Elite British schools have long been recognised as lying at the heart of the reproduction of privilege in the UK. However, little attention has been paid to the expansion of elite British schools overseas, currently taking place at an alarmingly fast rate. For example, Harrow school, originally set up in North London in 1572, now has over 12 international franchises or ‘satellite’ branches operating across Asia and the USA, bringing in revenue for what the dedicated website calls the ‘Harrow Family of Schools’ as a whole. Indeed, such an expansion represents an endeavour to export their distinct educational offering overseas, with the promise of creating young people capable of ‘educational excellence for life and leadership’ as quoted from the Harrow School in Hong Kong’s mission statement.

In this seminar, Emma draw upon findings from her own ethnographic study of an elite boys’ school in England, where she also worked as teacher for close to a decade, to demonstrate how there is a lack of acknowledgement by those operating within the sector to the “imperial logics” and extractive practices which lie at the core of this expansion. Emma will argue that it is crucial that we understand what is happening within a framework which draws attention to the overwhelming whiteness of elite British schools and their subsequent ability to set up overseas branches for commercial benefit overseas. Indeed, until the nature of this expansion is confronted and considered within a historical and colonial context from within the sector, it is likely that such extractive practices will continue to be reproduced along varying scales in time and space.