London - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the availability of international schools? What has been your general experience with them, if any?
Many great international and even local schools. - Jan 2024
I have two kids in High School at Southbank International. We have generally been happy. I hear good things about ACS Cobham and Hillingdon and ASL as well. Depending on preferences, there are lots of good schooling options. - Aug 2022
There are many Embassy children in 50+ schools, but we did not receive much help in steering our decision. IMHO I would recommend figuring out where you want to live and then finding a school near there as all the schools are of a very high caliber. Our daughter goes to ASL and it's be awesome for her. If ASL would open a branch south of the river it would be the perfect school but as it is, I would recommend shopping around. ASL is NOT a sponsored school and I have heard that many Embassy families get rejected from the school. It also follows the American curriculum which means while you can send your 4 year old to reception at a British school, they can't attend ASL. - May 2022
I know there are at least a couple American international schools, but I can't really comment on them. Our children are in British state schools (public schools) because they are free, local, and of high quality. We are here long-term, so we don't need to worry about them transitioning to another country's school system later on. I think this is why so many expat parents choose international schools, especially those with an International Baccalaureate degree option. That said, I don't think it would be a big deal to transition from a British primary school to an elementary school in the US, however, it would likely be more complicated at secondary level. - Jun 2017
I've heard great things about the private schools and American schools, but have no experience. I believe the Embassy starts paying for school at age 4. - Feb 2017
From what I have heard, they are excellent. - Feb 2016
Didn't have personal experience with the international schools, but generally heard that they were great. - Jun 2015
Several international schools. But the British education system is good. So people also put their kids into local schools, both public and private. - Jun 2015
There is an American School that families seem pretty happy with. We don't have children in school here. - May 2015
Our daughter attended the American School of London. She absolutely loved it. I couldn't be more happy with the level of education she received. As a parent you could be as involved or uninvolved as you'd like to be. Your child has to interview and test into their grade and it's competitive. There are other great International schools too. I had friends whose children went to them and they seemed very happy. - Aug 2014
My kids go to ACS Hillingdon and love it. ACS is about a 45-minute drive away from our house, but only 12 miles. There is a van that picks them up and drops them off at our house. ASL is another school that Embassy people look into, because it's located a few miles away from where most of us live. ASL is harder on the kids academically and the Embassy children are seen as the "poor kids" of the school. I've heard good and bad about both, but my children (elementary and middle school ages) have loved it. There were some issues with bullying and the school took care of it immediately. - Jan 2012
ASL: I never understood why the hype for this school. It treats embassy children like lower-class citizens unless they excel at sports. It claims to be academically challenging, by which they mean they grade harshly and discourage independent thought or creativity. Some high school staff members are awesome, but the overall climate is very debilitating. (This borne out by discussions with embassy families, the psychiatrist, and therapists on the local economy.) Our daughter went from being an A/B student with healthy self-esteem to having panic attacks at ASL. We switched to a British school after 2 years, and she is now happy, healthy, getting all A's, and going to Oxford or UCL next year. (Proving it wasn't the child, but the school.) Very elitist. Have been a parent and on boards of International Schools in various countries, and have been accepting of the inevitable issues, but this school is dangerous, at least at the high-school level. British schools are good, and there are plenty of international choices available as well. - Aug 2011
There are many International Schools in London. My children attended the American School in London (ASL) is excellent but not very diverse. My children loved the school and were challenged academically. Make sure that you start the admissions process early because many of the schools have waiting lists. - Sep 2008
I don't know much about the international schools but I do know that there are some excellent British schools. I would highly recommend sending kids to local schools; they are a little more demanding than U.S. schools, but it will look good when they head off to U.S. colleges. - Feb 2008
