Dulwich College Shanghai Pudong

Why academic success is only one part of a happy, healthy life

Dulwich College Shanghai Pudong, an international school in Shanghai, China, has a strong academic reputation, but its vision extends far beyond academic success. Pushing back against the commonly held view that only results matter, it gives students a holistic education based on three key principles - to value every voice, do the right thing, and make a difference.

The school community is made up of families from over 40 different countries, with an increasing number of returning Chinese and Asian families who consider academic excellence non-negotiable. However, academics are delivered through a wellbeing ethos, and Dulwich College Shanghai Pudong pursues an educational model that centres on the child and healthy living is woven into every fibre of its being. Not just the teachers, every staff member that contributes to the operation of the school centres around the welfare of the students. From the IT manager, to the HR recruitment manager to the school guard. If you were to ask about their job’s core duty, the reply would be to keep the children safe.

The catering team, which works not only with staff, but also parents and students in the Food Committee, serves healthy food options for different diets, including vegetarian and foods from different cultures and also provides education on nutrition. The operations team has invested in an air filtration system, uses cleaning robots to help clean the school’s facilities, and has installed UV light sterilisation to act as a disinfectant.

The Wellbeing and Healthy Living programme has been well received by parents who have come to embrace an educational style not commonly seen in the region. According to the school’s data: 91% of parents felt their child is ‘safe and well-cared for at school’ and 88% agree their child is happy at school’. Students felt similarly: 83% felt ‘safe and well-cared for’ and 81% ‘enjoying learning at school’ and expressed their happiness at being enrolled in the school.

Dulwich College Shanghai Pudong has found that student leadership and ownership of the healthy living agenda has been critical in embedding it into the culture, and if they were to win the World’s Best School Prize for Supporting Healthy Lives it would use the prize money to give to the students so they can turn their passion projects into a reality. They would be able to research, plan and pitch their own healthy living projects to a panel and the best ideas would be funded.