How Do You Set Up an Independent School From Scratch?

Setting up an independent school from scratch is a big undertaking.

Perhaps you’ve been thinking about it for some time. Maybe you’ve worked in education and have a clear idea of the kind of school you’d like to create. Or perhaps you’ve seen what can make a real difference to a child’s experience of school and you want to build that into something of your own. Whatever has brought you here, there’s probably a mixture of excitement and a fair few questions.

Where do you start?

What will the school look like? Where will it be? How will you fund it? What staff will you need? What about registration, safeguarding, policies, curriculum and inspection?

It can quickly feel like a lot. And yet, underneath all those practical questions is something much simpler:

What kind of school do you want children to experience every day?

Because behind every decision you make is a child who will eventually walk through those school gates. They’re not thinking about your business plan or your registration application.

They’re thinking about whether they feel safe. Whether they feel that they belong. That’s why the practical side of setting up an independent school matters so much. The building you choose affects the environment children learn in. The people you recruit shape their experience of school. The curriculum influences what they learn and how they develop.

Your safeguarding arrangements help create a place where children can feel safe. And the culture you establish can influence whether children simply attend school, or whether they feel that school is somewhere they belong.

None of this means you need to have everything worked out from the beginning. You don’t. Setting up an independent school is a process, and there will inevitably be things you learn and refine along the way.

What matters is having a clear vision for the school you want to create, understanding what is required to make that vision a reality, and keeping the children and young people at the centre of the decisions you make.

So, where do you start?

Let’s talk it through.

Why do you want to set up an independent school?

You should start by being clear about why your school needs to exist and what you want it to offer children and young people. Maybe you believe children learn better in a different type of environment.

Perhaps you want to create a school where academic achievement sits alongside creativity, confidence, independence, wellbeing or a particular approach to learning.

Whatever your motivation, this is worth spending time thinking about. You might already have a very clear picture in your head.

You can see the classrooms. You can imagine the school community. You can picture children arriving each morning and becoming part of something you've created.

That vision is important. But it needs to become more than an idea.

What will children experience when they come to your school?

What will make their experience different?

What do you want them to learn?

What kind of relationships will they have with staff?

What sort of environment will they grow up learning in?

And perhaps most importantly, what do you want children to say about their time at your school when they eventually look back?

These questions can help shape the decisions you make throughout the rest of the process.

How do you know if there is a need for a new independent school?

You need to establish whether there is genuine demand for the type of independent school you’re planning before committing significant time and money.

You might be thinking, “I already know there’s a need. I know exactly the kind of school I want to create.”

And you may well be right. But it’s still worth looking at the wider picture.

What other schools are already operating in your area?

What are they offering?

What are parents looking for?

Are there particular gaps in the local education market?

And where would your proposed school sit alongside the schools that already exist?

This isn’t about trying to find a reason not to proceed.

It’s about understanding the landscape so that you can make informed decisions.

Speak to people. Research the local area. Look at existing provision. Talk to parents, education professionals and, where appropriate, local authorities.

Listen to what people are telling you.

You may discover that your original idea is exactly what is needed. You may also discover that there’s an opportunity to shape the school slightly differently from how you first imagined it. Either way, you’re learning more about the children and families you ultimately want to serve. And that’s valuable information to have before you invest heavily in your plans.

If you’re exploring the wider independent school landscape, our independent schools knowledge hub brings together further guidance on some of the issues you may need to consider.

Do you need to register an independent school?

Yes. If you want to operate an independent school in England, you need to register it with the Department for Education before operating as a school and admitting pupils. Operating an unregistered independent school is a criminal offence.

If you’re at the very beginning, you might read that and think, “Right. That sounds serious.”

It is important, but it doesn’t mean you need to have every single detail of your school worked out tomorrow.

It does mean registration needs to be part of your thinking from the outset.

You can’t simply find a building, employ some teachers and start admitting children.

The registration process means thinking carefully about the school you’re proposing, including its premises, staffing, curriculum, safeguarding arrangements and policies.

TheDfE's independent school registration guidance is a useful starting point if you’re beginning to explore what is involved. You’ll also need to think about the legal structure of the organisation. Depending on your circumstances, this could involve a limited company, charity or another appropriate structure.

