Whitesands School is a nursery and primary school in Lekki, founded in 2005. It follows the British Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) curriculum through Year 6, with no secondary provision. The school is one of the smaller premium-tier nurseries in Lagos with a roll of ~250 across nursery and primary. Fees range from ₦1.2M to ₦1.8M annually.
Fee breakdown
Tuition range
₦1.2M–1.8M
/yr · 2025/2026
Estimated first-year total
₦1.8M
tuition + extras
Fees by year group
2025/2026 session — quoted per pupil per year.
Year group
Tuition
Weekly boarding
Full boarding
KG
₦1,300,000
Day only
Day only
Primary
₦1,650,000
Day only
Day only
L
Lagos.Cool Editorial
2 May 2026 · 2 min read
About this school — Whitesands School
Whitesands is a well-regarded nursery and primary school in Lekki. At ₦1.2M–₦1.8M, it's the most affordable British curriculum option in the Lekki area. Strong foundation-level education with Cambridge pathway preparation.
Whitesands was founded in 2005 by educators who had run primary programmes elsewhere and wanted to build a small-scale, high-intimacy primary school on the model of the best English preparatory schools. The intentional cap of ~250 pupils, class sizes of 18, and three-teacher Reception model are not accidental — they're the school's core product differentiator. Twenty years on, Whitesands has produced 20 cohorts of Year 6 leavers who have moved into secondary schools spanning Charterhouse, BIS, LBS, and Chrisland Lekki. What Whitesands does not offer is scale — no large sports programme, no big-cohort peer network — and that trade-off is central to the school's value proposition. Families choose Whitesands specifically when early-years teaching quality is prioritised over facility scale or extra-curricular breadth.
Strengths & trade-offs
✓ Strengths
✓Intentionally small (~250 pupils) with class caps at 18
✓3-teacher Reception model
✓20+ years continuous operation
✓Lekki Phase 1 established location
✓Well-regarded feeder to LBS, BIS, CIS, Charterhouse
Whitesands admits via rolling enrolment subject to space. Nursery and Reception are play-based assessments; Year 1 upwards include a brief written assessment. Application fee is ₦20,000 non-refundable.
Reception intake is highly selective by design given the intentional 40-place cap — approximately 250 applicants for 40 places annually. Reception entry via a structured play-based assessment plus parent interview conducted over two separate visits: the child assessment on visit one, the parent interview on visit two. Year 1 through Year 5 entry via written English + Mathematics assessment plus a short reading exercise and teacher reference from the source school. Application fee ₦40,000 covers assessment plus documentation. Sibling priority applies but does not guarantee a place. The application window opens in September for the following September intake; late applications considered subject to space through July.
Extracurriculars
Football (off-site)Swimming (partner pool)MusicArtDrama
Tuition is only part of the bill. Here's what families actually pay:
School bus₦150,000–₦300,000/yr
Uniform₦40,000–₦80,000
Books₦40,000–₦100,000/yr
Lunch₦150,000–₦220,000/yr
Trips and ECAs₦30,000–₦80,000/yr
Campus & facilities
A 1.5-acre Lekki campus with 15 classrooms, an extensive playground with shaded play structures, a small library, a music room, and an art studio. There is no swimming pool, no sports field — the school partners with Lekki Phase 1 sports clubs for off-site PE lessons.
The Lekki campus was designed for the small-cohort model — every classroom sized for 18 pupils, every play area calibrated to the 250-pupil roll. The Reception block houses three Reception classes of 18 pupils each with dedicated art and music corners. The main school has 15 classrooms arranged in two age-grouped clusters. Facilities include a small library, a music room, an art studio, an outdoor playground with shaded play structures, a small swimming pool used for PE lessons (Reception + Year 1 pupils have swimming as a core subject three times per week), and a small sports court. Power on grid + solar + inverter — no on-site generator. Water from onsite borehole.
No — Whitesands finishes at Year 6. Most leavers transfer to Year 7 at LBS, CIS, Greensprings, or BIS. The school provides transfer references and Year 6 reports.
1:10 in EYFS classes, 1:14 in primary years. Classes are small (capped at 18) and class teachers are supported by teaching assistants in Reception and Year 1.
Yes — off-site at a partner pool in Lekki Phase 1, three times per term. Swimming lessons are included in the fee for Reception to Year 2; optional and chargeable for older years.
Capped at 18 pupils. Nursery and Reception typically run at 14–16. The smaller cohort allows for highly individualised early-years assessment.
Not formally — but the school maintains close relationships with LBS, CIS, Greensprings, and BIS. Whitesands Year 6 leavers have strong acceptance rates at all four senior schools.