Council of British International Schools (COBIS)

COBIS is the premier global association for international British schools overseas. We are committed to quality assurance in British schools overseas and the safety of students who study and learn at these schools.

Our accreditation scheme, The Patron’s Accreditation and Compliance, which bears the name of our Patron, HRH The Duke of York, KG, is the primary route to COBIS membership for schools and is a development journey characterised by the use of digital technology to ensure that high standards are kept in all COBIS schools. Safeguarding and child protection is of paramount importance to our activities and our partnership with Educare, an education training provider, means that staff in COBIS schools undertake essential e-learning courses in duty of care and safeguarding. To encourage best practice in safer recruitment, we offer Disclosure and Barring (DBS) checks for prospective or current school staff who have lived in the UK. In addition to DBS checks, COBIS strongly recommends that all teachers undergo a Prohibition Order check which we can also perform on behalf of schools.

We offer vast professional development and networking opportunities for the school workforce, including recognised courses for Teaching Assistants, Middle Leaders, PAs, Bursars, EAL staff and more. Our flagship Annual Conference in May now attracts over 700 attendees and offers high-quality speakers, seminars and workshops for Heads, Governors, Proprietors and Senior Leaders.

Our programme of competitions and events for students is dedicated to recognising a diverse array of student talents. Whether you are athletic, creative, artistic, musical or academic, COBIS has a suitable competition or event designed to bring out the best in you. We also want to help students become leaders and our Global Social Leaders Catalyst develops leadership skills, nurtures confidence, and empowers the participants to go on to lead successful projects in their own school and local community and be a catalyst for social change.

Teacher supply is undoubtedly an important aspect of our strategy for supporting schools. As a result, we keep UK and international candidates up-to-date on the latest vacancies in COBIS schools through our fortnightly e-mail bulletin and our online recruitment jobs board gains the most hits each month on our website.

COBIS serves, supports and over 250 schools in 77 countries as well as over 230 commercial Supporting Members who export goods and services to our schools. Our close links with the UK Department for International Trade (DIT) and our status as a ‘Trade Challenge Partner’ allows our Supporting Members to access high-quality advice and expertise on exporting overseas.

Website: www.cobis.org.uk

Email: members@cobis.org.uk

Phone: +44 (0) 20 3826 7190