Part 4: The Build and The Belief

Part 4 of the IOS Story

So, Year 1 of Immanuel Online School began, with NorthStar running alongside it, a new baby, and a tremendous amount of work.

Steve and Lyn Richards were an amazing support and incredible help in those early stages with their advice, wisdom, and kind encouragement and prayers. Similarly, Steve Beegoo and his team, both at CST and Christian Concern, supported the project, providing the invaluable opportunity to network.

Others in the Christian education field were working on various things: resources, other online ventures, learning centres and schools. There was a lot happening and it was an exciting time.

The first year of the live track was all about learning. There was a tremendous amount to learn, grow and nurture.

Then there was accessibility setup, payment systems, tutor induction and onboarding programs, course development and finalisation of the curriculum. This included IGCSE content and research, and engaging specialists and examiners to write excellent courses that perfectly covered the syllabus and, at KS3, tracked above the national curriculum.

Then there was admin and more admin. Queries and emails poured in, sometimes up to 150 emails a day! Virtual learning portal development, coding custom plugins, reporting and assessment and feedback systems, gradebooks and tracking, gamification, adding additional rooms for stretch and challenge, and baseline assessments in English and Maths with personalised pathways (partnered with a platform to do this).

There were subscriptions to purchase: Britannica, Kahoot!, Save My Exams, and more. Arranging live timetables and links, and attendance modules. Organising tutor availability and student timetables. Invoices, dealing with late payments or even those who couldn't or wouldn't pay – allowing grace but realising also that it wouldn't be sustainable on that basis. Induction rooms, setting up live lounges, organising pastoral and academic mentors for each student. Agreeing on term dates, recruitment – both tutors and admin staff, and students – the right people. Advertising and marketing considerations. Setting up social media and developing the website to include all the information. Further updates and technical management of the VLE. Oh, and the list went on.

God knew that Year 1 had to be small, and of course, looking back, it was all the more clear – though perhaps disappointing and worrying while in it! All this work… and what would Year 2 hold? Also, was the model sustainable? Others wanting to start online schools were surprised by the low fees. In some cases, we charged a quarter of what other online schools charged, offering smaller class sizes and as much, if not more, care and personal attention.

Of course, this was only possible as most of the work that otherwise would be the equivalent of several part- or full-time jobs (IT, admin, finance, oversight, etc., etc.) was done in-house… and just about managing at the time to pay tutors. No profit was made, and barely enough to live on. Years 1 and 2 necessarily meant dipping into savings to live and pay the bills.

Year 1 of the school was also Year 1 of little Sammy, growing well and wonderfully but keeping us up at night for the duration of the year, bar a few nights. So it was an immensely challenging year in some respects: a wondering if we were doing the right thing or were crazy, like everyone thought we were… and a time of personal challenge in terms of time and resources.

We kept going. And there was also a lot of joy in the challenge and in the togetherness. And in the humility and sense of genuinely doing something that we knew had to be of the Lord, or nothing. Too many variables simply didn't depend on us… and that meant for it to continue (and we held it with an open hand) it had to be a miracle.

Year 1 whizzed by. We awaited another September… this time prepared, but entirely open to whatever would happen, having no control. During the year, we had even dropped back down to just three students. Now, Year 8s would go into Year 9. We were prepared for Year 7 to Year 10 entry. And… thankfully, the applications started to come in. Slowly but surely. Year 1 was also about faith. Focusing on doing what was "right" and never worrying (too much) about what was logical. Seeking first His kingdom, the school's key verse was our life verse during the year as well.

Looking back to when Jonathan created the simple website and put it up with a prayer, had we known all the steps involved to where we were at the end of year 1, we might never have been bold enough to go for it! The process and all the required steps had been obfuscated, with good reason, from our view at the time!

But then, almost unexpectedly, things began to take off — and God’s timing in it all proved to be perfect.

What began in our first year with a single pilot Year 8 class and just a handful of students has now grown into a full programme covering every year group from Year 7 through to Year 11 (with IGCSEs in Years 10 and 11) — and multiple classes in each year. Demand has been so strong that some classes developed waiting lists, prompting us to increase capacity.

We’ve expanded from a tiny founding team to a team of 25 (and counting). We had some amazing people join the team and notably Judah, our executive administrator, who took to the work (and there was all sorts of it!) like a duck to water! Our students — particularly those on the NSW track — now join us from over 20 countries around the globe, with 80% of our live track learners based in the United Kingdom.

Today, we offer a range of learning tracks as well as open-access courses, all supported by a strong, well-established curriculum. Our students achieve excellent IGCSE results and, just as importantly, many flourish in ways that might never have been possible in a traditional setting.

We are not run like a business. Our aim is to keep fees low while growing in the right way — attracting the families God is sending us, rather than chasing numbers. This matters deeply to us. We would love your help in sharing our work within your Christian networks and helping to spread the word.

From the very beginning, we have made it clear to every applicant that we are unapologetically Christian and Biblical in our outlook. All our tutors are committed Christians who share this worldview. We are open about our ethos and our primary focus: to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness in all things — especially in education. Our desire is to put Him first, trusting that all these things will be added in His perfect timing.

Alongside this, we are committed to delivering excellent education that not only tracks above the national curriculum but also offers enterprise and entrepreneurship opportunities, as well as stretch-and-challenge activities for all our students. We want them to have the opportunity not just to get ahead academically, but to grow through a truly Christ-centred education.