Hong Kong · History
From Aberdeen to Kowloon: Wycombe Abbey Builds a Full School in Hong Kong
Wycombe Abbey School Hong Kong opened its prep school in Aberdeen in September 2019 and added a senior school in Kowloon City in 2025, completing a Years 1 to 13 British pathway for around 250 students.
Founded in 2019, Wycombe Abbey Hong Kong is part of Wycombe Abbey International, a global family of schools established in 2015. That network extends the legacy of Wycombe Abbey in the United Kingdom, a boarding school with a history dating back to 1896. The Changzhou campus, rebranded as a Wycombe Abbey school in September 2016, was the first overseas affiliate. Hong Kong was next.
Origins
Wycombe Abbey first opened its doors to pupils on 5 September 2019. Located at 17 Tin Wan Street, Aberdeen, the school features facilities across four levels designed for STEM, drama, music and art, as well as traditional academic subjects. At its centre sits a three-storey glass-roofed atrium; the building also includes a climbing wall reaching up to 15 metres and a rooftop sports field spanning 20,000 square feet with artificial turf and an outdoor track.
Founding headmaster Howard Tuckett moved to Hong Kong after spending the previous 13 years as head of prep at Caterham School in Croydon. During the first term enrolment grew from an initial 50 children to 80, shortly after Christmas. Like all schools in Hong Kong at the time, it suffered disruption through civil unrest and then the coronavirus.
The school was backed by CTF Education Group, linked to the Chow Tai Fook family. Adrian Cheng, founder of the K11 brand and Vice-chairman of CTF Education Group, sits on the school's governing board. William Vanbergen, who founded BE Education in China, and Jennifer Yu Cheng, Deputy Vice Chairwoman of CTF Education Group, are also part of the leadership structure. BE Education is the operational entity that has launched and operated the Wycombe Abbey campuses across Hong Kong, Changzhou, Hangzhou and Nanjing.
Curriculum and Identity
The Hong Kong school opened offering primary education for girls and boys from ages five to ten. Its bespoke curriculum reflects the cultural, linguistic, geographical and historical significance of Hong Kong and Greater China. Children receive a firm grounding in Chinese language, with an emphasis on the Chinese approach to mathematics, while also accessing a curriculum built around the core components of the National Curriculum for England. Although English is the medium of instruction, Mandarin occupies equal space on the timetable.
Students are prepared for the Common Entrance Exam for those wishing to apply to independent schools in the UK. The school prepares graduates to attend top UK schools such as Wycombe Abbey UK, Eton College, and Cheltenham Ladies' College.
Growth and Expansion
The school extended its age range from Years 1 to 6 at opening to Years 1 to 13, becoming a full co-educational preparatory school serving children aged 5 to 13. The longer-term plan for a secondary stage, flagged from the outset, was realised in 2025. A new senior school opened in August 2025, offering A Levels and IGCSEs alongside programmes in entrepreneurship and iSTEAM.
The senior school is sited at the Billionaire Royale in Kowloon City, marking a new chapter for the school community in Hong Kong. Years 9 to 13 follow the British educational pathway, with IGCSEs in Years 9 to 11 and A Levels in Years 12 to 13, at the campus on Sa Po Road, Kowloon City. The original Tin Wan campus continues to operate as the prep school, serving students from Year 1 to Year 8.
Rob Fox was appointed headmaster in April 2024. Fox brings more than 25 years of experience in the education sector, holds a degree in Geography from Bristol University and a PGCE from Nottingham University, and previously served as headmaster of Packwood Haugh Prep School in the United Kingdom. Before that appointment he spent six years in Hong Kong as Assistant Head (Pastoral) at Harrow International School.
Present Day
The school today enrols around 250 students across both campuses. The IGCSE and A Level curriculum prioritises English, Mandarin, mathematics and science, while integrating mandatory programmes in digital learning, entrepreneurship and leadership. The school describes itself as Hong Kong's only Microsoft Showcase School, with students solving real-world problems through interdisciplinary iSTEAM modules. It is registered with Hong Kong's Education Bureau. The school's trajectory, from 50 children in a single Aberdeen building in 2019 to a two-campus, Years 1 to 13 institution six years later, mirrors the WhichSchoolAdvisor observation made at its founding: that the Hong Kong venture was always intended to grow well beyond its preparatory beginnings.