Harrow International School Shenzhen

Harrow Shenzhen is located in the Qianhai Cooperation Zone, Nanshan District (No.39 KeChuang 6th St), Shenzhen — a short commute from the Shekou/Qianhai areas and with cross‑border business links toward Hong Kong.

The school serves pupils aged 2–18, organised as Early Years (2–5), Pre‑Prep (5–11), Prep (11–13), Senior (13–16) and Sixth Form (16–18).

Harrow Shenzhen is a co‑educational day and boarding school offering boarding options (including flexi‑boarding) from upper primary/Year 5 through to Sixth Form.

The school has a published SEND policy and a SEND Coordinator; support includes EAL programmes, small‑group literacy and maths support, dyslexia intervention, social‑skills work, access to a school psychologist and individual education plans (IEPs) where required.

Harrow Shenzhen is part of the Harrow/AISL group and follows a British international curriculum linked to Harrow (UK) schools.

The school presents a values‑based ethos but does not state a religious affiliation on its website.

According to the school FAQs, EYC pupils finish at about 15:00; Pre‑Prep and Upper School pupils finish at about 15:00 and then attend the Harrow Diploma Activities (HDA) programme, with the later day ending around 16:00. Boarding students follow a separate weekday routine with supervised study, activities and set lights‑out times.

The school operates a multi‑route student bus service covering many residential areas in Shenzhen; routes (with estimated pickup/drop times) are published and adjusted each term to meet demand. Buses carry an on‑board escort and parents are expected to have children ready at the scheduled stop times.

Harrow Shenzhen operates a British-based programme for ages 2–18 divided into Early Years (2–5), Pre-Prep (Years 1–6), Prep (age 11–13), Senior (age 13–16) and Sixth Form (age 16–18).
The Early Years follows the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) approach of the English National Curriculum.
In Pre-Prep (Years 1–6) the school emphasises literacy, numeracy and broad exposure to specialist subjects (languages, music, PE, computing, art and design), while the Prep phase continues specialist teaching in core subjects including English, Mandarin, mathematics and science.
The Senior School prepares students for international public examinations, with most students completing Cambridge/IGCSE courses typically taken in Year 11 across subjects such as English, mathematics, sciences, humanities, languages, arts and design/technology.
In Sixth Form students follow a two‑year A‑Level programme (with many taking an Extended Project Qualification) aimed at university preparation; the school also sets subject-specific entry expectations for A‑Level choices.

Harrow Shenzhen describes pastoral care as a structured, school-wide system that uses homerooms in the Lower School and a vertical House system and close personal tutoring in the Upper School to ensure each student is known and supported by staff. The House system creates cross-age “family” units with Housemasters/mistresses and tutors who monitor academic progress and provide pastoral guidance. The school runs focused activities and campaigns (for example Fellowship Week and anti‑bullying initiatives) to promote inclusion, peer support and respectful behaviour. Small class sizes and boarding pastoral routines are cited as part of the personalised support network for students.

Harrow Shenzhen lists staff with learning‑support and special‑education experience on its teacher pages (for example Krista Berry is listed as a Learning Support Teacher and Yaeliz Rabassa's bio notes a Master's in Special Education and prior Head of Inclusion roles). The school's admissions information asks parents of children with SEN to consult the school before applying and states explicitly that Harrow Shenzhen “does not have the facilities or faculty required to educate children with severe learning needs.” The website does not publish a dedicated Special Educational Needs policy or a comprehensive public list of specific conditions the school can support. Therefore, while the school employs staff with SEN experience and offers learning‑support provision, it is not presented as a specialist SEN institution.

Harrow Shenzhen presents an EAL provision on its site (including a subject video) and lists a dedicated EAL team and leaders — for example an Upper School Head of EAL and several Upper School EAL teachers in the staff directory. Early Years phonics provision (Read Write Inc.) is described on the site and is noted as supporting young learners for whom English is an additional language. The school's pages describe targeted EAL teaching and specialist EAL staff rather than stating a single uniform programme for all year groups. If you need details about levels of support, assessments or class‑by‑class provision the school publishes a subject video and staff list but does not provide a single, detailed public EAL policy on the website.

The school names a Director of Care, Guidance and Support (Zaynah Lyons) whose profile lists counselling and psychology qualifications and wellbeing specialisms, indicating a senior role for student mental‑health support. Pastoral care, the House system and boarding routines are described as contributing to students' social and emotional support, and some staff hold mental‑health first‑aid training. Harrow Shenzhen also runs parent workshops addressing topics such as bullying and positive parenting, which form part of its wider wellbeing provision. The school materials emphasise pastoral and boarding structures rather than a separate public‑facing mental‑health policy document.

Harrow Shenzhen states that safeguarding and child protection are central to school operations, with its policy aligned to UK legislation (the Children Acts 1989 and 2004) and international frameworks such as the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The site names the Designated Safeguarding Lead (Zaynah Lyons, Director of Care, Guidance and Support) and lists deputies William Mitchell and Natalie Dirkze, and gives an email contact for concerns (safeguarding@harrowshenzhen.cn). The school says the full Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy is available to parents via the Parent Portal. Visitor and campus safety guidance (photography, adult/child boundaries, ID badges) are published on the safeguarding page.

1. Harrow Shenzhen will only consider applications if there is space in the requested year group, so parents should confirm availability rather than assume an open place. The school publishes citizenship/residency eligibility rules (foreign passport or HK/Macau/Taiwan ID; for Chinese-passport holders at least one parent must have worked in Qianhai for more than 90 consecutive days and meet specified criteria).

