Cognita
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| Privately held company | |
| Industry | Education |
| Founded | 2004 |
| Founders | Englefield Capital and Sir Chris Woodhead |
| Headquarters | United Kingdom |
|
Number of locations
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68 schools (2017) |
|
Area served
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Worldwide |
|
Key people
|
Ralph Kugler, Chairman; Chris Jansen, Group Chief Executive Officer |
| Owner | Bregal Fund and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts L.P. |
| Website | Cognita |
Cognita is a global private schools group which owns and operates schools throughout the United Kingdom, Singapore, Spain, Thailand, Vietnam, Brazil and Chile. Cognita was founded by the late Chris Woodhead, previously Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools in England. Cognita currently has a portfolio of 67 schools in 8 countries, employing some 5,000 teachers and educating over 30,000 children.
Between them, Cognita schools deliver eight different curricula.
Cognita was formed in October 2004 by its founder management team and Englefield Capital, a private equity firm, now called Bregal Capital, and its former chairman, Sir Chris Woodhead, the former Chief Inspector of Schools in England. From 2004 Cognita started operating its first school, Quinton House School in Northampton. Later in 2004, Cognita acquired the Asquith Court Group, bringing a further 18 schools into the group. From 2004 until 2007, they continued to buy independent schools within the UK.
In 2007 Cognita spread internationally acquiring schools in Spain and Singapore. Cognita established its first school from inception in 2009, Stamford American International School in Singapore. Also in this year, a group of three international schools were purchased in Thailand. Schools in Vietnam joined Cognita in 2011, and in 2012, Cognita bought their first school in South America, in Brazil.
In August 2012 Cognita questioned the financial viability of its Ffynone House School in Swansea. Following lobbying and negotiation by parents and staff of the school, Cognita agreed to surrender the school to its lessor, Ffynone House School charitable trust, from which Cognita had leased the school. Cognita paid the trust £535,000 as a surrender sum and 10 years rent in advance of £270,000 and the school continues to operate with an operating surplus.
On May 6th, 2013 the formerly majority British-owned company Cognita agreed to be invested in by the American private equity firm KKR Kohlberg Kravis Roberts L.P.
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Wikipedia