Click Here to Download Membership Application

MEMBERSHIP

Benefits of COBIS Membership:

- A mark of quality-assurance

- Access to formal British accreditation through inspections by the Independent Schools Inspectorate in the United Kingdom, adapted for an international setting

- Representation with the British Government, educational bodies, and the corporate sector

- A forum for discussion, networking, and sharing good practice through conferences, seminars, and continuing professional development

- A system of international support through contacts, consultancies, information, and marketing

- INSET training for teachers and managers

- Access to information about developments and trends in UK education

- The opportunity to be part of a worldwide network of British schools working to enhance British education globally

Further benefits include:

- Regular newsletters providing up-to-date information about the education sector in the United Kingdom and news from other schools

- Access to the ISC Bulletin and Key Notes newsletter for International Schools

- Profile of the school on the COBIS website

- Access to Criminal Record Bureau checks for new employees

- Free posting of job vacancies on the COBIS website

- Discounted delegate fees at the COBIS annual conference and COBIS teachers' conferences.

Click here to download an application form.

MEMBERSHIP PROCEDURES

Provisional Membership

A school may be admitted into Provisional Membership on the basis of the documentation submitted to the Executive Committee. This documentation must include:

a) Application Form

b) Curriculum Vitae of the Head Teacher

c) Supporting documentation as specified on the Application Form

Conditions

Provisional Membership will normally last for up to one year, and in any case for not more than three years.

Schools with Provisional Membership must pay the same fee as a Full Member. Where a school is granted Provisional Membership during the academic year, the membership fee will be on a pro rata basis.

Full Membership

Within (where possible) six months of receiving Provisional Membership, the school will be visited by either:

a) A member of the Executive Committee, or

b) The Head of a Full Member school, appointed by the Executive Committee, or

c) A suitably qualified person nominated by the Executive Committee.

Conditions

Full Membership cannot be granted unless the school has been in continuous existence for at least three full years.

The Visit

The visit will last 2/3 school days, depending on the size and complexity of the school. It is in order to establish that the following arears are basically satisfactory:-

b) Text books and other support materials are such as might normally be used in schools in the UK.

c) The teaching staff are appropriately qualified and are predominantly native English speakers.

e) The buildings and facilities are adequate for the number of pupils at the school and comply with local regulations.

f) Health and safety procedures are satisfactory and comply with local regulations.

g) The school meets the professional, ethical and operational standards expected of a member school.

a) A brief report will be sent to the Secretariat and the Executive Committee with the recommendation that the school should, or should not, be admitted into Full Membership.

b) The Secretariat will inform the school officially that it has, or has not, been admitted into Full Membership.

c) The school will undertake to apply for an ISI inspection as soon as it can be arranged.

d) On confirmation of Full Membership the school will receive an appropriate certificate signed by the Chairman.

If Full Membership is not granted, the Executive Committee may, at its discretion, allow the school up to a maximum of a further two years in which to address any unsatisfactory areas, whilst continuing in Provisional Membership. If a school is not granted Provisional Membership for purely technical reasons (e.g. lack of a fire certificate), it would be sufficient to supply such documentation without necessitating a further visit.

All direct costs involved with the visit will be met by the school. This will include such items as travel, meals, hotel accommodation etc.

Affiliate Membership (for schools outside Europe or in the UK)

A school may be granted Affiliate Membership under the same conditions as Provisional Membership (see relevant section, points (a), (b) & (c), but excluding “conditions”), provided that the Executive Committee is satisfied with its status, academic standards and viability. This could be ascertained, for example, by its membership of any association within ISC, by contacting its regional association or another appropriate body, or by a visit to the school.

Honorary Membership

Individuals who have served COBIS well, may be invited by the Executive Committee to become Honorary Members for life.

COBIS retains the right to withdraw membership from a school if it is considered to be in serious breach of the Code of Ethics or should it be found that the standards by which it was admitted into membership (see “the Visit” on page 2) are no longer complied with.

If a school wishes to relinquish membership (full, affiliate or provisional) for any reason, it should give notice of its intention at least one month before the Annual General Meeting of the Association.

Full Members are schools on the Continent of Europe and in Ireland that have satisfied the Executive Committee that they follow a British curriculum and are open to quality assurance schemes run by ISI or OFSTED (the official British Inspection Bodies).

Provisional Members are schools on the Continent of Europe and in Ireland that have satisfied the Executive Committee that they follow a British curriculum and that they have adequate standards of quality that are likely to lead to Full Membership in a period of three years.

Affiliate Members are schools not on the Continent of Europe or in Ireland that have satisfied the Executive Committee that they have standards of quality similar to those required for Provisional Members.

Honorary Members are individuals whose merits in the world of British education and services to COBIS have led the Executive Committee to bestow this status on them.

COBIS requires that all full members shall arrange to undergo a process of quality assurance (as soon as practicable) that is either an OFSTED or an ISI inspection or one that is recognised as providing a similar standard of quality assurance by one of these bodies.