Offene Schule Köln

Investment

The Offene Schule Köln, located in Cologne-Rodenkirchen, is an inclusive educational institution centred around a newly developed purpose-built campus.

Since August 2022, approximately 650 students have attended the school annually, around 25% of whom have identified special educational needs requiring tailored pedagogical support.

The expansion of the campus to a total gross floor area of 11,310 square metres created approximately 263 additional school places.

A socially differentiated tuition model ensures broad accessibility and contributes significantly to educational equity and social inclusion.

The total investment volume amounts to approximately EUR 50 million with a lease term of 25 years.

The development incorporated sustainable construction principles and resource-efficient building operations to minimise environmental impacts throughout the asset lifecycle.

Classrooms and educational facilities were specifically designed to support innovative learning environments and experiential learning concepts, creating optimal conditions for educational achievement and personal development.

Project Name

Offene Schule Köln

Financing Instrument

NEXT Impact Fund (NEXT S.C.A. SICAV-FIS)

Asset Class

Real Assets (Education Infrastructure)

Investment Volume

Approx. EUR 50 million

Sectors

Education, Clean Energy, Social Equity and Inclusion, Youth Development, Climate Action

Impact Themes

Social Inclusion, Equal Opportunities, Climate Action, Education Access

Expected Return

Returns exceed risk-adjusted market benchmarks.

Investment Horizon

25 years

Investment Year

2022

Co-Investors

Institutional investors through the NEXT Impact Fund vehicle

Further Information

https://www.next-generation-invest.de/de/Die-offene-Schule-Koeln-OSK/

https://www.offene-schule-koeln.de/offene-schule-koeln-willkommen/

Impact

The school was designed and constructed according to climate-conscious building principles.

Approximately 650 students receive highly individualised educational support and can pursue different educational pathways ranging from secondary school qualifications to university entrance certificates.

Around 25% of students have identified special educational needs and benefit from dedicated support structures.

Compared with the reference building scenario, lifecycle CO₂ emissions are expected to be reduced by approximately 21% over a 50-year operating period.

Region

Europe

Country

Germany

Impact Measurement & Management (IMM)

The investment applies a comprehensive, multi-layered impact measurement framework designed to capture both sustainability performance and societal value creation.

Already during the provision of mezzanine financing, a comprehensive sustainability assessment was conducted. Due to the project's exceptionally strong sustainability performance, favourable financing conditions and a reduced interest rate could be achieved.

In addition to conventional investment due diligence processes, a dedicated ESG and Impact Due Diligence was conducted for the acquisition within the NEXT Impact Fund.

The impact assessment combines:

• General sustainability assessment;
• Dedicated impact assessment;
• Theory of Change analysis;
• Additionality assessment;
• Intentionality assessment;
• Impact risk assessment;
• Classification according to the five dimensions of impact established by the Impact Management Project (IMP).

More than 60 indicators are used within the sustainability assessment framework, covering:

• Location and surrounding environment;
• Building management;
• Asset characteristics;
• Operator engagement and user-centred design.

The central analytical question focuses on additionality:

What positive outcomes were created compared with a business-as-usual scenario?

Reference Frameworks

• UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
• Impact Management Project (IMP)
• Theory of Change
• BVII Impact Investing Criteria
• ESG Criteria
• Internal and external impact scoring methodologies

Overall IMP Assessment

C — Contribute to Solutions

The early mobilisation of risk capital and subsequent investment into Offene Schule Köln enabled the realisation of the new campus and the creation of additional educational capacity.

Given the significant shortage of innovative, inclusive and needs-based educational concepts in Germany, the investment represents a substantial contribution towards solving a structural societal challenge and is therefore classified as:

C — Contribute to Solutions.

Problem and Solution

Problem

The German education system does not always adequately meet the needs of students requiring specialised educational support.

Equal opportunity means ensuring that all students have the possibility to realise their full potential, including access to higher educational qualifications and university entrance pathways.

Learning environments and physical infrastructure play an important role in enabling concentration, inclusion and individualised learning.

Solution

The new campus of Offene Schule Köln enables a larger number of students to access high-quality and highly individualised education.

At the same time, the project incorporates environmental sustainability considerations through climate-conscious construction methods and sustainable operational management, ensuring that educational improvements are achieved without compromising the wellbeing of future generations.

Potential Negative Impacts

The construction of the new campus required the development of previously undeveloped land, resulting in land sealing as a material adverse impact.

Within the framework of the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR), this corresponds primarily to Principal Adverse Impact Indicator 22: LandArtificialisation .

A further potential impact relates to Indicator 21: Raw Materials Consumption for New Construction.

However, the project placed strong emphasis on sustainable building materials, circularity and recyclability, while complying with the Do No Significant Harm (DNSH) criteria for Environmental Objective 1 under the EU Taxonomy.

As a result, land artificialisation remains the project's most significant residual adverse impact.