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About Us

Our History

For the last three decades, ESF Explore, a wholly-owned subsidiary of English Schools Foundation (ESF), has offered an immersive holistic education with a mission to inspire creativity, ignite learning and nurture all children in Hong Kong so they are equipped to become global citizens and leaders of the future. Today, we offer over 50 programmes in 22 ESF locations, and welcome almost 10,000 students every year.

Established in

1994
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Our Organisation

ESF Explore

Explorative extracurricular programmes that challenge students, spark their curiosity and help them uncover their unique strengths and interests. Open to all children.

Catering from infants to teens, we offer playgroups, sports, language classes, arts, drama, STEM learning, and more.

Our classes are held at ESF schools and kindergartens located throughout Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and New Territories. All schools are equipped with excellent facilities and resources that support child development.

ESF Language & Learning Centre, Wan Chai

Registered centre with EDB in Wan Chai. It caters to playgroup, pre-school, and primary students. Our classes are based on the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum, shown to promote social and emotional development needed for healthy learning.

Our Vision & Mission

Inspiring every child to be the best they can be…
Our engaging extracurricular programmes at ESF Explore inspire students to explore new ideas, think critically, and develop a lifelong love of learning. Activities are designed to challenge students, spark their curiosity, and help them uncover their own unique strengths and interests.

Diverse Offerings
ESF Explore’s wide range of classes, courses and activities are available to all children in Hong Kong, regardless of location or resident school. We cater to children from infants to teens, and we offer playgroups, sports, language classes, arts, drama, STEM learning and more.
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Skilled & Passionate Educators
Our team of skilled, passionate and enthusiastic educators are selected according to the same diligent hiring process applied to all ESF staff hires. They are chosen for the genuine joy they find in unleashing children's passion for learning. Our educators are trusted companions with proven experience in supporting growth and development, to give every child what they need to thrive.
Learn more about our people

Holistic Learning
We offer high-quality, holistic extracurricular activities in a supportive and inclusive environment that enhances personal and academic growth. Children uncover interests and explore passions while developing important social and emotional skills that can improve academic performance and increase health and wellness.
Inspire and Explore: Learn. Create. Grow.

Awards & Achievements

Best Kids' Sports Programme - ESF Explore

Corporate Social Responsibility

Education
Education
ESF Sports X Splash Foundation
We believe swimming is more than a sport: it’s a life skill. To that end, our qualified and experienced swimming coaches taught free swimming lessons run by Splash Foundation. Splash Foundation is a charitable organization that provides swimming lessons to people who do not have access to affordable swimming lessons and have had no previous swimming exposure. Students from Sprouts Foundation learnt basic water safety and swimming skills in Splash’s Kids Programme.
Aimed at equipping domestic helpers with tips and ideas to support home learning, these one-off workshops are completely free of charge. Our pilot workshop seeks to provide tips on how to support early readers and writers at home and in particular is targeting helpers who care for students aged approximately 4-7 years of age. It is a fun, hands-on workshop full of games and activities to boost their understanding and confidence in this area. All participants will receive a certificate of attendance at the end of the workshop.
In 2014, ESF Language & Learning worked in collaboration with a charity called Vision First. Vision First supports refugees in Hong Kong through providing a range of different services, from offering assistance with food and shelter to vocational training. We supported the charity by running a short summer programme for the children of refugees. Attendance was free and was staffed by a team of volunteer teachers. Classes ran between 21st July to 2 August 2014, 10:00-1300 each day. Kindergarten, primary and secondary language programmes were delivered which included art, drama and science - students ranged between 3 to 15 years of age.
We have partnered with Splash Foundation Limited to provide swimming equipment so economically disadvantaged students can experience advanced swimming skills. Splash Foundation Limited is Hong Kong’s only charitable organization that uses swimming to empower and connect under-resourced communities. They were created on the premise that there should be no socio-economic barriers in learning how to swim. They deliver swimming programmes by volunteer swimming coaches to low income communities and Hong Kong’s domestic helpers. We aim to share our love and provide support for the less privileged by offering a special rate for them to use SIS’s swimming pool once per week.
Charity & Community Service
Charity & Community Service
Community Diversity Cup 2021
The 2021 Community Diversity Cup was the first venture between All Black Football Club and The ESF Lions Football Team. All Black Football Club is a non-profit football club that promotes diversity, social inclusion, and community peacebuilding through sport among the youth of Hong Kong.
The football tournament was intended to be an inclusive event and to provide a platform for play to ALL. Alongside the football matches, there were cultural performances and Christmas Carols.