This can be one of those stages where you realise just how much there is to consider. That’s completely understandable. You’re trying to develop an exciting vision for a school while also making sure you understand a regulatory framework that you may not have worked with before.

Getting appropriate advice early can help you make sure that the school you’re imagining is being developed with those requirements in mind.

What does Ofsted look at when registering an independent school?

Ofsted considers whether a proposed independent school meets the relevant standards and whether it is suitable to operate as an educational setting. This includes areas such as the curriculum, premises, staffing and safeguarding arrangements.

If the word Ofsted makes you feel slightly nervous, you’re certainly not alone. It’s easy to think of inspection as something that happens at the end. You build the school, write the policies, recruit the staff and then, just before you open, you start thinking seriously about inspection.

We would encourage you to turn that around. Think about inspection from the beginning. Not because you want to build a school simply to satisfy an inspector. But because the things inspectors are looking at should ultimately be things that matter to children.

Are children safe?

Are they receiving an appropriate education?

Are they being supported by staff who understand their responsibilities?

Is the curriculum giving them opportunities to learn and develop?

Does the environment allow them to feel comfortable and ready to learn?

If someone came into your school, could you show them that the answers to those questions are reflected in everyday life?

That’s a much more useful way to think about inspection. And remember, policies alone don’t create a good school. A safeguarding policy sitting in a folder doesn’t keep a child safe.

You can check the latest information directly withOfsted as you work through the process, alongside the relevantIndependent School Standards.

Our guidance on inspection readiness for independent schools can also help you think about how to develop that mindset from the beginning.

What premises do you need to set up an independent school?

Your premises need to be suitable for the children and young people you intend to educate and meet the relevant requirements for an independent school. You will need to consider factors such as space, accessibility, safety, facilities and whether the building is appropriate for your proposed use.

And this is one area where we’d really encourage you not to rush. You might have walked into a building and immediately thought:

“This could be perfect.”

Perhaps it has plenty of space, a lovely outdoor area and enough rooms to create the school you’ve been imagining. It’s exciting when you find somewhere that feels like it could work.

But before you sign the lease, take a step back.

Imagine the children who will eventually walk through the door.

What will their first impression be?

Will they feel welcomed?

Will the environment feel calm and comfortable?

Can children move around safely?

Is the building accessible?

Is there enough space for learning, socialising and playing?

Are there areas where children can concentrate without unnecessary distractions?

The answers will depend on the type of school you’re creating, but the principle remains the same.

Don’t just ask whether the building works for the school. Ask whether it works for the children.

You will also need to consider issues such as planning permission, fire safety, health and safety and whether the building is suitable for its intended use.

A property can look perfect when you first walk through the door and still present problems once you start looking at it through the eyes of a school.

Getting this wrong can be expensive.

So before committing yourself to a long-term lease or significant building work, make sure you understand exactly what you’re taking on.

How much does it cost to set up an independent school?

There isn’t one fixed cost for setting up an independent school. The amount you will need will depend on the size and type of school, your premises, staffing requirements, facilities and the education you intend to provide.

And this is probably one of the questions you’ll keep coming back to.

“Okay, but what sort of figure are we actually talking about?”

That’s a sensible question. You don’t want to get six months into your plans only to discover the numbers don’t work.

There are the obvious costs: staff salaries, premises, furniture, equipment, resources, insurance and professional advice.

There may also be costs associated with building work, specialist facilities, technology, transport or other services depending on the type of school you’re creating.

But there’s another part of the financial picture that can sometimes be overlooked.

What happens while the school is growing?

Perhaps you’ve planned for 100 pupils eventually, but you don’t start with 100. Perhaps your staffing requirements are higher than you expected. Perhaps the building needs more work.Perhaps something simply takes longer than planned.

These things happen. That’s why your financial model needs to look beyond the opening day. You need to understand how the school can remain financially sustainable while it becomes established. And there’s an important balance here.

The financial model needs to work, because without financial sustainability the school cannot continue. But the finances should support the school’s educational purpose, not lose sight of it.

How are independent schools funded?

