Ireland’s most expensive private school records pre-tax losses of €2.7m

The company which operates the country’s most expensive private fee-paying day school last year recorded pretax losses of €2.7 million, even as the top annual fees rose to €22,356.

New accounts for Nord Anglia Education (Ireland) Ltd, which runs the Nord Anglia International School at Leopardstown in south Dublin, show the pretax loss of €2.74 million in the 12 months to the end of August last year is a 40 per cent decrease on the pretax losses of €4.5 million in the prior 12 months.

The school reduced its pretax losses after revenues increased by 53 per cent from €4.7 million to €7.2 million.

The revenue increase coincided with the student population increasing by 72 per cent or 224 from 309 in 2021 to 533 at the end of last August.

Trinity Business School dean: ‘AI brings a huge threat to people’s ability to learn and to upskill’

---

We must do more to welcome Irish people returning home

---

Buyers of older homes may pay thousands more per year in mortgage repayments

---

Family affairs: How Ireland’s newly rich are putting money to work in secretive firms

---

The school teaches the International Baccalaureate diploma programme for students aged from three to 18.

The directors state that the company “is in a start-up phase and expects to grow significantly over the coming years”. The school continued to focus on growth and provide a premium education across all ages despite the challenges that the global pandemic presented, they added.

The school has increased its fees in the past year. The top fee of €22,356 today compares to the top fee of €18,340 this time last year – an increase of 22 per cent.

The current annual fees for infants of €17,043 compared to annual fees for infants of €13,720 this time last year – a rise of 31 per cent.

Parents also face a one-time non-refundable enrolment fee of €1,600 for each student.

The average class size at the school is 22 and the pupil-teacher ratio is eight to one.

The school – home to 45 nationalities – is based in Microsoft’s former office in the South County Business Park.

Numbers employed increased from 76 to 96 that include 83 teachers.

Staff costs increased from €3.93 million to €4.5 million. The interest costs are made up of lease liabilities of €1.3 million and €624,989 in loan interest from group undertakings.

The school opened in 2018 and the company’s accumulated losses to the end of August last total €19.5 million. The company’s cash funds last year increased 11 fold from €258,289 to €2.9 million.