The unique collaboration with the Wellington College family

This week, Wellington College Bangkok has welcomed two senior colleagues from Wellington College UK: Mr Scott Bryan, International Director, and Mr Iain Henderson, a Deputy Head at Wellington College UK. Mr Henderson is a regular visitor to Thailand – throughout the travel restrictions and often spending significant time working in quarantine to be with us here in Bangkok.

The process of developing a world-renowned Wellington College outside the UK is much more than a simple badging exercise.  In opening a Wellington school, the DNA of 160 years of academic excellence must be adapted for an international context with the utmost care and recognition of the success of the Wellington education. A significant aspect of this process is the way in which the Wellington family of schools links closely with Wellington College in the UK and other Wellington Colleges around the world. Other British international schools who have a presence abroad may claim a very similar relationship; however, at Wellington, this close connection is demonstrable right across the School. In addition to his senior role in the UK, Iain sits on the International Board here at Wellington in Bangkok; and when he is not physically on campus, he is a regular feature in meetings and coaching sessions with our teaching staff.                

On this, his current visit, Iain has also been able to spend time with Wellington Bangkok parents explaining the close links between the UK and Bangkok, and outlining the exciting opportunities which are provided for our students as they progress through the School.

A wonderful development is the re-launch of the Wellington College Year 8 Summer Camps, which have been postponed for the last couple of years owing to travel restrictions. 

Summer Camp Opportunities at Wellington College (UK)

The objective of these camps is that every Year 8 Wellington student in the schools across the world will visit the UK for two weeks to gain a genuine experience of what life is like being at The Wellington College (TWC) in the UK.  During their stay, students are exposed to a whole range of exciting learning activities and opportunities including a bespoke timetable of lessons with Wellington College UK teachers covering a range of different subjects. These unique lessons are designed to inspire encourage an explorative mind. Arts and Sports are covered in addition to extra-curricular activities and challenges which will develop leadership and team building skills.  There is also the opportunity to discover some rather unique aspects of Wellington culture such ‘Real Tennis’, the ancient forerunner to tennis as we know it today, as well as access to other world-class facilities.

The camp is a transformative experience through the visiting students’ opportunity to stay in a Wellington Boarding House. During their stay, students will develop independence and trust alongside benefitting from their shared experiences with friends.

Students will connect with Wellington history and heritage as well as seeing the iconic sights and sounds of London, Oxford, and the surrounding green environment of Crowthorne, Berkshire in which Wellington is situated.

The way in which Wellington teachers everywhere are supported and connected is another important aspect of how the relationship between our two Schools thrives.

When Headmaster Chris Nicholls arranges recruitment visits in the UK, our Bangkok leadership team are based at TWC to enable prospective candidates to gain an understanding of the Wellington culture.  Furthermore, when the teachers are then appointed, if they are based in the UK, they will attend TWC as part of a comprehensive induction before flying out to Bangkok.

The relationship does not stop there. In his role, Iain leads on aspects of Professional Development, which teachers at Wellington in Bangkok receive, through running coaching sessions both in person and remotely.

There are also knowledge exchanges between respective faculties from each school, and teacher exchanges whereby a teacher from Wellington in Bangkok spends time at TWC in the UK (and vice versa) to broaden their experience, share ideas and instil best practice.  

Wellington’s reputation around the world for being an inspirational place for teachers to teach is further backed-up by the internationally regarded Festival of Education, which takes place every year in the UK at Wellington College. This two-day festival is the must-attend professional development event for thousands of teachers, who learn from the most prominent thought-leaders in education from around the world. This year, teachers from Wellington College Bangkok will also travel to the UK, ensuring this experience and the important outcomes are shared, discussed, and applied in our Bangkok context.

Wherever there is a Wellington College in the world, there is a Festival of Education. In China they are on their sixth year of hosting their event, and we are delighted to announce that in September 2023, The Festival of Education Thailand will take place here at Wellington College Bangkok. Like the original event in the UK and subsequent events in China, this will be open to educators everywhere, not just the Wellington community, as part of our commitment to supporting the development of educational best practice in Thailand.

Another key manifestation of the strong relationship between Wellington Schools globally is the sharing of best practice on accessing leading university courses. TWC has an unsurpassed reputation of supporting students in their applications to some of the best global universities; and this has been mirrored recently with the fantastic university offers that have been gained by students at Wellington Schools in Tianjin, Shanghai, and Hangzhou. This model of close support will also help our senior students in Bangkok when they begin the university application process.

Wellington Bangkok senior students have been benefiting immensely from the mentoring partnership with senior students at TWC. Year 13 students from Wellington College have been regularly attending online meet-ups with our students to help them with their academic and pastoral development as they progress through School. This fantastic initiative enables our Year 9 students to have a mature, experienced senior student body, from whom they can gain important insight.

What does the future hold for the Wellington family of schools? The strength of these relationships will only become more impressive as Wellington opens schools in India, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia. In the short-term, as travel requirements become much more manageable, we look forward to reciprocal visits between students in the Wellington family through exchanges, tournaments, and events across Music, Sport, and the Arts.