Independent schools generally rely on income from the fees paid for pupils, although the precise funding model will depend on the type of school and its circumstances.

If you’re setting up an independent school, you’ll need to be very clear about how your proposed school will generate income and whether that income will support the costs of running it.

This is where the business side of setting up a school becomes particularly important. You need to understand your likely pupil numbers, fee structure, staffing costs, premises costs and other ongoing expenditure. But it’s worth keeping sight of what those numbers represent.

Every pupil who joins your school is a child and every fee relates to the education and experience you are providing for them.So when you’re thinking about capacity, staffing and resources, the question shouldn’t simply be:

“How many pupils can we fit into the school?”

It should also be:

“How many pupils can we provide a genuinely good experience for?”

That distinction matters. A financially sustainable school still needs to be a school where children can learn, develop relationships, feel safe and enjoy their education.

What staff do you need to run an independent school?

The staff you need will depend on the type and size of school you’re creating, the curriculum you offer and the needs of the children and young people you intend to educate.

It can be tempting to start with a number.

“We’re going to have 50 pupils, so how many teachers do we need?”

But children aren’t simply numbers on a spreadsheet. Think about the experience you want children to have.

Who will teach them? Who will support them? Who will notice when a child is struggling?

Who will encourage the child who has lost confidence? Who will challenge the child who needs stretching? Who will be there when something isn’t quite right?

The adults working in a school have an enormous influence on the experience children have there. That means recruitment isn’t simply about filling vacancies.

It’s about finding people with the right skills, experience, values and approach to work with children. Of course, there is also a financial reality.

Staffing is likely to be one of your biggest ongoing costs, so you need a staffing model that is both appropriate for the children and financially sustainable. Those two things shouldn’t be viewed as competing priorities.

The starting point should be:

“What do our children need from the adults around them?”

You can then build your staffing structure around that.

What policies does an independent school need?

An independent school needs policies and procedures covering important areas such as safeguarding, behaviour, SEND, health and safety, complaints, recruitment, attendance and risk management.

If you’re starting from scratch, this can be the stage where the paperwork starts to feel overwhelming. You might find yourself thinking:

“How many policies do we actually need?” Followed fairly quickly by, “And who’s going to write all of them?”

We understand. There can seem to be a never-ending list. But we would encourage you not to think about policies as documents you simply need to tick off.

Think about the child sitting in front of you. If something goes wrong, will your staff know what to do? If a child tells an adult something that concerns them, will that adult understand what happens next?

If a child is struggling with behaviour, is there a consistent and supportive approach? If a parent has a concern, is there a clear process for dealing with it?

That’s what your policies are there to support.

A policy should help people make good decisions when they need to. And that means your policies need to reflect the way your school actually operates. Because ultimately, it isn’t the document that keeps children safe. It’s what people do.

How do you prepare an independent school for inspection?

The best way to prepare for inspection is to build good practice into the way the school operates from the beginning, rather than treating inspection preparation as something that happens at the last minute.

We know that sounds easier than it can sometimes feel. When you’re setting up a school, there are always lots of competing priorities. You might be trying to get the building ready while recruiting staff. You might be working on policies while developing the curriculum.

You might be dealing with finances, registration and a hundred other decisions you hadn’t anticipated when you first had the idea. It can feel like you’re spinning several plates at once.

That’s why it can be useful to step back occasionally and ask:

“What is the experience actually going to be like for the children?”

Not just what does the policy say?

Not just what does the school website say?

Not just what do we intend to do?

But what will children actually experience?

Will they feel listened to?

Will they feel safe?

Will they know who to go to if they have a problem?

Will they be challenged and supported?

Will staff know the children well enough to recognise when something changes? An external perspective can be particularly useful here. When you’re close to something, it’s surprisingly easy to stop seeing things that someone coming in fresh might notice immediately. That isn’t because you’ve done anything wrong.

It’s simply what happens when you’re deeply involved in something. An independent school audit or external review can give you an opportunity to step back, look objectively at what is happening and identify areas that may need attention.

What is an independent school audit?

An independent school audit is an opportunity to take an objective look at how a school is operating, identify strengths and highlight areas where further work may be needed.