The football tournament welcomed 18 unique football clubs and schools, 32 teams over 4 age groups and hosted over 260 players for the day.

Many players in HK do not have access to football facilities or coaching. The event tournament provided a safe and fun environment for them and allowed ESF and Non-ESF students the opportunity to enjoy the world-class learning environment at ESF school(s) regardless of their backgrounds, gender and ethnicity.

Following the success of the 1st Football D.E.I event, we intend to continue this event and make it an annual football tournament for years to come.
We have always been at the forefront of showing concern to the underprivileged of society. In October 2018, we donated hundreds of books and toys to charities like Charity Cambodia and schools in the Philippines as well as Hong Kong Young Life, a youth charity in Hong Kong which also supports young single mothers and their children.

Anna Adasiewicz, our former Head of Operations and Business Development, was in Sri Lanka and donated many of our books to the Denipitiya Primary School in Weligama. The students and teachers were happy and delighted at this gesture! We hope the beneficiaries will enjoy the books as reading unlocks the future.
Crossroads Foundation is a Hong Kong based, non-profit organization serving global need. Their humanitarian aid is targeted towards entrenched poverty. They redistribute quality goods donated by the Hong Kong community to NGOs, in over 95 countries, who have applied to them with details of their needs and development plans. To provide help for individuals and families living in vulnerable circumstances, we donated sports kits like shirts, jerseys, hoodies, shorts, socks, shoes, footballs, sport gears, and more to Crossroads Foundation in the past few years.
Everyone should have the opportunity to reach their full potential. Love 21 Foundation is a charity dedicated to bettering the lives of those living with Down syndrome and autism in Hong Kong through physical activity and nutrition. They provide a variety of sports and exercise classes for them. We joined hands with Love 21 Foundation by offering the free use of KGV’s multi-sports pitch and basketball court once per week. Participants have continued to improve their basketball/football skills, teamwork, and communication.
In 2012, we took part in the Charity Football Tournament at King George V School organised by Christian Action by offering a special rate of renting the football pitch.

The aim of this tournament is to raise funds for programmes that empower refugees and the underprivileged population in Hong Kong. Christian Action was established in 1985 as a Hong Kong registered charitable organization. They serve those who are disadvantaged, marginalized, displaced, or abandoned. They provide service to ethnic minorities, migrant domestic workers, new arrivals, refugees, youth development, and other support services.
In March 2015, we organised a toy and book collection across our venues. The collected items were then shipped to Sri Lanka to the Isabella Peatfield Foundation. The charity was set up in the memory of 5-year-old Isabella, who lost her life in the Boxing Day Tsunami of 2004, to help support Sri Lankan orphans and underprivileged children across the region.
Books were donated by staff and students in November 2014. They were delivered to Cambodian orphans and underprivileged children in collaboration with Indochina Starfish Foundation (ISF). ISF is a Cambodian charity with over 13 years of experience using education and sport to change lives. The children were delighted with the generous donations.
Working alongside Vision First, ESF Language & Learning ran a community drive at various locations. Donations included clothes for children, women, and men; food – cans and dried goods; and kitchen equipment – kettles, rice cookers, cups, and plates. Families attending our Language classes donated to this worthy cause, the collection of which took place on Saturday 29th March, 2014
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