PRIVATE, COMMUNITY AND MISSION SCHOOLS
Approved private schools
Three hundred approved private, community and voluntary schools, holding about 164,000 pupils, licensed and inspected by the Kano State Private And Voluntary Institute. A school that is not on the register has not been approved to operate.
Approved, or not operating lawfully
No school in Kano State may charge a fee and teach children without an approval. The Kano State Private And Voluntary Institute issues those approvals, inspects against them once a year, and publishes the register of every school that holds one. There are about 300 approved schools in three categories — 214 proprietary private schools, 42 mission and voluntary schools and 44 community schools — teaching around 164,000 pupils with 7,400 teachers.
An approval is not a formality. It certifies that the site is safe and fit for children, that the classrooms and sanitation meet the standard for the number on roll, that the teachers hold recognised qualifications and are registered where the law requires it, that the school teaches the national curriculum, and that the fees it charges have been filed with the Institute. It is issued first as a provisional approval and converted to full approval only after the school has been running and inspected.
For a parent the practical point is simple. Before you pay a term's fees, check that the school appears on the public register with a live approval. A certificate issued by a school that is not approved is not recognised by the Ministry, and a pupil in an unapproved school cannot be entered for the BECE or for WASSCE through that school.
The approved private estate
300
Approved schools
Private, mission and community
164,000
Pupils enrolled
Pre-primary to senior secondary
7,400
Teachers
Registration required where the law applies
1 a year
Statutory inspections
Plus unannounced visits on a complaint
How approval works
From application to full approval takes about eighteen months for a school that meets the standard first time. The whole process runs through the Institute, and the current schedule of charges is published on the school approval service page.
Apply, with the site already identified
The application names the proprietor, the proposed school, the site, the levels to be offered and the intended roll. It comes with the site documents, the building plan, a sanitation and water plan, the proposed staff list with qualifications, and evidence that the proprietor is fit to run a school.
Site inspection against the twelve criteria
The Institute inspects the site and the buildings against twelve published criteria covering land, classrooms, furniture, sanitation, water, safety, playground, library, laboratory where the level requires one, staffing, records and the curriculum. The inspection report is given to the proprietor with anything that must be put right.
Provisional approval, for two years
A school that meets the criteria is granted provisional approval and may open. Provisional approval permits teaching and the charging of filed fees; it does not permit the school to present candidates for external examinations as a centre in its own right.
Operate under supervision and be inspected
The Institute inspects at least once in each of the two provisional years, looking at what the first inspection could not see: whether the teachers named are actually teaching, whether the curriculum is being covered, whether the records are kept, and whether the fees charged are the fees filed.
Full approval
Where the provisional period has been satisfactory, full approval is granted. A fully approved school appears on the register with the status Full Approval and may apply to be accredited as an examination centre.
Renew, and file any change
Full approval is renewed on a cycle, and renewals fall due in the second term. A change of proprietor, a change of site, the addition of a level or a change in the fee schedule must each be filed with the Institute before it takes effect.
What an approved school must display
All of these must be on a board at the school entrance or in the reception, visible to a parent without asking. A school that will not show them is telling you something.
- The certificate of approval, with the approval number and the levels approved.
- The school code in the standard form.
- The approval status — Provisional Approval or Full Approval — and the date it runs to.
- The fee schedule as filed with the Institute, itemised, with the period each charge covers.
- The name of the proprietor and the name of the head of school.
- The list of teachers with their qualifications.
- The school calendar for the session, matching the State academic calendar.
- The complaints procedure, and the telephone number of the Institute.
Before you pay a term's fees
A private school place is one of the larger commitments a family makes, and most of what goes wrong could have been caught in ten minutes at the gate. Check the school on the public register first — search by name or by local government area, and look for a live approval status. Then check what you are being asked to pay against the fee schedule the school has filed.
Fees in an approved private school are set by the proprietor, not by the State, and they vary widely. What the State requires is that the schedule is filed, displayed and adhered to: a charge that is not on the filed schedule may not be demanded, and a mid-session increase must be filed before it is applied. Ask for a receipt for everything you pay, and keep it.
- Find the school on the public register and check the approval status.
- Read the filed fee schedule on the notice board and compare it with what you are asked for.
- Ask which examinations the school presents candidates for, and at whose centre.
- Ask how many pupils are in the class your child would join.
- Ask to see the teacher list and the qualification of the class teacher.
- Get a receipt for every payment, itemised.
What to check, and where to check it
| What to check | Where you check it | What good looks like |
|---|---|---|
| Approval | The public register, and the certificate at the school gate | The school appears on the register with the status Full Approval, or Provisional Approval within its two years |
| Levels approved | The certificate of approval | The certificate names the level your child would join — an approval for primary does not cover a secondary class |
| Fees | The filed schedule displayed at the school | Every charge itemised, with the period it covers, and nothing demanded that is not on it |
| Teachers | The displayed staff list | Named teachers with recognised qualifications, and registration where the law requires it |
| Class size | Ask, and look into the classroom | Forty or fewer in a basic education class; fewer in the early years |
| Examinations | Ask the head of school | A named accredited centre for the BECE and for WASSCE, and candidates presented in the school's own name where it is accredited |
| Safety and sanitation | Walk the site | A fenced site, clean and separate toilets for boys and girls, running water, a first-aid box and a fire extinguisher |
Unapproved schools
A school operating without an approval is operating unlawfully. The Institute serves a closure notice, gives the proprietor a defined period to place the pupils in approved schools, and closes the site if the notice is not complied with. The pupils are not abandoned — the Institute and the local government education authority place every child, and a place in a public school is guaranteed.
Fees paid to an unapproved school are a matter between the parent and the proprietor, and the State cannot recover them. That is the strongest reason to check the register before you pay. To report a school operating without an approval, call +234 803 700 1420 or write to info@moe.kn.gov.ng with the school name and the ward.
Questions proprietors and parents ask
How long does an approval take?
Can a school teach while its application is pending?
Does the State set private school fees?
What happens if a school is inspected and found wanting?
Are mission and community schools treated differently?
My child is in an approved private school. Can she sit the BECE?
The school has increased its fees mid-session. Is that allowed?
How do I apply to open a school?
Check a school, or apply to open one
The register of approved schools is public and searchable. Approval applications are made through the school approval service.