Our school was founded informally by parents, we believe in 1990. It was a school for very young children only – the product of parents who were concerned that being in China should not present an obstacle to the family being together, nor to the children receiving a good education.

After several years in rented rooms in a local school, NIS moved with a handful of students to the Dingshan (now Shangri-La) hotel. With the help of local businesses, six rooms were renovated for use as a school. Between 1997 and 2004, NIS renovated more and more rented facilities at the Shangri-La. The school grew from 35 to 300 students in this time.

In 2004, NIS moved to its own purpose-built premises in Xianlin College and University Town, on the outskirts of Nanjing. Realising this dream was the culmination of a sustained team effort, lasting several years.

The closeness of the NIS community, so prevalent in the 1990s, is something we still value highly today. Our school is a friendly and open place, and we hope that your family too, like those before you, will feel welcome and at home in our school.