Wellington College International Shanghai opened its doors on 24 August 2014, welcoming our first pupils and guided by a mission to provide a pioneering education to serve and help shape a better world.

Over the last decade our community has grown steadily and now spans the globe. To celebrate our 10th anniversary and a decade of building a global community, we came together for a day of celebration, reflection and looking forward to building a brighter future.

We were honoured to share the festivities with special guests in our Wellington College Theatre. Distinguished guests included:Joy Qiao, Founder and Chairman of Wellington College China; Xu Erjin, Chairman of the Lujiazui Group; Cai Rong, General Manager of the Lujiazui Group; Matthew Burney, HM Consul-General, British Consulate-General Shanghai; Qinjian Zhou, Director of the International Exchange Office at the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission; Sir Anthony Seldon, Founding Director of Wellington College Education and other long-standing partners.

To symbolise this spirit of connection, our distinguished guests celebrated our common vision and commitment to continue building our global Wellington community. 

The event featured speeches from our special guests who reflected on the power of strong partnerships to turn vision into reality.

Founding pupil, Alex L, now in Year 13, reflected on his formative experience at the College, citing the teachers who supported and challenged him to Be You. Be More. “Wellington has been an amazing place to grow up, full of friends who feel like family and teachers who’ve made every day memorable. I came to Wellington as a plain canvas, and the teachers, friends, and experiences here have coloured it into a masterpiece.”

Founding parent, and current Chair of the Friends of Wellington, Felix Zhang, remarked, “As I look back on the past decade, I am filled with a deep sense of gratitude for the opportunities that this school has provided for my son and our family. We have made lifelong friends, forged lasting memories, and grown together as a community.”

Assembled guests were treated to extraordinary pupil performances.

We would especially like to highlight performances from two Wellington Shanghai alumni, Jackson Faulkner and Isabella Petry, who took time from their busy careers to be with us for this special occasion.

In addition, Class of 2019 alumni Kevin Gong created a special gift for each guest, a hand-made, limited edition Wellington pupil figurine made from Wuxi black clay. Kevin has revived and brought back this traditional craft that is now honoured as one of China’s Intangible Cultural Heritage artforms.

“Wellington has grown in so many profound ways these past 10 years, and I don’t just mean enrolment numbers,” said Brendon Fulton, Master of Wellington College. “With each successive year, our network has grown wider and stronger. We are increasingly better equipped to be a force for positive change in our community and the wider world, and that is the ultimate goal of a holistic education.”

In the past decade, Wellington Shanghai has marked many key milestones on its journey. 

Along the way, Wellington has remained steadfast in its commitment to holistic education in academics, sports and the arts. Our pupils consistently excel, achieving outstanding examination scores and gaining admission to top-ranked universities, like Oxford, Cambridge, Brown and Caltech. 

Beyond academics, Wellington develops the whole child, nurturing their intellectual curiosity, creativity, character and wellbeing, all firmly rooted in our Wellington values of kindness, responsibility, respect, courage and integrity. 

At the heart of our school is our community, which radiates from our home in the Qiantan New Bund throughout the globe. For 10 years, we have nurtured a community of caring citizens who engage in ongoing charity and outreach activities that benefit communities locally and globally, demonstrating Wellington’s unique ability to make a positive impact.