Stacey Brewer and Ryan Harrison co-founded SPARK Schools, a trailblazing network of reasonably priced private schools in South Africa, in 2012. Concerned about the condition of South African education, they set out to develop a model that would offer top-notch instruction at a reasonable price.
In 2013, SPARK Ferndale, the first school in the network, opened its doors in Johannesburg. Since then, SPARK Schools has expanded significantly, operating 26 schools across Gauteng and the Western Cape as of 2024, with plans to further grow to 47 schools by 2028, serving over 30,000 scholars.
To support this expansion, SPARK Schools has attracted investment from several key partners. In a Series C funding round, global long-term investment firm Creadev led the investment, joined by Finnish development financier Finnfund and existing shareholder Imaginable Futures. This funding aims to help SPARK Schools serve over 35,000 scholars in the next decade.
As a result of these investments, the ownership of SPARK Schools is shared among its co-founders, Stacey Brewer and Ryan Harrison, and its investors, including Creadev, Finnfund, and Imaginable Futures. This collaborative ownership structure enables SPARK Schools to pursue its mission of providing globally competitive education to South African families who may have previously lacked access to such opportunities.
By combining innovative educational models with strategic partnerships, SPARK Schools continues to make significant strides in transforming the educational landscape of South Africa