2. Complete the online application and prepare documents: Complete the school's application form (the site links to the online application portal) and assemble required documents such as passports/ID, recent school reports or transcripts, and any certificate of residency/work in Qianhai for Chinese passport families. Parents should note an assessment fee is charged per application (see step 4) and that incomplete applications can delay assessment scheduling. If your child has additional learning needs, the school asks parents to consult Admissions first because the school is not resourced for severe learning needs.

3. Assessment fee and booking: For applicants invited to assessment, Harrow Shenzhen requires payment of an application/assessment fee (the site lists RMB 3,000 for assessments/applications in recent notices). Families should be ready to pay this promptly to confirm a scheduled assessment; any differing fees for specific entry years will be set out by Admissions at invitation. Payment methods are restricted (the school states all fees must be paid by bank remittance; cash is not accepted).

4. Assessment and interview: Once the application and documents are received, the school aims to schedule assessments and interviews within two weeks. Assessment format varies by year group: Pre-Nursery has a parent interview only, Nursery–Year 1 include student observation and parent interview, and Year 2+ include a computer-based assessment, student observation/interview and a parent interview — check the year-by-year table on the Admissions page for exact requirements. Families should prepare appropriate past-school reports, any standardized test results, and (for older applicants) evidence of curricular interests or portfolios where relevant.

5. Admissions outcome and timeframes: The school states that results are usually issued within one week of assessment and interview, though some cases may take longer; Admissions will notify families of the outcome and next steps. If offered a place, parents are required to sign confirmation documents and pay the facility deposit within five working days of the offer or the place may be offered to another applicant. Keep this deadline in mind when planning travel or overseas moves — a delayed response risks losing the offered place.

6. Deposit, fees and billing structure: The published fees page shows a non-refundable facility deposit (listed as RMB 25,000) and gives the tuition schedule for the 2025/26 academic year (tuition ranges by year group; for example, Pre‑Nursery and Reception figures are shown separately from Years 1–13). Harrow Shenzhen offers payment cycles and instalment options (for 2025/26 the school allows two instalments covering Term 1 and then Terms 2+3); confirm the current year's billing schedule with Finance. Additional identifiable charges include school bus, boarding and catering — the fees page lists the school bus and boarding annual charges and notes some charges (textbooks, trips, certain activities) are charged separately.

7. Siblings, discounts and other practicalities: The fees page lists sibling discounts (no discount for second child; 5% for third child, 10% for fourth, 15% for fifth+ when children attend concurrently) — check the exact conditions with Finance. Uniforms are purchased separately through appointed suppliers and the school requires a signed bus agreement before using bus services; boarding uses a separate billing arrangement and flexi-boarding is charged per night. Make arrangements early for bus routes, uniform orders and any boarding requirements to avoid delays at enrolment.

8. Final enrolment and records: After deposit/payment and returned confirmation paperwork, the school completes enrolment and will provide billing/invoice (fapiao) information through the Finance Department. If you later decide to withdraw, the published Terms and Conditions require a term's written notice to the Head; follow the school's specified notice and delivery methods. Keep copies of all bank remittances and the signed confirmation documents for your records.

9. When to contact Admissions: If you need to check vacancies, request special arrangements, or confirm assessment requirements for a particular year group or entry month (for example, Year 10/Year 12 subject-selection deadlines are published for specific intake cycles), contact the Admissions team directly — they run campus tours/Open Days and can add you to event registration or the WeChat admissions channel. The Admissions page lists the email and phone number for direct queries.

Harrow Shenzhen operates a Scholarship Programme and also offers means‑tested bursaries; information and application details are published on the school site. Merit-based scholarships are offered in categories such as Academic Excellence, Sports, Music and Drama; the merit scheme is described as providing targeted curricular enrichment and support rather than direct financial discounts for all merit awards (the school distinguishes merit support from full-cost scholarships). The scholarship application process requires a completed application form, supporting documents (transcripts, test scores, references, portfolios where appropriate), a personal statement (the school's guidance indicates 500–700 words for merit applications), and shortlisted candidates are invited to interview with the scholarship committee. In addition, AISL Harrow Scholarships (for example, the Y2025–27 Harrow scholarship round) have been run at Harrow Shenzhen/AISL Harrow and in at least one cycle included full scholarships covering tuition, boarding and examination fees for the two‑year A‑Level programme; check current availability, deadlines and selection criteria for the year you are applying. For means‑tested support, the school's bursary information indicates that all students may apply and that bursaries are intended to ensure talented students can attend irrespective of parental income. For precise application forms, deadlines and contact points (scholarship enquiries list a contact such as Angela Tai and the Scholarship page provides form downloads), contact the Admissions or Scholarship office and download the school's scholarship brochure from the admissions pages.

Harrow Shenzhen's public admissions pages do not publish a formal waiting‑list policy or a named ‘waiting list' procedure; instead the site emphasises that applications will only be considered where places are available and asks families to contact Admissions to check vacancies. Because the school does not publish a standard waiting‑list mechanism, parents who are willing to be held for a future vacancy should contact admissions@harrowshenzhen.cn to ask whether the school can retain their application or place them in any internal pool when no immediate place exists. If you need a formal waiting‑list placement or a position number for local administrative purposes, request explicit confirmation in writing from Admissions so you have a dated record of any agreement.