Kellett School signs lease for new campus at The Bay Hub in Kowloon Bay

HONG KONG SAR, 3 September 2025 – Kellett School, the British International School in Hong Kong SAR, today signed a leasing agreement for two floors of retail podium at The Bay Hub in Kowloon Bay, a Grade A office building owned by the joint-venture between PAG and Mapletree. The new premises will serve as an extension of the school’s existing Kowloon Bay Campus, enhancing its capacity to deliver a diverse and dynamic learning environment. JLL facilitated the transaction, marking the third largest retail leasing deal in Hong Kong this year.

Kellett School has leased the entire first and second floors, totalling approximately 45,272 sq ft in gross floor area. The new campus is scheduled to commence operations in August next year (subject to Education Bureau (EDB) approval). The new bespoke Sixth Form Centre* with capacity for 240 students will be connected by a footbridge to Kellett's existing Kowloon Bay campus. The university-style facilities will include a dozen classrooms, state-of-the-art study areas for independent and collaborative work, and social spaces to enable students to thrive academically and socially.

Paul Tam, Leasing Director of PAG, said: "We are delighted to welcome Kellett School to The Bay Hub. We look forward to collaborating with Kellett School, supporting its pursuit of excellence and continued growth."

Michelle Chan, Senior Vice President, Investment and Asset Management, North Asia, Mapletree, commented: “We are very pleased to provide quality and suitable space to Kellet School to offer additional interesting facilities to its students. With the addition of Kellett School to The Bay Hub’s list of prime tenants, we are positive that we will continue to see good progress in the occupancy of the building.”

Paul Tough, Principal of Kellett School, added: "Kellett continually strives for excellence in teaching and learning, and dynamic learning environments that inspire our students are vital to this. We’re thrilled to be opening a new Sixth Form Centre* in The Bay Hub. The design of the university-style facilities for our Y12 and Y13 students has been thoughtfully designed to reflect the transitional nature of Sixth Form as they prepare for a move to university and another level of independence.”

According to JLL Research, this transaction represents the third-largest retail leasing transaction in Hong Kong year-to-date by floor area. Notably, all three of the largest retail leasing deals in 2025 have been secured by international schools – a first on record. This trend reflects the sector’s expansion momentum, driven by the increasing demand for international schools in the city. Demand for large-scale retail space from educational institutions has risen significantly and is expected to continue.

Since early 2025, JLL has facilitated the leasing of approximately 80,000 sq ft of retail and office space at The Bay Hub. In addition to brokering this retail transaction, JLL has been appointed as design and build consultant, as well as facility management provider for the new campus.

Alex Barnes, Managing Director and Head of Leasing at JLL in Hong Kong, said: "We are honoured to be appointed by Kellett School as leasing agent, design and building consultant, and facility management provider for the new campus. Our Property and Asset Management team also oversees the management of The Bay Hub, demonstrating the trust our clients place in our capabilities and the value of our integrated, one-stop real estate services."

The Bay Hub has recorded multiple office and retail leasing transactions this year, with a total gross floor area of approximately 145,000 sq ft. Most tenants are relocating within the district for upgrade purposes. As a result, the occupancy rate of The Bay Hub has risen to nearly 70% as of end-August.

“The office leasing market has shown encouraging signs of recovery, especially for premises with unique offerings. The Bay Hub has introduced a pioneering one-stop leasing solution for office tenants, making it one of the first Grade A office buildings to offer such a service. We provide comprehensive office design and fit-out services, enabling tenants to move into their new premises within two to three months of confirming their requirements and selecting finishes and furnishings. This streamlined approach significantly reduces fit-out costs and shortens construction timelines, which we believe will be highly attractive to prospective tenants,” Paul Tam added.

*The Sixth Form Centre remains subject to approval by the EDB.

The Bay Hub is a Grade A office building located at the heart of Kowloon East CBD2. The uniquely designed facade makes the building an eye-catching commercial landmark in Kowloon East. Its spacious interior and flexible floor plans cater to the varying needs of companies with spectacular harbour and mountain views. The spacious single floor area is approximately 35,000 square feet. It was awarded Platinum level of certificate by LEED and BEAM Plus. For leasing enquiries, please contact Jasmine Chan at 55309640.

Kellett School was founded in 1976 as a not-for-profit association by like-minded parents, in order to provide a high-quality British education to the English-speaking community in Hong Kong. Today Kellett, the British International School in Hong Kong, educates around 1,550 students from 4 to 18 years in the English National Curriculum, offering a truly outstanding education, evidenced by a BSO Inspection (2023), membership of COBIS, HMC and IAPS, as well as exceptional public examination results.

Headquartered in Singapore, Mapletree is a global real estate development, investment, capital and property management company committed to sustainability. Its strategic focus is to invest in markets and real estate sectors with good growth potential. By combining its key strengths, the Group has established a track record of award-winning projects, and delivers consistently attractive returns across real estate asset classes.

The Group manages three Singapore-listed real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) and nine private equity real estate funds, which hold a diverse portfolio of assets in Asia Pacific, Europe, the United Kingdom (“UK”) and the United States (“US”). As at 31 March 2025, Mapletree owns and manages S$80.3 billion of office, retail, logistics, industrial, data centre, residential and student accommodation properties.

The Group’s assets are located across 13 markets globally, namely Singapore, Australia, Canada, China, Europe, Hong Kong SAR, India, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, the UK, the US and Vietnam. To support its global operations, Mapletree has established an extensive network of offices in these countries.

For more information, please visit www.mapletree.com.sg.

PAG is a leading Asia Pacific-focused alternative investment firm which manages more than USD55 billion in capital across Private Equity, Real Assets and Credit & Markets businesses for a globally diversified base of 300 institutional investors. PAG has more than 790 employees in 15 key offices globally. For more information, please visit www.pag.com.