It isn’t simply about someone coming into your school and telling you what you’ve got wrong.In fact, that’s probably not what most school leaders need. Sometimes you need someone to challenge an assumption. Sometimes you need someone to spot something you’ve stopped seeing because you’re so close to it. Sometimes you need someone to ask the question nobody else has asked.

And sometimes you simply need someone to say:

“This is working well. Keep doing it.”

That external perspective can be particularly valuable as a new independent school becomes established. It gives you the opportunity to pause and consider not only whether you’re meeting requirements, but whether the school is delivering the experience you wanted children to have when you first started planning it.

You can explore our independent school audits and external reviews to find out more.

How long does it take to set up an independent school?

Setting up an independent school can take a year or more, although the timescale will depend on the individual school, its premises, staffing, registration process and how much work needs to be completed before opening.

If you’ve already got an opening date in your head, this might be the bit you don’t necessarily want to hear. But it’s worth being realistic. There are a lot of moving parts. A building may take longer than expected. Recruitment may take time. Plans may need to change. The registration process may take longer than you hoped.

None of that necessarily means your plans are going wrong.It means you’re setting up a school. And sometimes things take longer than we expect.

Try to give yourself some breathing space where you can. The more pressure you put on yourself to make everything happen by one particular date, the harder unexpected delays can feel.

You’re creating a school where children may spend some of the most formative years of their lives. That’s worth getting right.

What should you do before setting up an independent school?

Before committing significant time or money, it’s important to have a clear understanding of the school you want to create, the children and families you want to serve, the demand for it and what will be required to make it a reality.

If you’ve reached this point and you’re thinking, “There’s a lot more to this than I realised,” you’re probably right. But that doesn’t mean you need to have everything worked out before you begin.

Start with the bigger picture. Think about the school you want children to experience every day. What do you want them to learn? What kind of environment do you want to create? What sort of relationships will they build with staff and with each other? And what will make your school feel like a community where children feel that they belong?

Once you have that vision, you can start working through the practical side of making it happen.

There are some important areas to consider, including:

• Demand: Is there a genuine need for the type of school you want to create?
• Premises: Can you find a building that provides the right environment for the children you want to educate?
• Staffing: What skills, experience and staffing structure will you need?
• Finances: Is your financial model realistic and sustainable?
• Regulation: What registration, standards and other requirements will you need to meet?
• Safeguarding and policies: What systems will you need to keep children safe and support the day-to-day running of the school?
• Support: Who can provide the knowledge, challenge or external perspective you may need along the way?

You don’t need to answer every one of these questions immediately. What matters is starting with a clear idea of what you want the school to be and what you want children to experience when they walk through the doors. From there, you can work through each part of the journey one step at a time.

And if you’re not sure where to start, that’s okay too. Sometimes talking through an idea with someone who understands the education landscape can help you make sense of what you already have, identify the gaps and work out what needs to happen next.

Setting up an independent school: you don't have to do it all at once

Setting up an independent school is a significant undertaking. There are regulations to understand, decisions to make, money to plan, people to recruit and a whole school to build. And if you’re doing it because you genuinely care about creating a great school, there’s probably a lot of emotion tied up in it too.

Sometimes you need someone to help you step back from the detail and look at the bigger picture. Someone to ask the questions you might not have thought about, to challenge an assumption,to give you an external perspective. Or sometimes, simply someone who understands what you’re trying to achieve and can talk it through with you.

That’s where we can help.

If you’re considering setting up an independent school and you’re not quite sure what you should be looking at first, Jarvis Education's Open an Independent School Service can provide an external perspective.

Sometimes the first conversation is simply about making sense of where you are now, what you’re trying to achieve and what you need to think about next. Because ultimately, setting up an independent school isn’t just about creating a building, meeting regulations or putting policies in place.

It’s about creating a place where children can learn, grow, feel safe, build relationships and have a positive experience of school.

And that’s worth keeping at the centre of every decision you make.

More Independent School Guidance

If you’re exploring the establishment, development or quality assurance of an independent school, our independent schools knowledge hub brings together practical guidance on the areas you’re likely to be thinking about.

You can also explore our guidance on independent school audits and external reviews and inspection readiness as your plans develop.