Founded 2001500studentsStudent–teacher ratio 10:1Payment terms Termly (3 terms per year)
The British International School Lagos (BIS) is a coeducational day-and-boarding school in Victoria Island, founded in 2001. It follows the English National Curriculum and is fully accredited by the Council of British International Schools (COBIS). BIS is the largest British curriculum school in Lagos by student roll (1,200+) and offers a sixth-form A-Level programme that has produced multiple Oxbridge admissions in the past five years. Fees range from ₦4.5M to ₦9.1M annually depending on year group and boarding status.
Fee breakdown
Tuition range
₦4.5M–9.1M
/yr · 2025/2026
Estimated first-year total
₦9.1M
tuition + extras
Sibling discount: 10% off second child; 15% off third and subsequent.
Fees by year group
2025/2026 session — quoted per pupil per year.
Year group
Tuition
Weekly boarding
Full boarding
Primary
₦5,150,000
Day only
Day only
JSS
₦6,650,000
Day only
Day only
SSS
₦7,500,000
—
+₦9,100,000
L
Lagos.Cool Editorial
2 May 2026 · 2 min read
About this school — British International School
BIS sits in the part of the market where Lagos's upper middle class buys British education without crossing into Charterhouse territory. The fee differential is significant: a Year 7 day place at BIS costs roughly a fifth of the same at Charterhouse. What the BIS parent gets in return is COBIS-accredited British schooling, A-Level pathways, and a coed environment — but in a larger, older, more institutional setting. For dual-citizenship families weighing UK boarding vs Lagos premium, BIS is usually the comparison case.
Strengths & trade-offs
✓ Strengths
✓Full COBIS accreditation opens direct UK-university admission
✓Sixth Form Centre with dedicated UCAS office and 2 full-time advisors
✓Boarding option for 3 houses, ~180 places
✓1,200+ pupils gives broad peer network and inter-school sports
✓IGCSE + A-Level dual pathway
✓Strong Oxbridge track record over past 5 years
✓Established 25+ years as flagship British-curriculum school on VI
✗ Trade-offs
✗Fees ₦1.5M-₦3M/term put it in the upper premium tier
✗VI location means Third Mainland Bridge commute for Mainland families
✗Larger cohort means class caps at 24 vs boutique alternatives
✗No IB Diploma option
✗Waitlist at Reception, Year 7, Year 12 is 12-18 months
• COBIS (Council of British International Schools)
• Cambridge International Assessment
• Federal Ministry of Education Nigeria
University destinations
OxfordCambridgeImperialUCLKing's College LondonManchesterWarwickLSEUniversity of TorontoMcGill
Admission process
BIS admits via a structured intake with two main entry windows: September (primary) and a second September window for Year 7 and Year 12. Reception entry is the easiest; Year 7 is competitive (typically 200 applicants for 80 spaces). Required: previous two years of school reports, a teacher reference, and an entrance assessment covering English, Maths and reasoning. The Year 12 entry requires predicted IGCSE results of 6 (B) or better in five subjects. Application fee is ₦75,000 non-refundable. Sibling priority applies; siblings are guaranteed an assessment, not a place.
Extracurriculars
CricketRugby (boys)Netball (girls)FootballBasketballTable tennisMusic ensembleDramaDuke of Edinburgh Award
Tuition is only part of the bill. Here's what families actually pay:
School bus₦400,000–₦900,000/yr
Uniform + sports kit₦120,000–₦200,000
Books and IGCSE entries₦150,000–₦350,000/yr
Lunch₦300,000–₦450,000/yr
Trips and ECAs₦80,000–₦250,000/yr
Boarding (full year)₦3,000,000+ on top of tuition
Campus & facilities
The 6-acre Victoria Island campus combines Edwardian-style main buildings with newer purpose-built additions. Facilities include two science blocks (eight labs total), a 350-seat auditorium, a 25m swimming pool, a multi-purpose sports hall, separate primary and secondary playgrounds, and a senior library with dedicated Sixth Form study space. Boarding is in three houses (two boys, one girls) accommodating 180 boarders combined; weekend programming includes inter-house competitions and trips off-campus.
Yes — BIS is COBIS-accredited and its IGCSE and A-Level grades are accepted directly by all UK universities, including Russell Group institutions. The school has a dedicated UK university applications office that handles UCAS submissions for the Sixth Form annually.
Boarding adds approximately ₦3M to ₦3.5M annually on top of day tuition. Weekly boarding (Sunday night to Friday) is offered for some year groups at roughly 75% of full boarding cost. Most boarders are children of parents living outside Lagos or in West African capitals.
Yes — academic scholarships are available at Year 7 and Year 12 entry, covering 30–50% of tuition. Music and sports scholarships are smaller (10–25%). All scholarships are competitive and means-tested for the larger awards.
Football, basketball, swimming and athletics are the core sports with weekly inter-house and inter-school fixtures. The school also runs cricket, tennis, rugby (boys), netball (girls), and a strong table-tennis programme. The athletics team competes annually in COBIS Games in the UK.
Approximately 200 students across Years 12 and 13. A-Level offerings include the full range of sciences, humanities, languages (French, Spanish, Mandarin), Economics, Business and Psychology. The Sixth Form Centre is a separate three-storey building with study halls, common rooms, and a careers library staffed by two full-time UCAS advisors.