatory Schools, told the Times Education Supplement. "So those which had not recognised the state of the market in front of them, and were poorly governed and managed – those are the schools who are really going to struggle now that they're faced with everything that's happening with the virus outbreak."
For Mr Steinbeis the reputation of English fee-paying public schools will ultimately keep the best institutions going through the crisis.
"The boarding school that families are signing up to offer good academic teaching and cultural experience with a mix of international students and the opportunity to mix with Brits," he said. "I don't think there is an alternative to the broad experience offered by the boarding school."
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
hall of shame
SUNDERLAND 2002-03
No one has ended a Premier League season quite like Sunderland. They lost each of their final 15 games, taking no points after January. They ended up with 19 in total, sacking managers Peter Reid and Howard Wilkinson and losing 3-1 to Charlton when they scored three own goals in eight minutes.
SUNDERLAND 2005-06
Until Derby came along, Sunderland’s total of 15 points was the Premier League’s record low. They made it until May and their final home game before winning at the Stadium of Light while they lost a joint record 29 of their 38 league games.
HUDDERSFIELD 2018-19
Joined Derby as the only team to be relegated in March. No striker scored until January, while only two players got more assists than goalkeeper Jonas Lossl. The mid-season appointment Jan Siewert was to end his time as Huddersfield manager with a 5.3 per cent win rate.
ASTON VILLA 2015-16
Perhaps the most inexplicably bad season, considering they signed Idrissa Gueye and Adama Traore and still only got 17 points. Villa won their first league game, but none of the next 19. They ended an abominable campaign by taking one point from the last 39 available.
FULHAM 2018-19
Terrible in different ways. Fulham’s total of 26 points is not among the lowest ever but they contrived to get relegated after spending over £100 million (Dh457m) in the transfer market. Much of it went on defenders but they only kept two clean sheets in their first 33 games.
LA LIGA: Sporting Gijon, 13 points in 1997-98.
BUNDESLIGA: Tasmania Berlin, 10 points in 1965-66
The biog
First Job: Abu Dhabi Department of Petroleum in 1974
Current role: Chairperson of Al Maskari Holding since 2008
Career high: Regularly cited on Forbes list of 100 most powerful Arab Businesswomen
Achievement: Helped establish Al Maskari Medical Centre in 1969 in Abu Dhabi’s Western Region
Future plan: Will now concentrate on her charitable work
RESULTS
5pm: Maiden | Dh80,000 | 1,600m
Winner: AF Al Moreeb, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)
5.30pm: Handicap | Dh80,000 | 1,600m
Winner: AF Makerah, Adrie de Vries, Ernst Oertel
6pm: Handicap | Dh80,000 | 2,200m
Winner: Hazeme, Richard Mullen, Jean de Roualle
6.30pm: Handicap | Dh85,000 | 2,200m
Winner: AF Yatroq, Brett Doyle, Ernst Oertel
7pm: Shadwell Farm for Private Owners Handicap | Dh70,000 | 2,200m
Winner: Nawwaf KB, Patrick Cosgrave, Helal Al Alawi
7.30pm: Handicap (TB) | Dh100,000 | 1,600m
Winner: Treasured Times, Bernardo Pinheiro, Rashed Bouresly
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
CONFIRMED%20LINE-UP
%3Cp%3EElena%20Rybakina%20(Kazakhstan)%0D%3Cbr%3EOns%20Jabeur%20(Tunisia)%0D%3Cbr%3EMaria%20Sakkari%20(Greece)%0D%3Cbr%3EBarbora%20Krej%C4%8D%C3%ADkov%C3%A1%20(Czech%20Republic)%0D%3Cbr%3EBeatriz%20Haddad%20Maia%20(Brazil)%0D%3Cbr%3EJe%C4%BCena%20Ostapenko%20(Latvia)%0D%3Cbr%3ELiudmila%20Samsonova%0D%3Cbr%3EDaria%20Kasatkina%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EVeronika%20Kudermetova%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3ECaroline%20Garcia%20(France)%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EMagda%20Linette%20(Poland)%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3ESorana%20C%C3%AErstea%20(Romania)%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EAnastasia%20Potapova%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EAnhelina%20Kalinina%20(Ukraine)%E2%80%AF%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EJasmine%20Paolini%20(Italy)%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3EEmma%20Navarro%20(USA)%E2%80%AF%0D%3Cbr%3ELesia%20Tsurenko%20(Ukraine)%0D%3Cbr%3ENaomi%20Osaka%20(Japan)%20-%20wildcard%0D%3Cbr%3EEmma%20Raducanu%20(Great%20Britain)%20-%20wildcard%3Cbr%3EAlexandra%20Eala%20(Philippines)%20-%20wildcard%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails
Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies
Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments
UK-EU trade at a glance
EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
Smoother border management with use of e-gates
Cutting red tape on import and export of food
