{
  "$type": "site.standard.document",
  "bskyPostRef": {
    "cid": "bafyreicbqff4mxmobnfxufdi6zu36vdcxlzmujsd6r2bfnycb2cujs5ekm",
    "uri": "at://did:plc:oznbnvgr7dmvddiyvr7dih52/app.bsky.feed.post/3mkblhzaxbcu2"
  },
  "coverImage": {
    "$type": "blob",
    "ref": {
      "$link": "bafkreibrfygbiz43b64usipfedud3ogj6imp76mvjsunbcei6eevrobuym"
    },
    "mimeType": "image/jpeg",
    "size": 142229
  },
  "path": "/money/british-school-shuts-down-chinese-owner-allegations",
  "publishedAt": "2026-04-24T21:27:33.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.gbnews.com",
  "tags": [
    "Pension delays leave thousands of retirees missing out on £10,000 payments",
    "DWP confirms £778 boosted payments for those with common health condition",
    "Reform UK council to seek legal challenge against Britain's largest solar farm",
    "The GB News Editorial Charter"
  ],
  "textContent": "\n\n\nA historic British school is set to shut down as new Chinese owners deny allegations over stripping its assets.\n\nMalvern St James, a Worcestershire independent school established in 1919, will shut this summer barely 12 months after new ownership took control.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nIt was acquired early last year by Galaxy Global Education Group, which announced plans to transition the traditionally all-girls school to co-education from September 2025.\n\nThe education company, founded in 2003 by Shangmei Gao, oversees around 18,000 pupils worldwide and had pledged to revive the struggling institution.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nTRENDING\n\nStories\n\nVideos\n\nYour Say\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nAt the time of the acquisition, she said: \"We are looking forward to building student numbers and ensuring that the school's admirable ethos and values are upheld.\"\n\nThose plans have since collapsed, with the company confirming the school is no longer financially sustainable.\n\nHeadmaster Gareth Lloyd left in January after announcing his early retirement for personal reasons midway through the academic year.\n\nAt that stage, local reports suggested the school had 269 pupils, while officials denied any prospect of closure.\n\nFigures from the Independent Schools Council now show a decline to 220 pupils, including 22 boys admitted under the new co-educational policy.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nNicholas Grenfell-Marten, chairman of Galaxy Global’s management board, said: \"Great sadness.\"\n\nThe company said the school has been losing more than £6billion annually, a deficit it described as unsustainable despite efforts since the acquisition.\n\nPupil numbers had been falling steadily for several years, leaving the school operating significantly below capacity.\n\nGalaxy Global rejected accusations of asset stripping made by parents and commentators on social media.\n\n### LATEST DEVELOPMENTS\n\n\n\n\n  * Pension delays leave thousands of retirees missing out on £10,000 payments\n  * DWP confirms £778 boosted payments for those with common health condition\n  * Reform UK council to seek legal challenge against Britain's largest solar farm\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nA spokeswoman said: \"Since acquisition, the focus has been on supporting and attempting to stabilise the school, not extracting value from it.\"\n\nThe company pointed to wider pressures facing the sector, including the Government’s imposition of 20 per cent VAT on school fees, the removal of business rates relief and rising employment costs.\n\nDespite these factors, the group said it limited fee increases to 7.5 per cent in the last academic year.\n\nThe move to co-education was intended to increase enrolment, but the spokeswoman said that while there was \"some positive interest\", it was not enough to address underlying challenges.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\nNo decisions have been made about the future of the site.\n\nNearby independent schools moved quickly to arrange open days for affected families within 24 hours of the closure announcement.\n\nThe response prompted criticism from some parents on social media, who questioned the timing of the recruitment efforts.\n\nOne Mumsnet user said: \"Asset stripping and the vultures circling putting on a special event and would be delighted to meet pupils.\"\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n\"Deeply unedifying\", said a second,adding that schools were \"snapping up the scraps to bolster their own numbers against a similar fate.\"\n\nA third parent described the approach as \"distasteful.\"\n\nThe school’s former pupils include writer Barbara Cartland.\n\nThe campus occupies the historic Imperial Hotel, a continental Gothic building constructed in 1862 for visitors to the spa town.\n\n###\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n**Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter**",
  "title": "Historic British school shuts down as new Chinese owner denies 'asset-stripping' allegations"
}