History of ELABasel - The Swiss British School

Founded in 1993, ELABasel began as a small English speaking childcare centre known as Tiny Tots. Over the past 30 years, it has grown into a leading international school, now known as ELABasel – The Swiss British School, offering Early Years, Kindergarten, Primary and Secondary education.

The school operates across two central Basel locations, Gartenstrasse 93 and St. Alban Vorstadt 32, both carefully renovated to provide modern, child centred learning environments.

The Gartenstrasse site, known historically as Ulmenhof (“Elms Court”), dates back to 1893. Commissioned by Professor Jacob Wackernagel, it was designed by Basel architects Edward Vischer Sarasin and Edward Füter Gelzer, who also created the SBB railway building. Once surrounded by elm trees and part of Basel’s former Botanical Gardens, Ulmenhof later served as corporate offices before becoming a protected property in 2003. ELABasel moved into the building in 2008, restoring it to a place of learning and laughter.

Today, Gartenstrasse accommodates over 200 children across Early Years and Lower Primary, supported by a purpose built playground added in 2019. In 2022, ELABasel expanded into the nearby Wildensteinerhof on St. Alban Vorstadt, a grand historical building dating to 1775, marking a new chapter in the school’s distinguished history.

Gartenstrasse

Ulmenhof (or Elms Court) is the historical name of the ELABasel Early Years and Lower Primary School (Kindergarten). It is located on Gartenstrasse in the business centre of Basel, close to the main train station known as the SBB (Schweizerische Bundesbahnenmain, or Swiss Federal Railways). In 1840 this area was part of the Botanical Gardens of Basel. Towards the end of the 19th century the Botanical Gardens were moved to a new site at Spalentor. In 1893, Gartenstrasse 93 was commissioned by Professor Jacob Wackernagel, a son of the German linguist Wilhelm Wackernagel. Professor Wackernagel was married to Marie Stehlin and they moved into “Ulmenhof” where they raised a family of six children before moving to Göttingen, Germany in 1902. The name “Ulmenhof” was chosen because the garden was filled with elm trees, or Ulmen. The prestigious mansion was designed by Edward Vischer-Sarasin and Edward Füter-Gelzer, Basel architects who were also responsible for the SBB building.

In 1942 the house was bought by a company called Ruhr and Saar-Kohle, and an additional building was added to the rear with garages and rooms for concerts. The Ulmenhof was used as their headquarters until the mid-1990’s. It was then owned for a short time by an investment company and a lawyer before it was bought by a trust. In 2003 it was declared a protected property and in July 2008 ELABasel moved into Ulmenhof from two other locations and once again the property and grounds became a place for children.

Gartenstrasse is now home to 100 children in Early Years aged 3 months to 4 years. In 2019 we constructed a brand new purpose built playground for the children as part of our commitment to outdoor learning and play.

First day of School at Ulmenhof – August 2008

St. Alban-Vorstadt

The house at St. Alban-Vorstadt 58 was built in 1855 after a plan from Melchior Berri, a well-known Swiss architect, who owned a construction business and a school of design and construction in Basel. Not only was he a Swiss master builder but also an honorary member of the Architectural Society of London.

Until the end of the 19th century the area belonged to the monastery of St. Alban and they used the site to press fruit and grapes. The land was eventually purchased by the Vischer-Staehelin family who sold it to the banker Merian-Forcart in 1907. In 1855 the house at the corner Malzgasse/St. Alban-Vorstadt was built for Eduard Merian-Bischoff and his family. The back building was added some decades later when the location was used for business purposes, first for trading silk and textiles, later for building materials. In 1998 it was bought by a private bank who then sold it to a private owner in 2011.

ELABasel moved in with its Primary School in 2013. In August 2022 ELABasel moved to the bigger, more beautiful and very historical Wildensteinerhof building just 130 metres away at St. Alban-Vorstadt 32 which was built in 1775. Our Primary school now caters for over 150 children from the ages of 5-12.