How to Start a School in Nigeria in 2024

If you’re looking to start a school in Nigeria, there are specific steps you need to take to get your school up and running. First Academy Montessori school provide a safe and nurturing environment where your child can develop his or her potential.

How to Start a School in Nigeria

In this post, we take a look at how to start a school in Nigeria.

Currently, there are thousands of primary and secondary schools spread across different parts of the country. However, there is still room for more.

How to Start a School in Nigeria

Starting a crèche, nursery or primary school can be a very lucrative business. One of the reasons is because of the decline in the standard of public schools in the country which has led many parents to look to private schools as a means of providing quality education for their children.

In Lagos, there are schools that charge as little as N10,000 as school fees, while there are schools that charge as much as N500,000 school fees per term.

However, the standard of your school will determine how much you can charge as school fees. Whatever the case, the business is certainly lucrative. For example, if your school business charges N10,000 per term and you have 200 pupil, the amount you will be getting from school fees is 10,000 x 200 = N2,000,000 per term and you should be able to run your business on 1 to 1.5 million naira per term.

We have highlighted the steps involved in starting a school in the country.

Step #1: Choose the type of school you want

When setting out, you can choose to start with a crèche and as the children progress you can add the nursery, primary and secondary school levels.

The crèche provides several functions to parents. It can serve as a nursery where babies are taken care of during working hours.

However, you can choose to establish a primary or secondary school instead. The advantage of this type of school is the fact that you won’t need to monitor the kids as closely as you’d be doing if it were a crèche or nursery school.

Step #2: Set up your school structure

This is a very important requirement to be met in the establishment of school business. The structure must be a well-ventilated space and must be very conducive for learning. In addition, chairs, tables and all that is necessary to aid learning must be provided. Other things include markers, boards, board cleaners and so on should also be provided.

When looking to build your school, you should note that the price of landed property varies from place to place but you can get land in some developing areas of a state like Lagos for about N600,000 to N2,000,000. However, you shouldn’t buy land in an isolated area where people are not living because no parent would want to patronize you in such a location.

You should purchase a minimum of one plot of 120 by 60 which is what you need to be able to accommodate the school building and playground.

Additionally, the cost of a building depends on the size and quality of the building you intend to construct. You can discuss with your engineer in order to draft a suitable plan. You should insist on a good structure because your marketing starts from there. The classrooms should be spacious, at least 3.5m square per child under the age of two, at least 2.5m square per child aged two or at least 2.3m square per child aged three to seven. There should also be an adequate water supply. You shouldn’t depend on the government for water; instead, you should dig a borehole so that there is always water supply.

Step #3: Get your school registered and approved

For your school business to be legal, it must be registered and approved by the government. You need to approach your state ministry of education to get guidelines you need to follow to get your school registered and approved.

You also need to visit the Corporate Affair Commission office that is close to you to register your school’s name. In this case, you may need the service of a lawyer.

Step #4: Set up a team of teachers, instructors and administrative staffs

You need to employ a team to help in the day to day activities leading to the establishment of the business. As the owner of the business, you cannot be a jack of all trade which is why you need helping hands. It is important you hire qualified teachers to handle different subjects to be taught in the school. If you are establishing a crèche, it would be advisable to hire mothers who are experienced in taking care of babies.

If you are just the proprietor of the nursery and primary school, you do not need any formal qualifications but if you are going to be the school manager you need a minimum of NCE and experience in educational administration. Your teachers should also have a minimum of NCE and experience in childcare education or play-work.

Step #5: Advertise your business

Now that you have your structure in place and a school that has been registered and approved by the government, the next thing to do is to let people know about your new venture. You can create a website or blog, print flyers, advertise on radio and TV just for the public to be aware of the quality education you have to offer in your school.

Step #6: Others  

Some of the other things your school needs include a sick bay which should have medical personnel and a well-equipped first aid box. This will ensure prompt medical attention to students or pupils who fall ill or suffer minor injuries while playing.

Also, apart from the normal chairs and tables, you will also need to equip your classrooms with computer and other learning aids. There is also the need for toys and other gadgets that will be used for children’s education and Montessori. You need video and large screen TV in all the classrooms, not to play movies but for playing educational videos and sometimes, cartoon depending on the class and the children’s age.

A school bus will be important if you want to offer pick and drop which parents often demand. You can get a bus for about N800,000 – N1,000,000.

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