Background on The English School

In the late 1930s, Catholic sisters who had come from the United States to Helsinki, had the intention of opening an English school. The outbreak of World War II delayed the project, but when the war ended, the school opened its doors on October 1, 1945 in Engelinaukio, Eira. The school was named The English School.

The school’s popularity grew quickly and soon more space was needed. In the Olympic year of 1952, the school moved to Meilahti, Mäntytie 14, just in time for the opening of the Olympic Games. The location in Meilahti provided easy access to the playing fields and later to the swimming pool.

The English school was run by the Catholic Church from 1945 to 1995. In 1995 it was transferred to the English School Foundation.

Today the school has more than 700 students from preschool to high school. Teaching is bilingual, with special emphasis on the Finnish and English languages and cultures.

The English School upholds Christian values. Mutual respect, a love of learning, a strong work ethic, honesty, responsibility, forgiveness, and service are values at the heart of our work. Through these principles, we create a safe environment for the growth and development of our students.

The need for a new school building

The Meilahti school building became too small when the upper secondary school started in 1995. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the school operated in up to three different locations. Planning for a new school building began in 2010, but the small size of the Mäntytien site and the extensions already built made further construction impossible. As a solution, the middle school and high school moved to temporary facilities in Valimotie in 2012.

The Foundation, in cooperation with the City of Helsinki, actively searched for an existing building and later for land for a new building. After many alternatives, in 2018 the City allocated the Foundation a plot of land in Etelä-Haaga, which had an approved zoning plan. The location was also excellent, with good transport links. The English school does not have a catchment area for its students, so accessibility by public transport was important. The location in the west of Helsinki, close to Valimotie and Meilahti, was also positive.

The long-awaited school building

The new school building will be the “home” for the English School for decades to come. The U-shaped building will house the preschool and primary classes in a separate wing. The school’s facilities will be designed so that students will start on the ground floor and move up through floors 2, 3 to floor 4 where the high school classes will be located.

The building will have two gymnasiums, one of which can be divided into two with a curtain. A bilingual library, important for the school, is located in the heart of the school. The dining room will serve as a celebration hall, as will the gymnasiums.

Classrooms are bright and spacious. In the primary school, a door between two classrooms can be opened to connect the rooms.

The school building is located directly on the street, which allows for a sheltered courtyard overlooking the forest for the use of the students.